This book went down well in our house ... its interesting how the main character grows up under the awful events....Book 2 in this series is much better though
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Life as We Knew It
(2006, Fiction - Science Fiction, Written by Susan Pfeffer)
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings(Flash is loading. If this text does not disappear you need to install the latest flash version)
Not age appropriate for kids under 10, age appropriate for kids over 13; suggested age 10. -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Terrifying disaster story will prompt discussions.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 10–13
The good stuff
What to watch out for
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
About Life as We Knew It
Parents need to know that, while there's nothing graphic or particularly objectionable here, this book about a global disaster will be terrifying to some children, especially those without the experience to put it in context. Young readers may want to know more about their own family's readiness for disaster, and about the likelihood of these types of events occurring.
Read our full review by Matt Berman
Families Can Talk About
- Families can talk about their own disaster plans and what could be done to make them feel more prepared. How can we stay safe and together in the event of an emergency? And a bigger questions raised here: How far would you go to survive?
Our Members Say
See all 18 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
- I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
A good solid read
- I rate this title on for age 14 and give it
- My highlights are:
- Educational
This is "the book as i knew it" (which was amazing)
This book was AMAZING!!! i read it in 3 days (with interuptions), and everytime i picked it up, it was impossible to put down. Im definitley getting the second one which is called "the Dead and the Gone." i wouldnt recommend this book to anyone younger than 14 because of the realistic terror that, at times had made me feel as thought this could happen to me, but, because of Miranda's (the girl writing this book as a journal) well written description this book would be like a "how to survive when an astroid moves the moon closer in orbit," lol. READ THIS BOOK!!!
- I rate this title iffy for age 12 and give it
Great Book, but I would save for age 13+
This was on my son's list for Battle of the Books this summer, and it looked interesting, so I got it for him. He read it in one day and proclaimed it one of the best and scariest books he has read in a while. He insisted I read it, too. Like him, I was completely unable to put it down. I highly recommend it. That being said, I will not give it to my 10 year old daughter to read. The romance with Dan, some talks about sex... I think many 10 year olds are ready for that.
- I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
This book really kept me going!
I loved this book. The ending was kind of pointless. I just wished they would have told if Lisa had her baby and if their lives ever got back to normal. It just really kind of ended like it began. But over all I liked it.
- I rate this title iffy for age 11 and give it
An amazing real life non-fiction book!!! A have to read!!!
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