Paperback features over fifty pages of bonus materials, including a sneak peek of Insurgent, an author Q&A, a discussion guide, a Divergent playlist, faction manifestos, and more! In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent).
On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives.
For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself. During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made.
Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen.
But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her. Veronica Roth is the New York Times bestselling author of Divergent, the first in a trilogy of dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance."
Literature Guru –
The system sets us up for failure and abuse.
Glancing through some of the reviews and commentary on A Pillar of Hope, I noticed that most readers focus on the abuse the author went through, but fail to highlight a deeper issue. Our system and our society often betray us and set us up for these unfortunate incidents.
Millie’s story is a perfect demonstration of how societal decay gives birth to abuse, neglect, and even death. We make life unbearable for our citizens in their own country. A place where they are supposed to thrive and bring out the best in themselves becomes a place they yearn to escape from.
Going abroad in disadvantaged positions exposes us to abuse and betrayal. What if we went abroad to showcase to the world what we can offer, rather than fleeing because life back home has failed us? A Pillar of Hope is uncomfortable to read because it raises uncomfortable questions for those who sit on the throne of power.
The author was first betrayed by those who were supposed to care for her, protect her, and help her achieve her potential. Being abused abroad was merely an extension of what our own people were already capable of doing.
The book is authentic and informative. Life on the other side is not what we see in the movies.