Tired of Waiting for You - The Kinks

Drought

Author: Pam Bachorz
Pages: 386
Publisher: Egmont

Brief Summary:
Ruby is in no way your average 17 year old girl. This is perhaps most obvious in the fact that she is actually 200. She and her mother and the rest of the Congregation have all lived for centuries. Ruby's father, Otto, led them and gave them long life through the power of his blood, but then he left. In his absence, they have been forced into servitude, made to gather Water so that others may share in the magic. They lied though about what turns water into Water; Darwin West, the man who enslaves them, does not know that there is Water only because Ruby drops some of her blood into it. Like her father's, Ruby's blood has amazing healing powers. Only they may not be strong enough to rescue the Congregation from Darwin West. And Ruby is starting to suspect that her father may never return to save them.

Review:
Drought is a really strange book. Partly because I thought it was going to be a dystopia, which it did seem to be for a while, but then it turned out to be something else. I would not have picked up on the point of the story at all, if not for an observation by one of the characters; I would discuss it, because it's an interesting theme, but the reveal is a part of what makes the story interesting, so I won't. Suffice it to say that it is covering fairly new ground in teen lit.

The story is fairly slow moving without much real action; the characters spend much of the book gathering water and getting beatings. While a whipping may sound like action, it felt more like drudgery, because it happened to the Congregants most every day. Just because the book is slow doesn't mean it was hard to get through; it actually flowed along at a slow pace, like a sluggish river.

The characters were a bit of a weak point. Ruby was definitely most likable, which is good since you see from her perspective. I couldn't get caught up in her romance or her worries about the Congregation though, because I did not see why either one really deserved such devotion.

Religious themes are hugely important to the plot of this novel. The Congregation is so named because they all worship together. They worship Otto, their savior who promised to return (sound somewhat familiar?). They believe in him because of the miracles he performed (now?). A couple of clever things are done with this, such as the scene where Ruby and her love interest both insult one another's beliefs: she his in the Holy Trinity and he hers in Otto.

Overall, I really do not know how I feel about this book. It was just so strange! For that reason alone, I think I am happy to have read it, because it is definitely walking some fresh ground. My plans to read Candor, Bachorz' other book have not changed; this book was well-written enough and interesting enough to earn her another try.

"I'm so tired
Tired of waiting
Tired of waiting for you

I was a lonely soul
I had nobody till I met you
But you keep-a me waiting
All of the time
What can I do? "