Reverie Fair Magazine Winter 2016 | Page 38

I have recently been thrown into the world that is dystopian novels. Dystopian novels have become very popular, not just to avid readers like myself, but to people who have not picked up a book in years. Over the last couple years there has been a high demand for this genre. Maybe the appeal is ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Maybe people like the resilience the characters show. Whatever the reason, I am reading the first book in a trilogy called Rule of Three by Eric Walters.

What is Resilience? Resilience is the ability to handle things in the worst of times. For some people it may be a horrible accident, for others a sick family member. War. Death. I think that everyone has their own meaning for resilience. One of the worst things to happen in my life was my sister getting sick. My world fell apart.Two years later, my family and I continue to deal with it. But we've grown. That, for me, is resilience.

In Rule of Three, the protagonist shows resilience in a different way. Rule of Three takes place in the present time, and one day everything shuts down. Computers, electricity, even cars stop working – all but the few that are not programmed by computers. When everything stops working, panic sets in.

Without electricity and computers, there is no filtered water. Without refrigeration, only fresh food can be consumed. Only the oldest cars can be driven. Only the simplest planes can be flown. I believe that this book is the epitome of resilience.

It sounds a bit ridiculous to think that the world would shut down without all these things. But if you really think about it, how often do you use electricity? How often do you go into your refrigerator? How often do you turn on a light?

Reverie Fair / Winter 2016 38