The Limit | Kristen Landon
Matt isn't too worried when a middle school student from her family and sent to help pay off her family's debt at a workhouse. Sure, it's the first time he's heard of someone that young having to do it, but it's not like his family is going to go over their government-mandated limit. His dad is always off playing golf with important clients which help bring home the money to buy new. If they weren't well off, well, it would be as simple as not shopping.
For as good as Matt is with numbers, he never sees his own family's finical downfall looming. In short time, both he and his sister arrive at the same workhouse. He's surprised by the lavish lifestyle kids are given, as they are assigned to projects to help lower their family's spending, but he quickly adapts. When his sister has a sudden seizure, though, he begins to wonder if maybe there is something more sinister lurking behind their hours spent before computer screens. I'm on the fence for this one. The premise is incredibly intriguing, particularly at this moment in economic history. I haven't come across many middle-grade titles, other than Gary Paulsen's Lawn Boy, that talk about money in a real and honest way. Landon's description of clueless parents, who care for their children, but not their finances, who fall for get-rich-quick-schemes and have difficulty pulling themselves out of debt is woefully honest. The scene in which Matt's mom learns her limit has been reached -- in public, at a cashier's line -- is so well described. Who hasn't overheard someone's credit card been declined, or worse, had it happen to themselves? It's that much worse when it happens to a mother in front of their children, and the book is a little unflinching in that regard. Buuuutttt.... the kids are then sent off to a paradise-esque playground...um, oh, workhouse? I think this section of the book could have benefited from a little more grit. The underlying mystery unlocked by Matt and his fellow Top Floorers is compelling, but between the day he first set foot into the building and the unlocking of the secret, Landon almost lost me. I didn't buy the swimming pools, the unlimited access to online stores, the sneaky peeky of a first kiss thrown in there. The plotline between those two points is clunky and cost me the rah-rah-rah I needed to feel for Matt. That being said, I will be excited to add this title to our school library's collection. Not only does it touch a nerve with regards to money, commerce and self-control, I like that there is a neatly tied ending that does not promise a series.
Posted on Wednesday, Dec 1, 2010
