Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
64th out of 64 books
—
5 voters
Bumped (Bumped #1)
by
Megan McCafferty (Goodreads Author)
When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until...more
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until...more
ebook, 237 pages
Published
April 26th 2011
by Balzer + Bray
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
So, Melody and Harmony are our two main characters. And guess what - they're twins! Naw....really?!
Not that they are bad names, but twins named Melody and Harmony?! Cliche much?
The similar names also made it very difficult to keep straight on who was who. The perspective jumps back and forth between the two of them just about every couple pages or so. The breakneck speed of the switches makes it difficult to develop a connection to the characters or keep track of what in the heehaw is goin' on....more
Not that they are bad names, but twins named Melody and Harmony?! Cliche much?
The similar names also made it very difficult to keep straight on who was who. The perspective jumps back and forth between the two of them just about every couple pages or so. The breakneck speed of the switches makes it difficult to develop a connection to the characters or keep track of what in the heehaw is goin' on....more
144 likes · like · see review
view all 61 comments
Wha-wha-WHAAT? What just happened there?
Okay, let’s start at the beginning. Bumped is a ‘dystopian’ novel set in 2035 where a virus has wiped out the ability of every person over the age of eighteen to reproduce. (Why eighteen? How eighteen? Does the virus come built-in with an age-o-meter that tells it when to strike?) The population is rapidly declining, leaving only one section of the planet capable of procreating. The teenagers. At the point at which this novel starts, it is already establi...more
Okay, let’s start at the beginning. Bumped is a ‘dystopian’ novel set in 2035 where a virus has wiped out the ability of every person over the age of eighteen to reproduce. (Why eighteen? How eighteen? Does the virus come built-in with an age-o-meter that tells it when to strike?) The population is rapidly declining, leaving only one section of the planet capable of procreating. The teenagers. At the point at which this novel starts, it is already establi...more
86 likes · like · see review
I suspect that for some, the amount of enjoyment and/or engagement they experience while reading Bumped will be directly proportional to the manner in which they approach it.
It’s just a theory, and I can’t speak for anyone but myself, but I do think that an analysis of Bumped needs to take into account the angle a person has chosen to read it from. Taken at face value, there is content and style to the story that some readers may find problematic or even objectionable. Read as a satirical take o...more
It’s just a theory, and I can’t speak for anyone but myself, but I do think that an analysis of Bumped needs to take into account the angle a person has chosen to read it from. Taken at face value, there is content and style to the story that some readers may find problematic or even objectionable. Read as a satirical take o...more
28 likes · like · see review
Jun 09, 2013
Katya
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2011,
favorites,
teen-lit,
silently-contemplating,
satire,
dystopia,
feminism,
the-ya-project
Hey, didja know I'm deconstructing this for the Lantern? You can find my posts here .
This is a CD cover for one of Korn's albums. I'm putting it up here because it adequately describes the feelings this book brought up for me.
Disclaimer: I love Megan McCafferty's books. This review may be biased.
You have been warned.
I won't deny it - I've been waiting to get my hands on this piece for ages. I've been reading about it for months now, the good and the bad, (more of the former, less of the latter...more
This is a CD cover for one of Korn's albums. I'm putting it up here because it adequately describes the feelings this book brought up for me.
Disclaimer: I love Megan McCafferty's books. This review may be biased.
You have been warned.
I won't deny it - I've been waiting to get my hands on this piece for ages. I've been reading about it for months now, the good and the bad, (more of the former, less of the latter...more
8 likes · like · see review
Someone told me this was a satire - I don't remember who - and to take everything that was said with a grain of salt.
It's really a case of what not to do in novels and case in point, sometimes even the wrongest novels still get published.
I mean, a YA book promoting sex for procreation only and babies as commodities?
It's not meant to be believable, but it totally is. Sterile adults control teenage fertility and the teenagers think they're the ones in control. Megan McCafferty clearly knows her ge...more
It's really a case of what not to do in novels and case in point, sometimes even the wrongest novels still get published.
I mean, a YA book promoting sex for procreation only and babies as commodities?
