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Scored
Set in the future when teenagers are monitored via camera and their recorded actions and confessions plugged into a computer program that determines their ability to succeed. All kids given a "score" that determines their future potential. This score has the ability to get kids into colleges, grant scholarships, or destroy all hope for the above. Scored's reluctant heroine is Imani, a girl whose high score is brought down when her best friend's score plummets. Where do you draw the line between doing what feels morally right and what can mean your future? Friendship, romance, loyalty, family, human connection and human value: all are questioned in this fresh and compelling dystopian novel set in the scarily foreseeable future.
242 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 25, 2011
23 people are currently reading
8668 people want to read
About the author
Lauren McLaughlin
26 books92 followersLAUREN MCLAUGHLIN is the author of five novels, Send Pics, Cycler, (Re)Cycler, Scored, and The Free. She has also written the children’s pictures books Wonderful You and Mitzi Tulane Preschool Detective, both of which feature adoptive families. She is an adoptive mother herself. Prior to her career in fiction, she spent ten years in the film business. She produced commercials and music videos for such artists as Nas, The B52’s, the Spin Doctors, and Monie Love, then went on to write several screenplays, including Prisoner of Love starring Naomi Campbell, Specimen starring Mark Paul Gosselaar, and Hypercube (the sequel to the cult favorite Cube). She also produced American Psycho, Buffalo 66, and several other feature films. She is a member of the improv comedy troupe Amorphous Horse, which performs in a variety of venues in and around London, UK.
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June 4, 2015
Growing up in Canada and watching American TV shows, one becomes familiar with Americanisms that nevertheless are not applicable in Canada. For instance, two initialisms that are a big deal to American students and have no bearing on Canadians (unless we want to go to an American university): SATs and GPAs. Don’t exist here, for the most part. (Some schools require SAT-like tests for admissions, and most universities calculate a GPA statistic—but it doesn’t have the same titanic quality it takes on below the border.)
Many good science fiction stories begin as “what if” questions. In the case of Scored, Lauren McLaughlin asks, “What if we could generalize the idea of a GPA to a student’s entire actions? What if we could monitor them 24/7, and use algorithmic approaches to rating and ranking them?” Score highly enough, and it doesn’t matter if your parents have no money: you get a scholarship to any number of prestigious institutions. But if your score drops too low … well, I hope you like getting pregnant. Or joining the military.
Scoring, then, is supposed to be the ultimate implementation of the meritocracy. In theory the score, as an adaptive set of algorithms, is impartial. Free from prejudice and taking in the entirety of your actions through the ubiquitous surveillance ScoreCorp has been allowed to set up, your score is not based on your parents’ economic status or on any innate qualities, like your genotype, phenotype, etc. In theory, your score is entirely a product of who you are, the actions you take, and the mark you leave on the world.
In theory.
I’ve been reading a lot about meritocracy and, more to the point, why meritocracy is a dangerous and misguided myth, akin to the American Dream (and McLaughlin actually brings that up later in Scored). Meritocracy is so attractive because it pretends to be a solution to all the bad things that have traditionally plagued human hierarchies—namely, discrimination based on some traits. But the problem is that a meritocracy would ignore the fact that we are human, that we have different circumstances and privilege and experience, and in ignoring our humanity it erases it. That doesn’t sound like utopia at all.
McLaughlin takes such criticisms of meritocracy and then distils them into a young adult form. She throws in some healthy skepticism of surveillance society. I like how she makes this book about corporate surveillance rather than government surveillance (Brave New World instead of 1984). We certainly have enough of both in our present society. However, corporate surveillance is a little more opaque and pernicious. It is easier to forget, because we tend to actively engage with a corporation and think we’re the ones using it. We need to remember that even if tech companies protest and lobby against government orders and laws that compel them to hand over user data, those same companies are all about weakening privacy regulations so they can collect and store more data about you for their purposes.
The score, then, is the ultimate fusion of the meritocratic myth with the surveillance society nightmare. We see class divisions opening up along the lines of the scored versus unscored. And as Imani’s precious 92 dips down into the 60s because of her “unsavoury” association with Cady, we see that the score is far from the perfect system its proponents make it out to be. It reinforces conformity in a vicious feedback loop and punishes people who decide to act out.
I wish we got more of Cady. Despite being Imani’s best friend, she only figures about twice in the whole book. I know the point of the plot is that Imani is “dropping” Cady, or pretending to, for the last month of school for the sake of her score. Yet Cady is herself such an interesting character, and she hardly features at all!
Fortunately, I liked Imani. As with Jill from Cycler , the first McLaughlin book I read, Imani is a fallible protagonist. She isn’t hyper-aware of her society’s flaws or very critical. In this way, McLaughlin creates a journey for Imani to go on as she develops into a more self-aware and critical person. Similarly, I liked how Diego’s skepticism sets him at odds with most of the others, Imani included. While I liked these two characters separately, I wasn’t as fond of them together. The banter isn’t as good as it could be, and their sometime-friendship sometime-romance sometime-rivalry progresses far too quickly.
Alas, that’s a criticism I could level at much of Scored: it’s just over far too quickly! There is so much going on here that it could easily have been another fifty pages (and don’t give me any guff about YA being “shorter” than fiction for older adults). I love what is here, but it could be so much more. It’s like baking that could have stayed in the oven just five more minutes: yes, it’s done, and it tastes fine, but it doesn’t have that golden brown coat yet, and if you leave it in a little longer, it will taste wonderful.
Now I’m hungry.
So, to summarize: Scored shows me that Cycler wasn’t a fluke, and I want more McLaughlin books! Also, it’s a neat take on surveillance societies and our obsession with ranking students and then claiming that those ranks are somehow objective or meaningful. It’s not; it never is. It’s always about power, and about helping those in power keep their power. But McLaughlin doesn’t ever get too preachy on this point: as much as the book obviously presents the score as a bad idea, she makes sure to present the case for the other side and outline why it seemed so desirable at the time. As Mr. Carol exhorts his students to do by having the scored oppose scoring and the un-scored support scoring in their end-of-year essays, we should always play the Devil’s Advocate once in a while. Dissent isn’t the most comfortable part of free speech, but it might be the most important.
Many good science fiction stories begin as “what if” questions. In the case of Scored, Lauren McLaughlin asks, “What if we could generalize the idea of a GPA to a student’s entire actions? What if we could monitor them 24/7, and use algorithmic approaches to rating and ranking them?” Score highly enough, and it doesn’t matter if your parents have no money: you get a scholarship to any number of prestigious institutions. But if your score drops too low … well, I hope you like getting pregnant. Or joining the military.
Scoring, then, is supposed to be the ultimate implementation of the meritocracy. In theory the score, as an adaptive set of algorithms, is impartial. Free from prejudice and taking in the entirety of your actions through the ubiquitous surveillance ScoreCorp has been allowed to set up, your score is not based on your parents’ economic status or on any innate qualities, like your genotype, phenotype, etc. In theory, your score is entirely a product of who you are, the actions you take, and the mark you leave on the world.
In theory.
I’ve been reading a lot about meritocracy and, more to the point, why meritocracy is a dangerous and misguided myth, akin to the American Dream (and McLaughlin actually brings that up later in Scored). Meritocracy is so attractive because it pretends to be a solution to all the bad things that have traditionally plagued human hierarchies—namely, discrimination based on some traits. But the problem is that a meritocracy would ignore the fact that we are human, that we have different circumstances and privilege and experience, and in ignoring our humanity it erases it. That doesn’t sound like utopia at all.
McLaughlin takes such criticisms of meritocracy and then distils them into a young adult form. She throws in some healthy skepticism of surveillance society. I like how she makes this book about corporate surveillance rather than government surveillance (Brave New World instead of 1984). We certainly have enough of both in our present society. However, corporate surveillance is a little more opaque and pernicious. It is easier to forget, because we tend to actively engage with a corporation and think we’re the ones using it. We need to remember that even if tech companies protest and lobby against government orders and laws that compel them to hand over user data, those same companies are all about weakening privacy regulations so they can collect and store more data about you for their purposes.
The score, then, is the ultimate fusion of the meritocratic myth with the surveillance society nightmare. We see class divisions opening up along the lines of the scored versus unscored. And as Imani’s precious 92 dips down into the 60s because of her “unsavoury” association with Cady, we see that the score is far from the perfect system its proponents make it out to be. It reinforces conformity in a vicious feedback loop and punishes people who decide to act out.
