A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay
(Walker Books)
PB RRP $16.95
ISBN 9781925081701
Reviewed by Anastasia Gonis
Everyone is obedient to the words of the Mothers
that direct their lives. All they know is the world inside the mountains
created by Rockfall, a time when the mountains shifted and land was swallowed
by water.
Jena leads the line of girls that have been
physically ‘adjusted’ so their bodies are pliable enough to wriggle through the
crevices of the rocks that form the periphery of their village. This is a place where females are more
important and necessary than males, for these thin and pliable female bodies
tunnel for the flakes of life-giving mica which keeps the population alive
during the harsh winters.
Jena accidently discovers many truths hidden from
them all. The Mothers have kept their
dangerous secrets well. She learns about the ‘ripening’, enforced to manipulate
the premature birth of babies. This guarantees the abnormally small stature
necessary for the preservation of the line.
She also discovers that there is an Outside, and
everyone has been lied to. Will the
people believe her if she tells them the truth? Can she gather the courage to
make her way through the mountain one last time?
This highly creative novel covers issues of gender,
body image, the abuse of power by persons in positions of authority, and how
easy it is to view people as disposable.
Written in scintillating prose filled with rich
metaphors, this imaginative and well-crafted story is for the 12+ age group.
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