In the not too very distant future Katey AKA Kid goes to school in the Game, a mall turned into a school by corporate sponsors. Basically a real world Facebook, kids are used to create and test new products and everyone is connected, networked, and watched 24/7, but don’t worry as Kid says herself, “We like the attention.” But when a corporate sponsor ‘brands’ Kid and she meets a group of social outcasts called the Unidentified, she starts to question if her identity is for sale. When she starts to get more involved with the Unidentified and their mysterious leader she puts herself in the middle of a conflict larger than she ever dreamed.
This is a SPOT ON look at the obsession with virtual connectedness, the obsession with fitting in, and consumer culture. Anyone that has spent hours at a time on Facebook or MySpace while texting friends at the same time should be truly freaked by this book. The plot has plenty of twists and suspense, but the real draw is the bizarre world of the Game and the ways it resembles our current tech and brand obsession, but this book isn’t technology phobic. Kid and her friends use technology themselves to express themselves and find ways to get back at the Game. this is Mariz’s first book for teens, but hopefully we’ll see many more. The Unidentified is a rare book that can look at problems with society AND have realistic human characters that the reader cares about. Check it out, then ‘Like’ it on Facebook, tweet about it, and text all your friends about how cool it is!
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