I wish we got more of Cady. Despite being Imani’s best friend, she only figures about twice in the whole book. I know the point of the plot is that Imani is “dropping” Cady, or pretending to, for the last month of school for the sake of her score. Yet Cady is herself such an interesting character, and she hardly features at all!
Fortunately, I liked Imani. As with Jill from Cycler , the first McLaughlin book I read, Imani is a fallible protagonist. She isn’t hyper-aware of her society’s flaws or very critical. In this way, McLaughlin creates a journey for Imani to go on as she develops into a more self-aware and critical person. Similarly, I liked how Diego’s skepticism sets him at odds with most of the others, Imani included. While I liked these two characters separately, I wasn’t as fond of them together. The banter isn’t as good as it could be, and their sometime-friendship sometime-romance sometime-rivalry progresses far too quickly.
Alas, that’s a criticism I could level at much of Scored: it’s just over far too quickly! There is so much going on here that it could easily have been another fifty pages (and don’t give me any guff about YA being “shorter” than fiction for older adults). I love what is here, but it could be so much more. It’s like baking that could have stayed in the oven just five more minutes: yes, it’s done, and it tastes fine, but it doesn’t have that golden brown coat yet, and if you leave it in a little longer, it will taste wonderful.
Now I’m hungry.
So, to summarize: Scored shows me that Cycler wasn’t a fluke, and I want more McLaughlin books! Also, it’s a neat take on surveillance societies and our obsession with ranking students and then claiming that those ranks are somehow objective or meaningful. It’s not; it never is. It’s always about power, and about helping those in power keep their power. But McLaughlin doesn’t ever get too preachy on this point: as much as the book obviously presents the score as a bad idea, she makes sure to present the case for the other side and outline why it seemed so desirable at the time. As Mr. Carol exhorts his students to do by having the scored oppose scoring and the un-scored support scoring in their end-of-year essays, we should always play the Devil’s Advocate once in a while. Dissent isn’t the most comfortable part of free speech, but it might be the most important.
November 9, 2014
Was it through goodreads.com that I learned of this book, or did it come up in the NYT article about one-word YA titles along with Bumped and Matched? They're all the same, anyway: a near, seemingly possible future in which grades, pregnancy, or marriage is ordained by the state (or corporation; some version of The Man). The author's point is that you should read 1984 and Brave New World. There might be something else but those are the heaviest hammers.
This future world is far enough forward for a Second Great Depression to have ended but near enough that even young parents can remember a different kind of rat-racing ramp-up to college. In this future world, the river and coastline are polluted but you can go out and catch seafood, which apparently still flourishes enough not to be regulated and is not too contaminated to consume. A teenager reckons that she could feed her family with what she catches (a touch of Parable of the Sower). Bluefish is enough of a commonplace to be described as an acquired taste. Lobster still wander into traps and clams can be dug out from the beach. Did I mention the pollution? The protagonist does almost every time she brings up the river or the ocean. And yet there she is, harvesting clams.
This world is set after today, after last year in fact, yet students do homework on paper and respond to questions by writing by hand in a lined area under questions printed on paper.
In eighth grade I read The Illustrated Man and learned in "The Veldt" this useful tip about writing in a future setting: don't mention specific prices. The gadget-riddled house in that story cost $30,000. In 1981, I scoffed. Scored features an annual college scholarship of $40,000 -- in the future, when a year of college can cost that much now.
The anachronisms and inconsistent world-building wouldn't matter as much if the plot were stronger, but it was frayed and incoherent. And heaviest hammer is actually that a 12th grader can and should make life-altering decisions based on the boy she likes.
This future world is far enough forward for a Second Great Depression to have ended but near enough that even young parents can remember a different kind of rat-racing ramp-up to college. In this future world, the river and coastline are polluted but you can go out and catch seafood, which apparently still flourishes enough not to be regulated and is not too contaminated to consume. A teenager reckons that she could feed her family with what she catches (a touch of Parable of the Sower). Bluefish is enough of a commonplace to be described as an acquired taste. Lobster still wander into traps and clams can be dug out from the beach. Did I mention the pollution? The protagonist does almost every time she brings up the river or the ocean. And yet there she is, harvesting clams.
This world is set after today, after last year in fact, yet students do homework on paper and respond to questions by writing by hand in a lined area under questions printed on paper.
In eighth grade I read The Illustrated Man and learned in "The Veldt" this useful tip about writing in a future setting: don't mention specific prices. The gadget-riddled house in that story cost $30,000. In 1981, I scoffed. Scored features an annual college scholarship of $40,000 -- in the future, when a year of college can cost that much now.
The anachronisms and inconsistent world-building wouldn't matter as much if the plot were stronger, but it was frayed and incoherent. And heaviest hammer is actually that a 12th grader can and should make life-altering decisions based on the boy she likes.
August 24, 2017
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Imani LeMonde is a member of the Scored, earning a 92 on the ScoreCorps scale. An individual's score determines scholarship opportunities, jobs one can pursue and who you can associate with. Like many others in her high school, she makes sure she follows the rules of Fitness ScoreCorp put forth a few years ago to ensure people were behaving accordingly. Peer groups are one factor of society that influences your score and Imani chooses to be friends with Cady, a 70, who's score has been dropping rapidly. When the next round of scoring comes out, Imani's score drops down to a 64 due to a decision Cady made. Now Imani must choose whether to keep the pact with Cady she made to remain friends no matter what, or try to improve her score before the final evaluation is given. Imani dreams of college seem to have disappeared but when an opportunity to earn a scholarship arises, she has to decide how far she'll go to achieve her goals.
The concept of this book was very intriguing. The scoring concept was interesting and I enjoyed learning about each aspect of it. It was interesting to see what was deemed 'right' and what was deemed 'wrong' in society and how everything influenced everything in some way. The book attempted to cover many topics such as racism, sexism and creating an even playing field among all individuals. I liked Imani for the most part but at times she got on my nerves. She seemed to naive at times but other times seemed too old for her intended age. There wasn't much of a balance to make her seem like a real character. I did enjoy her development throughout the story though. I liked Diego as a character and thought he was well executed. I also really enjoyed Imani and Diego together and the dialogue they shared. Overall, I think the book could begin some great debates in classrooms and could be beneficial for many younger students to read and think about.
Imani LeMonde is a member of the Scored, earning a 92 on the ScoreCorps scale. An individual's score determines scholarship opportunities, jobs one can pursue and who you can associate with. Like many others in her high school, she makes sure she follows the rules of Fitness ScoreCorp put forth a few years ago to ensure people were behaving accordingly. Peer groups are one factor of society that influences your score and Imani chooses to be friends with Cady, a 70, who's score has been dropping rapidly. When the next round of scoring comes out, Imani's score drops down to a 64 due to a decision Cady made. Now Imani must choose whether to keep the pact with Cady she made to remain friends no matter what, or try to improve her score before the final evaluation is given. Imani dreams of college seem to have disappeared but when an opportunity to earn a scholarship arises, she has to decide how far she'll go to achieve her goals.
The concept of this book was very intriguing. The scoring concept was interesting and I enjoyed learning about each aspect of it. It was interesting to see what was deemed 'right' and what was deemed 'wrong' in society and how everything influenced everything in some way. The book attempted to cover many topics such as racism, sexism and creating an even playing field among all individuals. I liked Imani for the most part but at times she got on my nerves. She seemed to naive at times but other times seemed too old for her intended age. There wasn't much of a balance to make her seem like a real character. I did enjoy her development throughout the story though. I liked Diego as a character and thought he was well executed. I also really enjoyed Imani and Diego together and the dialogue they shared. Overall, I think the book could begin some great debates in classrooms and could be beneficial for many younger students to read and think about.
December 11, 2011
My ACT score was in the 20's.
Nobody cares about that anymore.
My GPA has always been "above average"
No one wants to hear about it.
My life has been carefully controlled by grades, scores, ratings and rank since before I was even aware of it, all under the premise that if I scored well enough, the finances that I didn't have wouldn't matter. That without these scores, I was doomed to only achieve the levels my money would allow. The rich children would have better opportunities, but the well-scored could always level the field through merit-based scholarship.
Recently, I've begun to monitor my Klout score. Klout is an algorithim calculations based website that monitors your social media influence. Higher scores reflect the amount of people on the web that value what you talk about and share. Companies use these scores to pinpoint the best people to help market their products. For instance, a high klout score with an emphasis on Cars, may get you a free week-long test drive from a car company.
On the surface these things sound AWESOME. No more is it about "who you know", or "what you have", but it's about YOU. Who you are. What you do. Fair and impartial, technology does the work that humans have failed at.