It's not meant to be believable, but it totally is. Sterile adults control teenage fertility and the teenagers think they're the ones in control. Megan McCafferty clearly knows her ge...more
2.5
I did another video review for this one (and if you want to watch it, you can here.) But if you're not into video reviews, here's a brief written review, in the language of Bumped:
It was like, rilly rilly all about young girls pregging for money. Like, for seriously young. But it was okay, 'cause they were being, like, patriotic, and all the hot girls go Pro anyway, and it's just a delivery, so who cares? And if creepy old guy agents are making you major bank on that pregg, and your creepy pa...more
I did another video review for this one (and if you want to watch it, you can here.) But if you're not into video reviews, here's a brief written review, in the language of Bumped:
It was like, rilly rilly all about young girls pregging for money. Like, for seriously young. But it was okay, 'cause they were being, like, patriotic, and all the hot girls go Pro anyway, and it's just a delivery, so who cares? And if creepy old guy agents are making you major bank on that pregg, and your creepy pa...more
61 likes · like · see review
Dec 29, 2012
Good Golly Miss Holly
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
keepers
BUMPED is the first book in a long while that has lived up to my expectations, I read it in it's entirety over a weekend which is very unusual for me. It's a captivating book set 35 years in the future where teenagers are idolized due to a virus that causes infertility in anyone over the age of eighteen. The chapters are split between Harmony and Melody, identical twins who are meeting for the very first time having grown up in very different worlds - Harmony in a religious sect that has a boar...more
7 likes · like · see review
Talk about going in with preconceived notions of a book’s quality. 40 pages deep, and I was completely ready to pan Bumped.
Megan McCafferty’s long-awaited follow-up to the Sloppy Firsts series is a tongue-in-cheek satire about a future where only teenagers are capable of reproduction. At the outset, the science fiction is hammy and laid on thick, full of FutureWords™ and sketchy world building. As I neared the end of the first part, I already had the bulk of my review worked out in my head.
I'd t...more
Megan McCafferty’s long-awaited follow-up to the Sloppy Firsts series is a tongue-in-cheek satire about a future where only teenagers are capable of reproduction. At the outset, the science fiction is hammy and laid on thick, full of FutureWords™ and sketchy world building. As I neared the end of the first part, I already had the bulk of my review worked out in my head.
I'd t...more
21 likes · like · see review
"I was matched with the Jaydens, who put in a very strong bid: full college tuition, a Volkswagen Plug, and a postpartum tummy trim. […] It’s hard to believe now, but this was a pretty radical decision at the time. Though popular in major cities on the coasts, going pro was still kind of a down-market thing to do in the suburbs, and at my school in particular. All preggers at Princeton Day Academy were amateurs, most of whom put deliveries up for nonprofit adoptions."
Bumped has been unexpected f...more
Bumped has been unexpected f...more
4 likes · like · see review
Interesting concept, but I couldn't make it through the first part (ie. the first fifty pages). Only a scant few sentences manage to squeak by unscathed by slang that is both over the top and unconvincing. It's obvious that all of these words have been dreamed up by one person instead of a massive, fertility-crazed society. What's more, if this book is supposed to take place a mere twenty years in the future, I have a hard time believing the word "bump" is going to suddenly become so important i...more
14 likes · like · see review
Megan McCafferty is the author of the Jessica Darling books, hands-down my all-time favorite contemporary series. The dystopian novel BUMPED is a huge departure from her legacy, but if you tone down your instinctual desire to compare it to the Jessica Darling books, it is a fantastically complex story that will provide fodder for thought for multiple rereads.
BUMPED is an example of a dystopian society that is so fully realized and self-sustaining that it becomes very difficult for us outsiders t...more
BUMPED is an example of a dystopian society that is so fully realized and self-sustaining that it becomes very difficult for us outsiders t...more
9 likes · like · see review
Original post at One More Page
When I first heard that Megan McCafferty of Jessica Darling fame is coming up with a YA dystopia novel, I kind of squee-d. I wasn't sure if I was squee-ing because it's a dystopia novel, or because it was written by Megan McCafferty -- probably both, so it was one of my highly anticipated reads for 2011.
