Life As We Knew It, by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Amazon.com
It's almost the end of Miranda's sophomore year in high school, and her journal reflects the busy life of a typical teenager: conversations with friends, fights with mom, and fervent hopes for a driver's license. When Miranda first begins hearing the reports of a meteor on a collision course with the moon, it hardly seems worth a mention in her diary. But after the meteor hits, pushing the moon off its axis and causing worldwide earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes, all the things Miranda used to take for granted begin to disappear. Food and gas shortages, along with extreme weather changes, come to her small Pennsylvania town; and Miranda's voice is by turns petulant, angry, and finally resigned, as her family is forced to make tough choices while they consider their increasingly limited options. Yet even as suspicious neighbors stockpile food in anticipation of a looming winter without heat or electricity, Miranda knows that that her future is still hers to decide even if life as she knew it is over.

This was not a book club pick but may well be my pick for my month. It is a young adult selection and it was brought to my attention by my husband who is a Junior High principal who is reading from a book list that is available to his students. This book grabs you and really doesn't let go until the end. The concept of the moon getting knocked out of it's orbit moving closer to the earth and the environmental effects on a teenager girl, her family, friends and ultimately, the world, is a very engrossing read. Because of the gravitational pull of the moon is increased, the earth experiences constant extreme weather circumstances that take their toll on human population. The book is written from a teenage girl's perspective in journal form and we see how a normal teenager goes from worrying about boys and the prom to wondering where her next food is coming from and will she survive the winter. It sounds depressing, but it really is a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to others.

If you've read it, I'd love to hear what you thought.