That said, let me just start this review by admitting that the most chilling thing that hit me almost immediately, was that Imani, our main character's "score" in this book is 64...
My Klout "score" is 64.
We're ALREADY scoring and charting and tagging ourselves into a fresh new caste system. One where everyone is "better" because no one is.
Oh my gosh where do I even begin.
Imani LeMonde is a member of the Scored. Like most of the other scored in her high school, Imani abides by Score Corp.'s "Fitness" guidelines: Peer Group, Self-Control?, Congruity, and Rapport. She violates the Peer Group requirement flagrantly by hanging out with her friend Cady. Cady's score has been dropping drastically low due to her love affair with an unscored boy.
Imani wants to stand by her friend, but when her own score drops down to the 60's, the decision seems practically made for her. Low scores equal no college, and she has to go to college. The guilt by association stems so far that her own little brother won't let the "eyes", cameras that document and monitor the scored, see him talk to her.
In the meantime, her History teacher, Mr. Carol has assigned an essay project that could help Imani get the money she needs to go to college anyway. To apply for a scholarship, Mr. Carol would like for the scored students in his class to write an argument against the idea of the score, and for this unscored students to write in favor of it. While he himself is firmly against the score, and makes some hilarious comments on it throughout the book, he mainly believes this will open the eyes of all of his students, and perhaps get them some college money.
To write the paper, Imani secretly and reluctantly teams up with Diego, an unscored but wealthy classmate, and soon everything she thought she felt about the score, and herself begins to shift. There were mild similarities to Scott Westerfeld's "Uglies" series, spying, trusting the enemy, friendship and betrayal, but Imani and Cady's relationship was far more of a catalyst for the rest of the story, than the radically flimsy one of Tally and Shay in Uglies.
There were things about this book that I loved, mainly the ideas behind it, and that there were no real right or wrong answers. A score system could even things out, but it could also open the door to much more sinister forms of discrimination. A new caste system that would appear so right on the outside, that people won't even know where to begin to tear it down.
There were also a few little things that I didn't like however. For one, Imani is a mixed-race girl, but the cover art doesn't illustrate this at all. The subject and comparison between racism, sexism and "score-ism" is referenced a lot in the story, but I still found it really easy to forget about her heritage.
In fact, this brings me to another thing that bugged me. Imani Jane LeMonde's father is black, and his speech is littered with "Don't's" "Aint's", phrases like "family don't mean nothing no more", and talk of "The Man"...
Seriously, was that to remind us that he's black? I was not a fan of that.
The phrasing used by her father wouldn't have stood out if the other words and writing in the book weren't all so thick. The subject matter wouldn't necessarily go over teens heads I don't believe, but the words used get a little technical and over-political at times.
Like others have said, the ending left MUCH to be desired. It did however, seem prime for a sequel but unlike all the other books out these days, didn't say that it would be. To not revisit this topic though, would be seriously unfortunate. I hope she does.On the whole though, I really enjoyed this short read.
While I mildy enjoyed McLaughlin's Cycler, I found this to be more her stride.
Nobody cares about that anymore.
My GPA has always been "above average"
No one wants to hear about it.
My life has been carefully controlled by grades, scores, ratings and rank since before I was even aware of it, all under the premise that if I scored well enough, the finances that I didn't have wouldn't matter. That without these scores, I was doomed to only achieve the levels my money would allow. The rich children would have better opportunities, but the well-scored could always level the field through merit-based scholarship.
Recently, I've begun to monitor my Klout score. Klout is an algorithim calculations based website that monitors your social media influence. Higher scores reflect the amount of people on the web that value what you talk about and share. Companies use these scores to pinpoint the best people to help market their products. For instance, a high klout score with an emphasis on Cars, may get you a free week-long test drive from a car company.
On the surface these things sound AWESOME. No more is it about "who you know", or "what you have", but it's about YOU. Who you are. What you do. Fair and impartial, technology does the work that humans have failed at.
That said, let me just start this review by admitting that the most chilling thing that hit me almost immediately, was that Imani, our main character's "score" in this book is 64...
My Klout "score" is 64.
We're ALREADY scoring and charting and tagging ourselves into a fresh new caste system. One where everyone is "better" because no one is.
Oh my gosh where do I even begin.
Imani LeMonde is a member of the Scored. Like most of the other scored in her high school, Imani abides by Score Corp.'s "Fitness" guidelines: Peer Group, Self-Control?, Congruity, and Rapport. She violates the Peer Group requirement flagrantly by hanging out with her friend Cady. Cady's score has been dropping drastically low due to her love affair with an unscored boy.
Imani wants to stand by her friend, but when her own score drops down to the 60's, the decision seems practically made for her. Low scores equal no college, and she has to go to college. The guilt by association stems so far that her own little brother won't let the "eyes", cameras that document and monitor the scored, see him talk to her.
In the meantime, her History teacher, Mr. Carol has assigned an essay project that could help Imani get the money she needs to go to college anyway. To apply for a scholarship, Mr. Carol would like for the scored students in his class to write an argument against the idea of the score, and for this unscored students to write in favor of it. While he himself is firmly against the score, and makes some hilarious comments on it throughout the book, he mainly believes this will open the eyes of all of his students, and perhaps get them some college money.
To write the paper, Imani secretly and reluctantly teams up with Diego, an unscored but wealthy classmate, and soon everything she thought she felt about the score, and herself begins to shift. There were mild similarities to Scott Westerfeld's "Uglies" series, spying, trusting the enemy, friendship and betrayal, but Imani and Cady's relationship was far more of a catalyst for the rest of the story, than the radically flimsy one of Tally and Shay in Uglies.
There were things about this book that I loved, mainly the ideas behind it, and that there were no real right or wrong answers. A score system could even things out, but it could also open the door to much more sinister forms of discrimination. A new caste system that would appear so right on the outside, that people won't even know where to begin to tear it down.
There were also a few little things that I didn't like however. For one, Imani is a mixed-race girl, but the cover art doesn't illustrate this at all. The subject and comparison between racism, sexism and "score-ism" is referenced a lot in the story, but I still found it really easy to forget about her heritage.
In fact, this brings me to another thing that bugged me. Imani Jane LeMonde's father is black, and his speech is littered with "Don't's" "Aint's", phrases like "family don't mean nothing no more", and talk of "The Man"...
Seriously, was that to remind us that he's black? I was not a fan of that.
The phrasing used by her father wouldn't have stood out if the other words and writing in the book weren't all so thick. The subject matter wouldn't necessarily go over teens heads I don't believe, but the words used get a little technical and over-political at times.
Like others have said, the ending left MUCH to be desired. It did however, seem prime for a sequel but unlike all the other books out these days, didn't say that it would be. To not revisit this topic though, would be seriously unfortunate. I hope she does.On the whole though, I really enjoyed this short read.
While I mildy enjoyed McLaughlin's Cycler, I found this to be more her stride.
November 17, 2011
What is ist with YA dystopia writers that they never seem to get the endings right?! Someone should open up a school for that, honestly.
OK, that was my greatest problem with the book. All in all, it's not a bad read. The main character is credible, but sometimes I'd have liked her to be either more (for the reader to identify) or less critical (so as to underline the kind of brainwashing she's been subject to). It would even have been possible to present her as hesitant, but then, some more ideas of her could have been shown. It would have been easy and credible to insert some more thoughts in the answers to Diego's first set of questions.
I really liked the setting, especially the economic and environmental extrapolation.
Moreover, I think the dialogues are very helpful when it comes to understanding the characters' ideas and points of view. As there's not much in the way of a plot, this is necessary.
Now for the ending, as I think these issues are connected. The ending's that shallow simply because there isn't really a plot to begin with. No conspiracy, really (they're just a band, goodness gracious), no plans of overthrowing the system, no dramatic dilemma to be solved, no last-minute rescue. Well, I would have been OK with something on a smaller scale, too, it just didn't happen.
Ms Wheeler could have been exploited more fully in that respect. I mean, come on, she's even got a little background story - why do we learn about where she grew up when her character never rises to the occasion of being a formidable foe? No secret connections, no double dealing? And we don't even witness what's happening to her because Imani is busy elsewhere, which is probably good, because presenting the "case" against her would have been pretty lame anyway.
All the possibilities are there, but they don't get used.
Still, three stars for idea, setting, and promising characters. I would read another book by this author, but only if she really wanted to tell a good story.
OK, that was my greatest problem with the book. All in all, it's not a bad read. The main character is credible, but sometimes I'd have liked her to be either more (for the reader to identify) or less critical (so as to underline the kind of brainwashing she's been subject to). It would even have been possible to present her as hesitant, but then, some more ideas of her could have been shown. It would have been easy and credible to insert some more thoughts in the answers to Diego's first set of questions.
