The Testament of Jessie Lamb

September 17, 2012
In this unconvincing dystopian novel, Rogers (The Voyage Home) envisions a society undone by the Maternal Death Syndrome, popularly known as MDS. A cross between Mad Cow disease and AIDS created by mysterious bio-terrorists, the virus infects all people, but it kills pregnant women, calling the very survival of humanity into question. Coming of age in this terrible new world, 16-year-old Jessie Lamb must learn to navigate the complexities of adolescence while her world teeters on the brink of collapse. As Jessie and her friends attempt to deal with the disasters bequeathed them by their parents' generation, they must decide what matters to them, and what they want their world to look like. First seeking refuge in various environmental, feminist, and animal rights causes, Jessie eventually comes to understand that real change is only possible through action, and personal freedom exacts a fearsome toll. When her scientist father tells her about an experimental procedure that holds out hope for new births, everything Jessie believesâabout herself, her family, her life, and the lives of othersâis put to a terrifying test. Although the premise is initially intriguing, Jessie is too much a cipher for readers to care about her and her decision, which is all too predictable. Even as it gestures at big, topical issues, this dystopia is too slight to genuinely frighten.

May 1, 2012
An idealistic young heroine makes a decision that will alter her life, and possibly the world, in Rogers' (The Voyage Home, 2004, etc.) eighth novel. It's not easy being a teenager in Lamb's futuristic world. Like many young people, 16-year-old Jessie is struggling to find her own identity. She's dealing with all of the conflicts inherent in a teen's life--love, friendship, relationships, parental control--but she's also surrounded by an ominous force that threatens the very future of humankind: a genetically engineered virus, known as Maternal Death Syndrome, which destroys pregnant women and their unborn children. Jessie's father, a scientist, is part of a team that is working to stop it. Jessie, who narrates the story, begins to question all the attitudes and values she and her friends have learned as children. In an effort to find herself, Jessie joins an activist group and becomes marginally involved in several causes. As she ponders her role in life, the world around Jessie is disintegrating into chaotic demonstrations over women's equality, genetic engineering, moral injustice and just about every other important social issue known to man. Each is treated superficially by both Jessie and the author, and ultimately these threads detract from what could have been a provocative story. As if Jessie doesn't have enough on her plate already, she also must deal with her beloved aunt's illness, a rocky event in her parents' marriage, a friend's assault, the betrayal of an older adult, and a sexual encounter. Amid the turmoil, Jessie resolves to do something to make her life meaningful, a move that her father and those around her try to prevent. With an emotional disconnect that is inconsistent with true teen behavior, Jessie tries to convince her parents, her friends and herself that her chosen mission is the right path for her--and that one person can, indeed, make a difference. A disturbing story that, in the end, somehow seems a bit shallow.

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April 1, 2012
Rogers, the author of Mr. Wroe's Virgins (1999), offers up a powerful dystopian novel in which pregnancy has become a death sentence. Terrorists have concocted a deadly virus known as MDS, which breaks down the proteins in the brains of pregnant women, killing them long before they are ready to deliver. Sixteen-year-old Jessie Lamb is the daughter of a scientist who is looking for a cure for MDS. She's also a budding activist, flirting with youth groups that have sprung up in the face of this worldwide disaster. Jessie watches as her best friend, Sal, joins a fervent feminist group while her crush, Baz, gets involved with an increasingly radical animal-rights faction. Both groups are polarized when scientists develop a new program that might allow women to carry babies to term, at the cost of their own lives. But Jessie feels like this could be her way to make a difference, much to her parents' horror. Long-listed for the Booker Prize, Rogers' mesmerizing tale is frighteningly timely and bound to spark rich book-club discussions.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)