Scythe by Neal Shusterman

How perfect a world would be if the concept of death were eliminated. All disease and illness gone. Procedures to repair and regenerate body parts is routine; fall off a building? No problem, you'll be back to norm in no time. War? A thing of the past. Aging? Just have it reversed.  Hunger? There's food for everyone now that any food is synthesized. Sounds great, huh? There is a bit of a problem in this future society. How do you regulate population growth? Recognizing the issue, a system is in place. Honored and revered, a Scythe's job is to randomly determine people who will be gleaned which is a kinder word for elimination. The method of elimination is determined by the Scythe. Citra and Rowan are two teenagers who have been chosen to apprentice with Scythe Faraday. Both are feisty and unwilling at first, but once convinced are determined. When attending a Scythe Council meeting, an adversary insists that each Scythe may have only one apprentice. It is determined that their training will be a competition and the winner must glean the loser, and so the adventure begins.
Scythe is classic Shusterman with writing and plot development that makes the reader plunge into this dystopian world and forget reality. This is the first book in Shusterman's Arc of a Scythe series. A Printz Honor Book
Mark's Book Picks Rating: 4

Reading Level: 6.5 • Interest Level: 7-12 • Lexile Level: 830L • AR Points: 17
Publisher: Simon & Schuster • ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6  Available in Perma-Bound Binding