I really liked the setting, especially the economic and environmental extrapolation.
Moreover, I think the dialogues are very helpful when it comes to understanding the characters' ideas and points of view. As there's not much in the way of a plot, this is necessary.
Now for the ending, as I think these issues are connected. The ending's that shallow simply because there isn't really a plot to begin with. No conspiracy, really (they're just a band, goodness gracious), no plans of overthrowing the system, no dramatic dilemma to be solved, no last-minute rescue. Well, I would have been OK with something on a smaller scale, too, it just didn't happen.
Ms Wheeler could have been exploited more fully in that respect. I mean, come on, she's even got a little background story - why do we learn about where she grew up when her character never rises to the occasion of being a formidable foe? No secret connections, no double dealing? And we don't even witness what's happening to her because Imani is busy elsewhere, which is probably good, because presenting the "case" against her would have been pretty lame anyway.
All the possibilities are there, but they don't get used.
Still, three stars for idea, setting, and promising characters. I would read another book by this author, but only if she really wanted to tell a good story.
January 18, 2012
This is a very thoughtful book. Like most good science fiction, it begins with a concept. What would happen to our society if the "American Dream" died and was replaced by a ubiquitous surveillance and pattern recognition software driven meritocracy? What if participatory virtues were replaced with compliance to a greater than human intelligence nanny? McLaughlin's fascinating book explores this near future scenario through the eyes of Imani LeMonde. Imani is an intelligent high school senior who dreams of saving her Massachusetts coastal home town from its seemingly inevitable ecological and economic collapse. The college degree that would make this possible would be out of reach for her family if not for her town's participation in a pilot program from the Score Corps. Imani's plans are derailed very early in the book, setting up the conflict that helps the author explore her premise.
Scored is written for young adults, and the fairly standard coming of age story that is at the heart of the drama will appeal (mostly)to younger readers. Imani and other core characters are likable and well-developed, so while the story line is predicable, it is still pleasant, and I found myself rooting for Imani in her research and ethical struggles. Where this book really shines is in its role as thought experiment, and to a lesser extent as a love letter to critical reasoning. I sincerely hope that McLaughlin writes sequels to this story, possibly for a slightly older audience. The world is very interesting, and I for one really want to know what happens next.
Highly recommended for inquisitive teens, teachers, librarians and anyone concerned about income inequality.
Scored is written for young adults, and the fairly standard coming of age story that is at the heart of the drama will appeal (mostly)to younger readers. Imani and other core characters are likable and well-developed, so while the story line is predicable, it is still pleasant, and I found myself rooting for Imani in her research and ethical struggles. Where this book really shines is in its role as thought experiment, and to a lesser extent as a love letter to critical reasoning. I sincerely hope that McLaughlin writes sequels to this story, possibly for a slightly older audience. The world is very interesting, and I for one really want to know what happens next.
Highly recommended for inquisitive teens, teachers, librarians and anyone concerned about income inequality.
December 23, 2011
As a teacher, I’m always trying to get my students to work hard. We all know that the state test scores determine so much for a student. It looks like someone finally wondered what it would be like if we went to the extreme and came up with this awesome book. Imagine a world where you are continuously watched and judged. Imani is a teenager who has bought into the whole ScoreCorp garbage. Why? She has a high score. Everything affects your scores, who you are friends with, who you date, who you work with or help in school. There is no privacy. Step out of line and you could ruin your whole life. Of course, isn’t it funny that ScoreCorp is the one in control? Only the rich can afford to go to college. If you want a chance then your parents must agree to have you scored. Imani’s score drops. She is paired with Diego to complete a project. Diego doesn’t have a score because his family is filthy rich. This pairing up opens Imani’s eyes to many things that are going on around her.
I have to say this would be a wonderful book to read together in class. The debates that could occur would be great. I could see picking an issue from the book and using Socratic circles to discuss those issues. I guess I see it this way because I am a teacher and we see so much pressure put on teachers and students about test scores. I think this is a book that parents, teachers and students will enjoy.
I hope there is more from this author on this topic. If not I look forward to reading more of her work.
I have to say this would be a wonderful book to read together in class. The debates that could occur would be great. I could see picking an issue from the book and using Socratic circles to discuss those issues. I guess I see it this way because I am a teacher and we see so much pressure put on teachers and students about test scores. I think this is a book that parents, teachers and students will enjoy.
I hope there is more from this author on this topic. If not I look forward to reading more of her work.
April 23, 2013
Scored has the potential to be an amazing novel. On paper, Scored looks like the perfect YA/dystopian novel. It is set a future society whose citizens are constantly monitored by surveillance cameras. Students earn points for doing well in school, staying in the right cliques, and adhering to the law. Those who earn the highest points receive the opportunity to work in better jobs. However, McLaughlin chooses to dwell on the romance between two characters instead of taking the advantage of the world she has created. A very disappointing read when you know that so much more could be done with it.
April 2, 2016
Η αλήθεια είναι πως ξεκίνησε πολύ ωραία και πίστεψα ότι πρόκειται πραγματικά για ένα πολύ ωραίο βιβλίο, στην πορεία όμως το έχασε εντελώς, δημιουργήθηκαν ένα σωρο ερωτήματα που δεν απαντήθηκαν πουθενά και το τέλος ήταν τόσο άκυρο που δεν είχε καμία απολύτως σχέση με το γενικό νόημα του βιβλίου.Η ίδεα ήτν ενδιαφέρουσα και εκφράζονται κάποιες ωραίες απόψεις στο βιβλίο αλλά η πλοκή είναι ανύπαρκτη.
November 26, 2011
I have mixed feelings about this book and I wish there were half stars because I would have given this book 3.5 stars.
I read this book in one night which says something...first I have to say that this book flowed really well and so it was easy to keep reading w/out taking breaks (even though the book was just over 200pg)...
The story is a dystopian where there are cameras everywhere that record all teenagers. That's right, teenagers. The whole idea behind this story is that in this world you have to have a high enough score in order for any university/college in the state will be paid for you (a scholarship from ScoreCorp who owns all the cameras, etc and runs this whole 'program'). And with only a handful of people that can actually afford to pay for their kids to go to college this is very important.
There are 5 elements that you are scored on and those can greatly affect your score. One of the things that will affect your score is the people you hang out with. If you hang out with someone that is scored lower then you (the 60s, 70s, 80s, etc all stick together) then your score will drop. In order to get a scholarship you need to be scored in the upper 90s...and that isn't all...to get a job at all (if you can't afford to go to college) you need to score over a certain number. So these scores are very important.
The main character, Imani, has a score in the 90s and believes strongly in Score Corp, although not everyone does. Imanis score drops drastically through something that was no fault of her own, and she is desperate to get her score back up. Imani is already a senior and has limited time to do this. Because of her desperation she agrees to work on a her American Historys final paper with a non-scored, Diego (which is the worst thing you can do)-but she has another agenda that doesn't turn out the way she expected. Imani learns some things she didn't know and is left to decide if she still believes in Score Corp. like she did before or not...
This story was very interesting and it kept me reading til almost 4am. The characters were great, but the idea of the book is what I liked the best. Cameras that track everything teenagers do. Even on the streets. Their body language, facial expressions and interprets all of that.
The whole idea of this book to me was sort of scary. Not because of the whole 'big brother' thing, but because of the things that affect your score. The people you hang out with?? Wow...You learn that you are the only one you need to worry about and no one else. You can't form any close relationships and don't even think about dating...
I really liked how the author talked about our world now (the past in the book) and made you see things differently and what could happen or already did happen.
The things I wasn't too happy about with this book is the fact that the a big chunck of the book is spent with Imani and Diego, working on this paper, and discovering things along the way, but then in the end it is was about something else. I felt as if the ending was not developed enough and the whole paper thing didn't properly end. I felt like the basis for the story was being built, and it was great, but the climax didn't really happen. The ending fell flat to me.
I hope that makes some sort of sense.
Anyway, the story was a good read and if there is another book then maybe some of my misgivings on this book will be cleared up.
I read this book in one night which says something...first I have to say that this book flowed really well and so it was easy to keep reading w/out taking breaks (even though the book was just over 200pg)...
The story is a dystopian where there are cameras everywhere that record all teenagers. That's right, teenagers. The whole idea behind this story is that in this world you have to have a high enough score in order for any university/college in the state will be paid for you (a scholarship from ScoreCorp who owns all the cameras, etc and runs this whole 'program'). And with only a handful of people that can actually afford to pay for their kids to go to college this is very important.
