Gender selection has led to there being five boys for every

Once you settle and acknowledge these differences from the usual dystopian tropes, you can enjoy the book for its uniqueness and see where it shines.īodger explores a dystopian India in which Additionally this debut novel is told in alternating points of Third, there is no romance in the book which allows the author to show how the gender selection effects each gender without any rose tinted glasses placed upon the characters. Second, the book is not your average heart pounding action book, the book moves steadily yet slowly focusing more on character development. First 5 to 1 is what I call a soft dystopian, there is not an emphasis on the world that Bodger created which ironically works in the author's favor because the book's basis is steeped in reality of gender politics. Review: In order to enjoy 5 to 1 there are few things you have to keep in mind. They slowly realize that they just might want the same thing. Tests advance, Sudasa and Kiran thwart each other at every turn until Kiran’s family wants him to escape by failing the tests. The right thing and pick a husband who will keep her comfortable-andĬaged. Sudasa’s family wants nothing more than for their daughter to do Sudasa doesn’t want to be a wife, and Kiran, a boyįorced to compete in the test to become her husband, has other plans as Have instituted a series of tests so that every boy has the chance to Marrying off their daughters to the highest bidder and determined toįinally make marriage fair, the women who form the country of Koyanagar 'synopsis' may belong to another edition of this title.Decades of gender selection, India now has a ratio of five boys forĮvery girl, making women an incredibly valuable commodity. This beautiful, unique novel is told from alternating points of view-Sudasa's in verse and Five's in prose-allowing readers to experience both characters' pain and their brave struggle for hope. As the tests advance, Sudasa and Five thwart each other at every turn until they slowly realize that they just might want the same thing. Sudasa, though, doesn't want to be a wife, and Five, a boy forced to compete in the test to become her husband, has other plans as well.

Tired of marrying off their daughters to the highest bidder and determined to finally make marriage fair, the women who form the country of Koyanagar have instituted a series of tests so that every boy has the chance to win a wife. In the year 2054, after decades of gender selection, India now has a ratio of five boys for every girl, making women an incredibly valuable commodity. Part Homeless Bird and part Matched, this is a dark look at the near future told through the alternating perspectives of two teens who dare to challenge the system.

5 to 1 by Holly Bodger