Teen, inc. And why you should read it By Roland Allen

Plot outline Teen, Inc. is a novel by Stefan Petrucha which follows the story of Jaiden Beale, a boy whose parents were killed by a faulty piece of equipment manufactured at NECorp. With the death of his parents, NECorp, the company responsible for his death, legally adopted him. Committees essentially became his parents, as people in suits discussed how he should live his life.

Plot outline cont. All is going along fairly well until Jaiden discovers that his company is responsible for mercury poisoning in the nearby rivers. Considering the company is the only family Jaiden has ever known, he tries not to take notice. But when he meets Jenny, a girl at school, and her Dad, the leading scientist who found out the high mercury levels in the first place (and is fundamentally opposed to NECorp, and a communist), his whole world is turned upside down.

Plot outline cont. Should he rebel against the company that feeds him, or team up with his new friends and try to take NECorp down?

Themes in the novel The moral dilemmas in the novel present some interesting themes. Growing up is a large part of this novel, as Jaiden is in Year 8, and a teenager. Weighing up your actions is a big part of this novel as well. For example, there are many people at NECorp that have been nice and helpful to Jaiden throughout his time there…

Themes in the novel cont. … And Jaiden has a dilemma of whether to try to take down NECorp because of what he has found out, and also to impress Jenny, or whether to be loyal to NECorp and to make sure the people who worked for him over the years don’t get fired (which is a risk if NECorp goes bust). Another theme in this novel is critical thinking. Jaiden can’t necessarily take everything that he hears from people as total truth, and has to work out the real from the false, the good from the bad etc.

My Opinion of the book In my opinion, this is one of the best books I have read for a while. It makes you think but it is also a very enjoyable read and towards the end of the book it starts getting very exciting. Jaiden also gives some humourous observations of day-to-day life.

Conclusion Teen, inc. is a good book to read if you want a fast paced book and would like something to think about after you read.

Thanks for listening.