There are 5 elements that you are scored on and those can greatly affect your score. One of the things that will affect your score is the people you hang out with. If you hang out with someone that is scored lower then you (the 60s, 70s, 80s, etc all stick together) then your score will drop. In order to get a scholarship you need to be scored in the upper 90s...and that isn't all...to get a job at all (if you can't afford to go to college) you need to score over a certain number. So these scores are very important.
The main character, Imani, has a score in the 90s and believes strongly in Score Corp, although not everyone does. Imanis score drops drastically through something that was no fault of her own, and she is desperate to get her score back up. Imani is already a senior and has limited time to do this. Because of her desperation she agrees to work on a her American Historys final paper with a non-scored, Diego (which is the worst thing you can do)-but she has another agenda that doesn't turn out the way she expected. Imani learns some things she didn't know and is left to decide if she still believes in Score Corp. like she did before or not...
This story was very interesting and it kept me reading til almost 4am. The characters were great, but the idea of the book is what I liked the best. Cameras that track everything teenagers do. Even on the streets. Their body language, facial expressions and interprets all of that.
The whole idea of this book to me was sort of scary. Not because of the whole 'big brother' thing, but because of the things that affect your score. The people you hang out with?? Wow...You learn that you are the only one you need to worry about and no one else. You can't form any close relationships and don't even think about dating...
I really liked how the author talked about our world now (the past in the book) and made you see things differently and what could happen or already did happen.
The things I wasn't too happy about with this book is the fact that the a big chunck of the book is spent with Imani and Diego, working on this paper, and discovering things along the way, but then in the end it is was about something else. I felt as if the ending was not developed enough and the whole paper thing didn't properly end. I felt like the basis for the story was being built, and it was great, but the climax didn't really happen. The ending fell flat to me.
I hope that makes some sort of sense.
Anyway, the story was a good read and if there is another book then maybe some of my misgivings on this book will be cleared up.
January 25, 2012
Find review also at Book Filled Blog.
Scored. Wow, Scored is one of those Young Adult books, I believe should be put on Required Readings list in school. Not because it was well written (it was really well written by the way) or anything like that, but because it shows morality and ethics in show an interesting light. Will we take technology to far?
Scored is set in Somerton, a poor town with very little employment. The town is now a trial city for the Score Corporation. That means, nearly everywhere you go, they are small black balls hanging everywhere, calculating your every movement, words and decisions. Scores are based on five things known as 'fitness':
Peer Group - who you associate with matters - the safest bet - hang with similar scores. Impulse Control - what you say and do is important - rationalize first as well as Congruity, Diligence and Rapport.
For people with a high score, they have a future; a chance at college and a career. Low scores and the unscored are lucky if they get a menial jobs.
Imani LeMonde is scored in the 90's and her best friend, Cady, is in 70's but a pact in middle school is what keeps their friendship alive. However when Cady does something, her score plummets and she brings Imani's score with her. Now in the 60's, Imani dreams of college seem long over unless she can win an essay competition open to everyone, scored or unscored, for a scholarship of $40,000.
Enter Diego Landis, an unscored who is equally intelligent as Imani and also vying to win the essay. Now Imani has to make sure she wins the competition, not get caught as she is creates a new career for herself as a spy, all while losing her best friend - what more could happen? As Imani fight with inner struggles, betrayal and feelings she shouldn't have, Scored is anything but boring.
When I began Scored first, Imani bothered me and I just didn't know why but once I finished the book I knew why. At the start, Imani's thought were not her own, they were practically implanted in her so that she kept her score. However, as the book goes on, we see Imani growing into her own thoughts and how she begins to understand both the positives and negative of Scores. By the end of the book, I really liked Imani.
Diego Landis is a great character. I loved him. He was interesting and intelligent but his troubles lie in his problem with authority.
Iamni and Diego make a great pair as they bounce of each other with interesting debates and witty retorts.
Although Scored holds no major plot or turning point, it is still a fantastic book. I still have some questions I want answered about Imani as well. It's short and I read it in three hours, mainly because I couldn't put it down. A must read for everyone.
Scored. Wow, Scored is one of those Young Adult books, I believe should be put on Required Readings list in school. Not because it was well written (it was really well written by the way) or anything like that, but because it shows morality and ethics in show an interesting light. Will we take technology to far?
Scored is set in Somerton, a poor town with very little employment. The town is now a trial city for the Score Corporation. That means, nearly everywhere you go, they are small black balls hanging everywhere, calculating your every movement, words and decisions. Scores are based on five things known as 'fitness':
Peer Group - who you associate with matters - the safest bet - hang with similar scores. Impulse Control - what you say and do is important - rationalize first as well as Congruity, Diligence and Rapport.
For people with a high score, they have a future; a chance at college and a career. Low scores and the unscored are lucky if they get a menial jobs.
Imani LeMonde is scored in the 90's and her best friend, Cady, is in 70's but a pact in middle school is what keeps their friendship alive. However when Cady does something, her score plummets and she brings Imani's score with her. Now in the 60's, Imani dreams of college seem long over unless she can win an essay competition open to everyone, scored or unscored, for a scholarship of $40,000.
Enter Diego Landis, an unscored who is equally intelligent as Imani and also vying to win the essay. Now Imani has to make sure she wins the competition, not get caught as she is creates a new career for herself as a spy, all while losing her best friend - what more could happen? As Imani fight with inner struggles, betrayal and feelings she shouldn't have, Scored is anything but boring.
When I began Scored first, Imani bothered me and I just didn't know why but once I finished the book I knew why. At the start, Imani's thought were not her own, they were practically implanted in her so that she kept her score. However, as the book goes on, we see Imani growing into her own thoughts and how she begins to understand both the positives and negative of Scores. By the end of the book, I really liked Imani.
Diego Landis is a great character. I loved him. He was interesting and intelligent but his troubles lie in his problem with authority.
Iamni and Diego make a great pair as they bounce of each other with interesting debates and witty retorts.
Although Scored holds no major plot or turning point, it is still a fantastic book. I still have some questions I want answered about Imani as well. It's short and I read it in three hours, mainly because I couldn't put it down. A must read for everyone.
April 22, 2012
Welcome to the future. Electronic surveillance cameras (called eyeballs) are everywhere. They evaluate what you do, who you hang out with and what choices you make - everything about you effects your Score. The higher the score, the more opportunities are open to you (college, scholarships, etc). The lower your score, the more limited your options are. Imani is going strong - in the 90s! - but her association with her childhood friend Cady (who is only in the 70s) is dragging her down. Imani is feeling the pressure to dump Cady and get with higher-scoring friends. In the midst of all this comes Diego, one of the unscored. Imani finds herself caught in a web of choices, all of which have consequences.
This is one of those great-ideas-not-the-best-stories type of book. There is a LOT of conversations about the merits of scoring people and punishing people for their low scores. This results a lot of talk and not exactly a slew of action. There are some twists to the story and Imani uncovers some interesting information on how scores are calculated. However, the ending left me wondering ‘now what’...
Not exactly 1984 or Brave New World, but it is a decent story.
This is one of those great-ideas-not-the-best-stories type of book. There is a LOT of conversations about the merits of scoring people and punishing people for their low scores. This results a lot of talk and not exactly a slew of action. There are some twists to the story and Imani uncovers some interesting information on how scores are calculated. However, the ending left me wondering ‘now what’...
Not exactly 1984 or Brave New World, but it is a decent story.
September 23, 2015
3.5
This was different. Interesting, but it felt short.
This was different because the world was dystopian-in-process-ish. You might understand better if you read the book. Basically, there is this company pretty much judges you on how "good" you are, using a scoring system. The characters can only associate with people who have similar scores to you (excluding family?). Higher scores mean better chance at college scholarship. Anything bad you do pulls down your score, although it's hard to pull it up. Personally, I don't think we need the scoring system. We, as people, have our morals, and while it's not as harsh and judgmental as the scoring system, we know ourselves whether what we do is good or bad. It also makes you think about privacy; having a judgmental computer system looking over your shoulder leaves you with about no privacy.
The ending was okay, but I had still had unanswered questions.
Altogether, it was interesting.
This was different. Interesting, but it felt short.