It was the year 2036, and teen girls are the most important people in the world. Girls under the age of 18 and are fertile, that is, after a virus has spread that r...more
When I first heard that Megan McCafferty of Jessica Darling fame is coming up with a YA dystopia novel, I kind of squee-d. I wasn't sure if I was squee-ing because it's a dystopia novel, or because it was written by Megan McCafferty -- probably both, so it was one of my highly anticipated reads for 2011.
It was the year 2036, and teen girls are the most important people in the world. Girls under the age of 18 and are fertile, that is, after a virus has spread that r...more
What happens when adults become infertile. When sex-ed is taught in schools to encourage kids to have unprotected sex. When giving birth in middle-school increases your chances of getting into the right college. When being 16 and pregnant makes you the most important person in the world.
This is the America—in the not so distant future—where identical twins Melody and Harmony grow up. Separated at birth, Melody is taken in by a wealthy New Jersey family while Harmony is raised in a Pennsylvania c...more
This is the America—in the not so distant future—where identical twins Melody and Harmony grow up. Separated at birth, Melody is taken in by a wealthy New Jersey family while Harmony is raised in a Pennsylvania c...more
This book was crazy good. The writing is just stunning at times. BUMPED is the story of twins-separated at birth, Melody and Harmony, in a near-future where a sterility virus makes it impossible to get pregnant past 18 years of age. Most of the novel hinges on a single day of mistaken identity, a day that changes both twins' lives. A premise like that sounds unmanageable. But everything was so well-written, so perfectly plotted and paced that I just found myself saying YES! That is exactly what...more
6 likes · like · see review
Bumped / 978-0-061-96274-5
In a futuristic dystopia that seems strangely similar to our own modern-day culture, an under-class of underprivileged women are compelled by society to be the breeders for an upper-class that has been ravaged with infertility. In this culture, sex is not about love, but rather about pregnancy, and fertile women are expected to put their own feelings aside for the 'good of humanity' and the survival of the human race.
If it sounds like I'm describing Margaret Atwood's c...more
In a futuristic dystopia that seems strangely similar to our own modern-day culture, an under-class of underprivileged women are compelled by society to be the breeders for an upper-class that has been ravaged with infertility. In this culture, sex is not about love, but rather about pregnancy, and fertile women are expected to put their own feelings aside for the 'good of humanity' and the survival of the human race.
If it sounds like I'm describing Margaret Atwood's c...more
6 likes · like · see review
This one so took me by surprise! This is most definitely a unique take in the dystopian world. Normally, when I read Dystopian I expect darkness, end time feeling and such, not that I want it, but this is how nearly all dystopian novels I read lately are.
Bumped is so different!!
In Bumped Teens are the most valued people on earth because they are the only ones that can still have kids. A virus that most people catch around 18-20 makes them all infertile so Teens are the only ones that can deliv...more
Bumped is so different!!
In Bumped Teens are the most valued people on earth because they are the only ones that can still have kids. A virus that most people catch around 18-20 makes them all infertile so Teens are the only ones that can deliv...more
6 likes · like · see review
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
2.5 stars
UPDATE:
Ok, I finished it. I have to say, I found the majority of the book either irritating (the never ending slang etc. that other reviewers mentioned) or meh. It did finally pick up close to the end which is why I've given it 2.5 stars. It's a shame it took so long to actually engage my interest. As other reviewers have noted, it's difficult to classify the audience, all the slang etc. marks it as young, young adult but the sexual content doesn't fit that audience. Odd, very odd. Will...more
UPDATE:
Ok, I finished it. I have to say, I found the majority of the book either irritating (the never ending slang etc. that other reviewers mentioned) or meh. It did finally pick up close to the end which is why I've given it 2.5 stars. It's a shame it took so long to actually engage my interest. As other reviewers have noted, it's difficult to classify the audience, all the slang etc. marks it as young, young adult but the sexual content doesn't fit that audience. Odd, very odd. Will...more
I read this for Zoey. The review for Thumped, the sequel out soon, will be posted in one or two weeks.
There were a lot of things I liked about this book - but there were things I really hated, too. Let's begin with the dislikes.
