This Side of Paradise

by Steven L. Layne

Book Overview

Winner of the Hal Clement Award for Young Adult Science Fiction Literature, 2002 Texas Lone Star List, 2003-2004

"An entertaining, suspenseful thriller with a genuinely chilling villain. Good fun." -- Kirkus Reviews
"Layne's tale is a heady mix of conspiracies, alternate identities, and sinister underground laboratories with a creepy schitzophrenic villain that readers will love to hate. Recommend this title to thriller fans who will enjoy...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1589800966
• ISBN13: 9781589800960
• Release Date: September 2002
• Publisher: Pelican Publishing Company
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.8"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

My classes love this book!

I teach sixth grade Language Arts and I read this book to my classes. They loved it. They begged for me to keep reading on days when I didn't have time. I have not seen my kids so excited about a book all year long. They loved the characters--especially the grandmother.

Finalist Golden Duck Hal Clement Award

Disturbing near future story of a high school boy whose father wants a perfect family. His alcoholic mother, eccentric grandmother, and hotheaded brother are a threat to this perfection.When the father forces the family to move to Paradise because of his new job with Mr. Eden, Jack realizes the perfection is not everything he expected it would be.I really enjoyed this book . The characters will very interesting. The grandmother is wonderfully warm and funny, yet protective of her grandson. I thought there were some interesting twists in the plot. I think that young treaders would enjoy this book very much.

A suspenseful story

The book, THIS SIDE OF PARADISE, I would say is the most interesting book I have ever read. Paradise isn't like any usual utopian society. This book kept me on my toes the whole time, the suspense was GREAT! I recomend reading this book. I guarantee you will not regret it.

A Review of This Side of Paradise

When you read "This Side of Paradise" you expect it to be about some child dreaming. However, when I read this novel I immediatley realized it was a different type of book. As I got further into it, I was absorbed, I couldn't stop reading. I loved this book and greatly enjoyed these characters. The book could be so serious, and then Gram would come in and would make it hilarious. At times I was laughing hysterically, and at others I was simply dumbfounded at what I had just found out. If you enjoy reading about Utopian societies, you would absolutely love this book. Not only was it abou a Utopian society, it had so many different twists and turns, that surprised me. If I had to recommend this book i would recommend it to a young adult audience. As a teenager, I can tell you it is a wonderful book.

George Isaac's Review

This is one of the best sci-fi books i have read in a long time. It teaches kids that there is no such thing as perfection. There is always a down side to it. I loved it a great deal. of course, my teacher is the author of this book so i had read it before it actually came out. This is a definite can't stop reading it.