This was different because the world was dystopian-in-process-ish. You might understand better if you read the book. Basically, there is this company pretty much judges you on how "good" you are, using a scoring system. The characters can only associate with people who have similar scores to you (excluding family?). Higher scores mean better chance at college scholarship. Anything bad you do pulls down your score, although it's hard to pull it up. Personally, I don't think we need the scoring system. We, as people, have our morals, and while it's not as harsh and judgmental as the scoring system, we know ourselves whether what we do is good or bad. It also makes you think about privacy; having a judgmental computer system looking over your shoulder leaves you with about no privacy.
The ending was okay, but I had still had unanswered questions.
Altogether, it was interesting.
December 10, 2016
Scored has a good premise. It’s the near future, about two generations ahead, and the world has weathered a second Great Depression. Something was invented that can score people for pretty much everything, and the scores can be used to give free college to anyone with a good enough score, used to get people into professions, etc. The intent was that it fosters good habits and attitudes and lets people have advantages based on their morals and behavior, to bridge the gap between the ultra-rich and the poor. See? Interesting. The book gets lost… the main character is on track to get free college to become a marine biologist, even though she’s poor, when her score is brought down by a best friend. Everything goes downhill from there because we start out learning about the score and what may be bad about it and it turns into some cliché thing with no real ending and a sort of romance and actually just a jumble. What was the intent in this book? I don’t know. It’s disappointing, because it could have been a lot better.
December 18, 2014
The first half of this book had me hooked, but it slowly descended as it went on. The ending was what kind of sealed the 'this was average' deal for me. It ended in such a random place and I feel like there was a lot more of the story to tell, it didn't make much sense. I did like the idea behind it and it was a quick enough read for me to not be annoyed I spent time reading it. Just average, I guess.
Read
January 7, 2012Incredibly thought-provoking read- the dystopian element of standardized testing and constant surveillance don't seem so remote, disturbingly enough! Great dialogue and setting make for a solid, enjoyable read.
February 13, 2015
Um, hello?? A book that dissects class, race, and the US's screwed up educational system all in one, with a protagonist who is mixed race, all packaged as a dystopian YA? WHY DID NOBODY TELL ME ABOUT THIS. So frickin' good! And what's with the abysmal Goodreads rating? What's wrong with people?
March 22, 2012
The book had promise, and I kept holding out for it to go somewhere meaningful, but it never happened. It just kind of sputtered out and died.
Read
September 14, 2017Set in the future when teenagers are monitored via camera and their recorded actions and confessions plugged into a computer program that determines their ability to succeed. All kids given a "score" that determines their future potential. This score can get kids into colleges, grant scholarships, or destroy all hope for the above. Scored's reluctant heroine is Imani, a girl whose high score is brought down when her best friend's score plummets. Where do you draw the line between doing what feels morally right and what can mean your future? Friendship, romance, loyalty, family, human connection and human value: all are questioned in this fresh and compelling dystopian novel set in the scarily foreseeable future.
Read
September 26, 2021YA VERDICT: 1 to 2 stars, with a few 3 star moments.
ADULT VERDICT: Skip it.
Say something NICE:
The writing style was not bad, or at least I was never distracted or annoyed by it. The cover art was nice, even though it does not match the heroine described in the text. The plot gets slightly more interesting towards the end, and there's good potential for a sequel.
The not so good:
There's only the faintest whiff of "dystopia" here. There is almost no action (sitting in class and riding in boats does NOT count). The plot barely advances. There's no physcial or mortal danger for the characters. It all ends abruptly with no answers or resolution whatsoever--and is followed by an unsatisfying epilogue.
ADULT VERDICT: Skip it.
Say something NICE:
The writing style was not bad, or at least I was never distracted or annoyed by it. The cover art was nice, even though it does not match the heroine described in the text. The plot gets slightly more interesting towards the end, and there's good potential for a sequel.
The not so good:
There's only the faintest whiff of "dystopia" here. There is almost no action (sitting in class and riding in boats does NOT count). The plot barely advances. There's no physcial or mortal danger for the characters. It all ends abruptly with no answers or resolution whatsoever--and is followed by an unsatisfying epilogue.
February 23, 2024
Me ha gustado bastante. Los protas son muy cucos y me ha gustado cómo se ha ido desarrollando la trama a medida que ellos veían diferentes puntos de vista y se daban cuenta de que no siempre se tratan las cosas de blanco o negro. Eso sí, me gustaría que se hubiera desarrollado algo más el final en torno a lo que pasa con la puntuación y los no puntuados, porque deja todo un poco en ascuas. Me imagino que los no puntuados pueden continuar en el instituto porque Diego recibe la beca, vaya. Eso sí, pienso que la traducción podría ser mejorable pero that's just my opinion.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2011
Originally posted on my blog: http://libraryladyhylary.blogspot.com ! Check it out for more reviews!
After the second Great Depression created an insurmountable gap between the rich and the poor, a powerful company known as Score Corp created a new system to give everyone an equal chance at going to college and achieving the American dream: the Score. From kindergarten on, children are under constant surveillance by Score Corp’s “eyeballs,” cameras that exist to monitor their actions, behavior, friendships, academic performance and more. High school senior Imani LeMonde has worked hard her whole life to have the very high score of 92. Her best friend, Cady Fazio, however, is only a 71, and associating with her is a constant threat to Imani’s score. So far, Imani’s score has not been too impacted by her friendship, but after Cady is caught in a relationship with an unscored boy at their school, Imani’s score suddenly plummets to a 64. At Somerton High, there are only two kinds of unscored students: the uber-rich who can buy a college education, and the untouchable “peasants” who refuse to be scored because they are morally opposed or simply cannot afford it. In an effort to restore her high score, Imani begins a secret collaboration with Diego, an intelligent but unscored boy at her school, who thinks they are merely working together on an essay contest for a college scholarship. Imani hopes that gathering information from Diego, whose mother is a prominent anti-Score Corp lawyer, will improve her score. But once Imani begins to learn more about the truth of the score and its creators, will she be as loyal to the score as she once was?
Part dystopian fiction part social commentary, Scored is an interesting if not fully expanded novel for teens who want something to think about. While the score is the focus of the story, the exact mechanics of the scoring process are somewhat glossed over, leaving the reader longing to learn just how the elusive numbers are generated. Reference to a sophisticated software program are often made, but the author does not dive further into the computerized aspects of the scoring process. How do the Score Corp eyeballs watch everyone all at once? Are points added or subtracted by analyzing facial expressions? Do eyeballs exist in people’s homes? These are just a few of many questions that are never really answered in the novel, and could have used flushing out. Despite these missed opportunities, however, Scored does manage to delve quite deeply into the concepts that surround the score: social order, merit, socioeconomic disparities, and more. The idea of a caste system is brought up often, and conversations between characters, particularly Imani and Diego, will certainly leave readers who something to ponder after they’ve finished the book. Although it does seem more of a vehicle for the author to comment on the current state of education, particularly things like standardized testing and No Child Left Behind, Scored is an interesting and thought-provoking novel that many are sure to find enjoyable.
For me, this was one of those novels that had a concept I really loved by an execution that left me wanting just a bit more. I really wish that the author would have gotten more into exactly how the score worked. She touched on it from time to time, but I was never sure if it was Imani’s paranoia that caused her to think the cameras could judge facial expressions, movements, and other everyday behavior, or if that was really the case. I did enjoy Imani’s various battles with her conscience and thought the opportunity for social commentary was interesting, however. I think the author has a lot to say and that her point was expressed successfully in the novel.
After the second Great Depression created an insurmountable gap between the rich and the poor, a powerful company known as Score Corp created a new system to give everyone an equal chance at going to college and achieving the American dream: the Score. From kindergarten on, children are under constant surveillance by Score Corp’s “eyeballs,” cameras that exist to monitor their actions, behavior, friendships, academic performance and more. High school senior Imani LeMonde has worked hard her whole life to have the very high score of 92. Her best friend, Cady Fazio, however, is only a 71, and associating with her is a constant threat to Imani’s score. So far, Imani’s score has not been too impacted by her friendship, but after Cady is caught in a relationship with an unscored boy at their school, Imani’s score suddenly plummets to a 64. At Somerton High, there are only two kinds of unscored students: the uber-rich who can buy a college education, and the untouchable “peasants” who refuse to be scored because they are morally opposed or simply cannot afford it. In an effort to restore her high score, Imani begins a secret collaboration with Diego, an intelligent but unscored boy at her school, who thinks they are merely working together on an essay contest for a college scholarship. Imani hopes that gathering information from Diego, whose mother is a prominent anti-Score Corp lawyer, will improve her score. But once Imani begins to learn more about the truth of the score and its creators, will she be as loyal to the score as she once was?