First: The dialogue. I hated the dialogue with a passion. It felt so incredibly fake. McCafferty practically put every other word in CAPS. (Alright, so it wasn't that bad. Still, there were a lot of CAPS and that was really annoying.)
Second: The characters. I couldn't rea...more
There were a lot of things I liked about this book - but there were things I really hated, too. Let's begin with the dislikes.
First: The dialogue. I hated the dialogue with a passion. It felt so incredibly fake. McCafferty practically put every other word in CAPS. (Alright, so it wasn't that bad. Still, there were a lot of CAPS and that was really annoying.)
Second: The characters. I couldn't rea...more
1 like · like · see review
Bumped is an interesting tale of a future society when people become infertile after their teenage years, and so teenagers are encouraged, and paid, to have children for older couples. It is told through the eyes of two teenagers, Melody and Harmony, who were separated at birth and adopted by two separate families. When they turned 16 they opened their birth records and found eachother. One is a contractual birth-mother waiting for a "male contributor" before having her first pregnancy, and the...more
In A Nutshell:
If I had to put my thoughts about Bumped into a single word, that word would be under-whelmed. There was not a lot about this book that I liked. I thought the characters were superficial and annoying who only gained any depth or interest in the last 20 pages of the book. I had misgivings about the concept from the beginning, but the cheery, happy tone of the book felt out of place in a dystopian novel and heightened my misgivings even more.
Review:
In Bumped, a virus renders adults...more
If I had to put my thoughts about Bumped into a single word, that word would be under-whelmed. There was not a lot about this book that I liked. I thought the characters were superficial and annoying who only gained any depth or interest in the last 20 pages of the book. I had misgivings about the concept from the beginning, but the cheery, happy tone of the book felt out of place in a dystopian novel and heightened my misgivings even more.
Review:
In Bumped, a virus renders adults...more
3 likes · like · see review
I'll be honest. I've been DREADING writing this review.
I was SO looking forward to this book. I just couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I loved McCafferty's Jessica Darling series and I couldn't wait to read her first attempt at Dystopian fic, one of my favorite genres. Imagine my absolute delight when I received an Advanced Review Copy of this bad boy.
::sigh::
As you've probably guessed by now, this book was a huge disappointment. McCafferty's writing is still there. Funny, sparkly, witty, a...more
I was SO looking forward to this book. I just couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I loved McCafferty's Jessica Darling series and I couldn't wait to read her first attempt at Dystopian fic, one of my favorite genres. Imagine my absolute delight when I received an Advanced Review Copy of this bad boy.
::sigh::
As you've probably guessed by now, this book was a huge disappointment. McCafferty's writing is still there. Funny, sparkly, witty, a...more
10 likes · like · see review
I knew as soon as I finished this book I would need some time to think about how to review it. And I found myself kinda speechless. And I was really glad to find that I was not alone! But here we go: My first impressions while reading where shock, disgust, humor, and sad. I think the thing is this is a dystopian novel, although the world where your selling your body as a surrogate is not completely unknown to us but the immense inhumanity that came through the way it was handled disturbed me. Ot...more
2 likes · like · see review
I have mixed feelings about this book. When I read the description, I thought it had the potential to be quite eerie. I enjoyed the storyline, and the characters. What dragged me down was the goofy, over-the-top slang the author created for the characters & the society as a whole. It was too 'punny' and very distracting to me. I think it hurt more than helped her overall story, and could have been toned down immensely. Also, it reminded me a bit of Scott Westerfeld's "bubbly" speak from his...more
1 like · like · see review
Really 3.5, and I reserve the right to go up to 4, but I want to think through the underlying statements about sex and choice. I get the idea, but not sure the premise always works on the satiric level I think it's meant to hit. Also, Melody and Harmony were both a bit lacking in depth. Mostly, it's not Sloppy Firsts. Which is unfair. So-- interesting premise, skillfully delivered, but perhaps a bit surface. Wondering if there will be another volume since so much is left unfinished at the end in...more
Feb 22, 2011
camilla
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
young-adult-fiction,
read-2011
While I found the idea of a futuristic society where everyone over 18 is infertile so young teens become prized for their reproductive abilities to the point that some are professionally employed breeders interesting, Bumped just fell flat. The characters Zen and Melody seemed somewhat well rounded and for a bit I was genuinely interested to see what would happen between them, but in the end their counterparts in Harmony and the awful Jondoe were so one dimensional and unrealistic that I couldn'...more
3 likes · like · see review
I loved Jessica Darling. I was excited to read Megan's first "offical" young adult book, but I hate, hate, hate made up slang. It was one of my big problems getting into Feed...I don't know if I can handle this. So far I've read two chapters, and I'm just annoyed..