Part dystopian fiction part social commentary, Scored is an interesting if not fully expanded novel for teens who want something to think about. While the score is the focus of the story, the exact mechanics of the scoring process are somewhat glossed over, leaving the reader longing to learn just how the elusive numbers are generated. Reference to a sophisticated software program are often made, but the author does not dive further into the computerized aspects of the scoring process. How do the Score Corp eyeballs watch everyone all at once? Are points added or subtracted by analyzing facial expressions? Do eyeballs exist in people’s homes? These are just a few of many questions that are never really answered in the novel, and could have used flushing out. Despite these missed opportunities, however, Scored does manage to delve quite deeply into the concepts that surround the score: social order, merit, socioeconomic disparities, and more. The idea of a caste system is brought up often, and conversations between characters, particularly Imani and Diego, will certainly leave readers who something to ponder after they’ve finished the book. Although it does seem more of a vehicle for the author to comment on the current state of education, particularly things like standardized testing and No Child Left Behind, Scored is an interesting and thought-provoking novel that many are sure to find enjoyable.
For me, this was one of those novels that had a concept I really loved by an execution that left me wanting just a bit more. I really wish that the author would have gotten more into exactly how the score worked. She touched on it from time to time, but I was never sure if it was Imani’s paranoia that caused her to think the cameras could judge facial expressions, movements, and other everyday behavior, or if that was really the case. I did enjoy Imani’s various battles with her conscience and thought the opportunity for social commentary was interesting, however. I think the author has a lot to say and that her point was expressed successfully in the novel.
May 31, 2013
This was one of those good enough books. It would do well for a teen who's into 1984-style stories, except any teen who's read 1984 will probably be turned off by the constant references to it. So really it's for that impossible-to-find audience, the teen who doesn't yet know this book is their preferred genre because they've never been exposed to it before.
The characters were well-crafted but at the same time I wasn't attached to any of them. Of course, I'm about ten years out of this book's target audience. The main characters are such typical teens that they'd probably appeal more to a teenager.
The biggest flaw in this book was the world building. It probably would have worked well to set a short story in but for a full novel there are just too many opportunities for it to fall apart. How can the score be a requirement for any action in life (we are constantly told that Cady has zero prospects with a score of 27, not even the most menial of jobs will have her) when the score is not yet universal?
I also think the focus of the book was misplaced. The missing ScoreCorp founder seemed much more interesting and productive a focus than a teen who, ultimately, Really nothing is resolved at all in this story and I feel like it could be leading to a sequel except neither Imani nor Diego seem to care enough about the world at large to carry a reader deeper into ScoreCorp's drama once they're out of high school.
And what happened with Exborough?! There was clearly more to that story given the way the ScoreCorp founders reacted to it but once Imani gets cut off in the middle, she never returns to it.
The best parts of this book were the questions it raised. Not the same old big brother issues found in half the dystopian novels in the world but the idea that this world is being created by people who started out with arguably good intentions. That, sadly, doesn't get explored much. The possibility that the score isn't inherently evil but is corrupted by people - be they teens desperate to claw their way higher or adults trying to use the imposition of the score for ... well, I'm really not sure what Ms. Wheeler's motives were - seems to be reinforced by the late-coming idea that you don't have to associate with people in your score range. Although the fact that Imani's score dropped over 20 points because of second degree association implies that the only other option is to be friendless.
In the end the book raises these great issues but never answers them, instead taking that annoying tactic of laying out a whole host of problems but never truly taking a stand.
The characters were well-crafted but at the same time I wasn't attached to any of them. Of course, I'm about ten years out of this book's target audience. The main characters are such typical teens that they'd probably appeal more to a teenager.
The biggest flaw in this book was the world building. It probably would have worked well to set a short story in but for a full novel there are just too many opportunities for it to fall apart. How can the score be a requirement for any action in life (we are constantly told that Cady has zero prospects with a score of 27, not even the most menial of jobs will have her) when the score is not yet universal?
I also think the focus of the book was misplaced. The missing ScoreCorp founder seemed much more interesting and productive a focus than a teen who, ultimately, Really nothing is resolved at all in this story and I feel like it could be leading to a sequel except neither Imani nor Diego seem to care enough about the world at large to carry a reader deeper into ScoreCorp's drama once they're out of high school.
And what happened with Exborough?! There was clearly more to that story given the way the ScoreCorp founders reacted to it but once Imani gets cut off in the middle, she never returns to it.
The best parts of this book were the questions it raised. Not the same old big brother issues found in half the dystopian novels in the world but the idea that this world is being created by people who started out with arguably good intentions. That, sadly, doesn't get explored much. The possibility that the score isn't inherently evil but is corrupted by people - be they teens desperate to claw their way higher or adults trying to use the imposition of the score for ... well, I'm really not sure what Ms. Wheeler's motives were - seems to be reinforced by the late-coming idea that you don't have to associate with people in your score range. Although the fact that Imani's score dropped over 20 points because of second degree association implies that the only other option is to be friendless.
In the end the book raises these great issues but never answers them, instead taking that annoying tactic of laying out a whole host of problems but never truly taking a stand.
June 27, 2016
Scored by Lauren McLaughlin
Publication: Jan 1st 2011 by Random House Books
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Young Adult
Set in the future when teenagers are monitored via camera and their recorded actions and confessions plugged into a computer program that determines their ability to succeed. All kids given a "score" that determines their future potential. This score has the ability to get kids into colleges, grant scholarships, or destroy all hope for the above.Scored's reluctant heroine is Imani, a girl whose high score is brought down when her best friend's score plummets. Where do you draw the line between doing what feels morally right and what can mean your future? Friendship, romance, loyalty, family, human connection and human value: all are questioned in this fresh and compelling dystopian novel set in the scarily foreseeable future.
I went from being in the clouds because of the amazing story arc to in the puddle because of the horribly drafted romance, to back on the ground because of the better ending. This book was, in all honestly, a rollercoaster of emotions for me. I'm still not sure whether in a good or a bad way.
First, the plot. I loved it for most part. I loveloveloved the whole thing about the Score Corp and the eyeballs and the five elements that determine one's score: peer group, impulse control, rapport, etc. I could see Imani shunning her friend, Cady for the most part. I liked how Diego was introduced, and the whole Imani/Diego friendship. And I loved the concept of the novel so much. So, so much. I could write a fanfiction about it, a privilege I have reserved only for Harry Potter, Doctor Who and Percy Jackson.
The book did go very random at times - note that I will be going over the ending later on. At times I had no clue what was going on and Imani failed as a narrator. Honestly. Her family had no depth to it. I would have liked if the functioning of the Score Corp would have been elaborated upon, like say how much grades affect the final score. Or how facial expressions do. How the eyeball monitors so many at the same time.
While I liked Diego, I did not like Imani or Cady. Not at all. Imani was too fickle-minded for my taste. I understand the whole part about doing the right thing in the end. However, I did not, absolutely did not understand why she had to go and kiss Diego. And effectively do the exact thing that she had shunned Cady for. I did not see Imani and Diego as a couple at all. They were more of best friends to me. There was no leading up to that kiss at the end. The last few pages of the book were so scattered that I almost gave up on them. Ugh. It as tiring. The last page was the only one that had anything to offer. Still, my love for the book was totally erased.
Overall rating: Two out of five stars (2/5)
Final Comment: At least it wasn't a series.
April 25, 2013
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2...
That is the sound of your life's blood slowly but surely plummeting away, your Score dropping lower and lower. The lower you get, the more friends you lose, and the less opportunities - college, job choices, future wealth - become available to you.
In Imani Lemonde's world, the Score is at the heart of every teen and child. It is responsible for their actions, their motivations, and their choices. It regulates those who they associate with and choose not to associate with. In a way, the Score is their God.
Imani has always lived by the rules of the Score (known as "score fitness") because the higher your Score is by graduation, the more options you have available to you later in life. For those with a high Score (80-90s), their College tuition is free, and few businesses accept those with a score below 70.
When Imani's best friend, Cady Fazio, sacrifices her Score to be with an Unscored - someone who's parents decided not to use the Score Corp system, Imani (as well as her town) is scandalized. Everyone knows that associating with an Unscored causes an automatic score drop, and by association, Cady's score plummets all the way to the 70s.
With her visions of College fading, Imani is desperate. When her out-of-the-box teacher suggests that his students submit a paper on the Score in order to win a $40,000 prize, Imani jumps at the opportunity. There's just one problem: she has to take the angle against the Score, while her fellow Unscored have to take up support of the Score.