Is it worth seeing through?
Also, I just realized that the title says Bumped #1...which means there's going to be sequels..why can't anyone just write a book anymore??
Is it worth seeing through?
Also, I just realized that the title says Bumped #1...which means there's going to be sequels..why can't anyone just write a book anymore??
2 likes · like · see review
I liked the premise of this book as a 'lighter' dystopian, but ultimately this was one of those books that made it crystal clear to me that I'm nowhere near a young adult anymore. The constant use of slang will probably appeal to the age group this book is intended for, but it was annoying to me. I liked Melody, but Harmony was flat out annoying, and I decided that I didn't care about Melody enough to finish the book. I'm bummed that Bumped wasn't for me, but I have no doubt it'll be a huge succ...more
Bumped by Megan McCafferty
Book Rating: 4/5 Stars
Cover Rating: 3/5 Stars
Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (April 26, 2011)
"When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated...more
Book Rating: 4/5 Stars
Cover Rating: 3/5 Stars
Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (April 26, 2011)
"When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated...more
Megan McCafferty is no stranger to writing controversial YA books. And Bumped falls right into that same controversial category. This leaves me in a precarious position. I LOVED this book but I don’t feel that I recommend it to just anyone. Let’s talk about the plot line…
Melody and her twin sister Harmony live in a dystopian world (agh! Dystopian again? Don’t worry, it’s not the same ol’ same ol’. Keep reading) where a virus has made anyone over the age of 18 infertile. As a result, teenagers ar...more
Melody and her twin sister Harmony live in a dystopian world (agh! Dystopian again? Don’t worry, it’s not the same ol’ same ol’. Keep reading) where a virus has made anyone over the age of 18 infertile. As a result, teenagers ar...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Huntsville-Madiso...: Staff Picks: Bumped by Megan McCafferty | 1 | 6 | Jun 17, 2013 11:30am | |
| VaginaCon's Book ...: Please Join us for Book Banter! | 1 | 8 | Sep 30, 2012 09:58am | |
| VaginaCon's Book ...: First Impressions? | 4 | 16 | Sep 17, 2012 08:57pm | |
| Epic Reads Book Club: Your Review -- BUMPED by Megan McCafferty | 2 | 35 | Jun 08, 2012 08:36pm | |
| Epic Reads Book Club: BUMPED - could this happen? | 5 | 42 | May 09, 2012 06:38am | |
| Wild Things: YA G...: September 2011- Bumped by Megan McCafferty | 13 | 47 | Sep 26, 2011 09:43am |
Megan McCafferty is the New York Times bestselling author of the Jessica Darling series, Bumped and Thumped. Her work has received honors from the ALA and the NYPL and has been translated into eleven languages, including Chinese, German and Indonesian. Megan is a Princeton University Community Fellow for Mathey College.
Jessica Darling’s IT List: The (Totally Not) Guaranteed Guide to Popularity, P...more
More about Megan McCafferty...
Jessica Darling’s IT List: The (Totally Not) Guaranteed Guide to Popularity, P...more
Share This Book
11 trivia questions
1 quiz
More quizzes & trivia...
1 quiz
“Faith is accepting what makes no sense, what we cannot prove, but know down deep in our souls is real.”
—
43 people liked it
“Prayers are answered in one of four ways,” she said. “Yes. No. I have
something else in mind. And . . .”
She paused long enough for my impatience to show. “And what’s the
fourth answer?”
“Wait,” she said.”
—
26 people liked it
More quotes…
something else in mind. And . . .”
She paused long enough for my impatience to show. “And what’s the
fourth answer?”
“Wait,” she said.”