To do it, Imani teams up fellow student and Unscored Diego Landis, whose vehemently anti-Score beliefs are a thorn in the side of every Scored. The relationship has mutual benefit - Imani's pro-Score ideas will aid his paper, and his anti-Score ones will aid her paper. Annoyed and infuriated, Imani begins to work with Diego on developing ideas against the Score, slowly realizing that maybe the Score isn't so much of the beacon of hope and light it seems.
It manages to touch on a little of everything, for just 264 (?) pages. I was impressed. However the romance between Diego and Imani is a very tropy in how it's pulled off, which annoyed me.
Scored actually presented very in-depth, realistic consequences (and benefits) of the Score, and systems like it. I was expecting to have the Score shattered by the end of the book, but that never really happens. We see some ways the Score is flawed, but, on the whole, the Score isn't an entirely bad idea.
Worth a read!
(I'm a bit rusty on reviews, so this one isn't up to snuff (not that the other ones are))
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2...
That is the sound of your life's blood slowly but surely plummeting away, your Score dropping lower and lower. The lower you get, the more friends you lose, and the less opportunities - college, job choices, future wealth - become available to you.
In Imani Lemonde's world, the Score is at the heart of every teen and child. It is responsible for their actions, their motivations, and their choices. It regulates those who they associate with and choose not to associate with. In a way, the Score is their God.
Imani has always lived by the rules of the Score (known as "score fitness") because the higher your Score is by graduation, the more options you have available to you later in life. For those with a high Score (80-90s), their College tuition is free, and few businesses accept those with a score below 70.
When Imani's best friend, Cady Fazio, sacrifices her Score to be with an Unscored - someone who's parents decided not to use the Score Corp system, Imani (as well as her town) is scandalized. Everyone knows that associating with an Unscored causes an automatic score drop, and by association, Cady's score plummets all the way to the 70s.
With her visions of College fading, Imani is desperate. When her out-of-the-box teacher suggests that his students submit a paper on the Score in order to win a $40,000 prize, Imani jumps at the opportunity. There's just one problem: she has to take the angle against the Score, while her fellow Unscored have to take up support of the Score.
To do it, Imani teams up fellow student and Unscored Diego Landis, whose vehemently anti-Score beliefs are a thorn in the side of every Scored. The relationship has mutual benefit - Imani's pro-Score ideas will aid his paper, and his anti-Score ones will aid her paper. Annoyed and infuriated, Imani begins to work with Diego on developing ideas against the Score, slowly realizing that maybe the Score isn't so much of the beacon of hope and light it seems.
It manages to touch on a little of everything, for just 264 (?) pages. I was impressed. However the romance between Diego and Imani is a very tropy in how it's pulled off, which annoyed me.
Scored actually presented very in-depth, realistic consequences (and benefits) of the Score, and systems like it. I was expecting to have the Score shattered by the end of the book, but that never really happens. We see some ways the Score is flawed, but, on the whole, the Score isn't an entirely bad idea.
Worth a read!
(I'm a bit rusty on reviews, so this one isn't up to snuff (not that the other ones are))
August 16, 2012
I am surprised I hadn't heard more about this book, as it has some very interesting concepts. It is a dystopian tale of a not too distant future, post-economic collapse. The middle class is no more and college has become unattainable for all but the uber-rich. In order to allow the lower class to become upwardly mobile, the government created "The Score". Teenagers are constantly watched by "eyeballs" placed all around their schools and towns. Specially-calibrated software ranks all of their actions and gives points for "fit" activities (good behavior) and takes points away from "unfit" activities (swearing, drinking, bad grades, etc). Teenagers are encouraged to only associate with others in their same score group, or risk hurting their score. Students get jobs based on their scores after high school; those students scoring above 90 are given full scholarships to college and the opportunity for a high-paying career.
The main character, Imani, daughter of a poor mechanic who desperately wants to be a marine biologist, starts out the story as a 92, and nearing the end of her senior year of high school her future looks bright. Until her best friend throws her score away by dating an "unscored" and Imani's score plummets by association. Imani begins to research the scoring process for a college grant application and an assignment in her history class. Surprised by what she finds, and intrigued by a mysterious "unscored" in her class, Imani's whole life begins to shift on its axis.
I was quite impressed with the concept of this story, an interesting commentary on privacy and surveillance in society, as well as a condemnation of current test-centered education policies and economic issues. I felt that the book wrapped up a little too quickly at the end, and I would have loved to see it go a little more in-depth into the privacy issues. While the Imani and Diego main characters were intriguing, I would have loved to see more insight into Imani and Diego's parents - greater development of the contrast between the pre-score and score generations. Still, I enjoyed the book very much and I know students will too! Appropriate for 8-12 grade, this book would be the perfect modern contrast to Orwell's 1984. It should appeal to high school students and teachers because it is fairly short, a good reading level for most high school students, and just plausible enough to be chilling.
The main character, Imani, daughter of a poor mechanic who desperately wants to be a marine biologist, starts out the story as a 92, and nearing the end of her senior year of high school her future looks bright. Until her best friend throws her score away by dating an "unscored" and Imani's score plummets by association. Imani begins to research the scoring process for a college grant application and an assignment in her history class. Surprised by what she finds, and intrigued by a mysterious "unscored" in her class, Imani's whole life begins to shift on its axis.
I was quite impressed with the concept of this story, an interesting commentary on privacy and surveillance in society, as well as a condemnation of current test-centered education policies and economic issues. I felt that the book wrapped up a little too quickly at the end, and I would have loved to see it go a little more in-depth into the privacy issues. While the Imani and Diego main characters were intriguing, I would have loved to see more insight into Imani and Diego's parents - greater development of the contrast between the pre-score and score generations. Still, I enjoyed the book very much and I know students will too! Appropriate for 8-12 grade, this book would be the perfect modern contrast to Orwell's 1984. It should appeal to high school students and teachers because it is fairly short, a good reading level for most high school students, and just plausible enough to be chilling.
September 28, 2012
The Five Elements of Your Score
Peer Group
Impulse Control
Congruity
Diligence
Rapport
Imagine, every single thing you do and say is scored and your future depends on your score.
This is the kind of society where Imani lives.The friends you should hang out with are the ones who have the same score as you, so you may have to say goodbye to some people along the way.
Cady has been Imani's friend for a long time and they even had a pact,but when Cady's score falls ,Imani knows she should forget about her.
However, since Imani's score has also gone down, she has to do more to get a scholarship, to find a good job in the future , to be who she was meant to .So she does what she has to do and for some good, bad and worse reasons Imani starts seeing Diego, an unscored boy, which is worse than a lowbie. And she gradually begins to see things in a different way.
Incidentally I happened to see the film The Tall Man with Jessica Biel around the time I was reading the book and the combination of both made me think about some of the positive things of being scored.
But, as you will find out there are negative things as well.
Very good food for thought.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
Peer Group
Impulse Control
Congruity
Diligence
Rapport
Imagine, every single thing you do and say is scored and your future depends on your score.
This is the kind of society where Imani lives.The friends you should hang out with are the ones who have the same score as you, so you may have to say goodbye to some people along the way.
Cady has been Imani's friend for a long time and they even had a pact,but when Cady's score falls ,Imani knows she should forget about her.
However, since Imani's score has also gone down, she has to do more to get a scholarship, to find a good job in the future , to be who she was meant to .So she does what she has to do and for some good, bad and worse reasons Imani starts seeing Diego, an unscored boy, which is worse than a lowbie. And she gradually begins to see things in a different way.
Incidentally I happened to see the film The Tall Man with Jessica Biel around the time I was reading the book and the combination of both made me think about some of the positive things of being scored.
But, as you will find out there are negative things as well.
Very good food for thought.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
September 19, 2012
Too much junk in it for my taste. I just got like 4% into it and already there was the "b" word, the "s" word, dang a few times. A couple having pre-marital sex, talk of a boy trying to put his hands up a girls shirt...not for me.
Plus the whole score system was crazy. Cameras are watching them everywhere and based on how you acted you were scored. You only hung out with people of your same score range. If you went down in score you couldn't even talk to you "friends". Even siblings were wary of being with you if you weren't perfect. Your score was your life, if you could go to college, what career you could be. Loyalty was outcasted...
Blah!
Plus the whole score system was crazy. Cameras are watching them everywhere and based on how you acted you were scored. You only hung out with people of your same score range. If you went down in score you couldn't even talk to you "friends". Even siblings were wary of being with you if you weren't perfect. Your score was your life, if you could go to college, what career you could be. Loyalty was outcasted...
Blah!
March 5, 2012
This is one of those books I'm not quite sure what to do with. I loved the premise, I loved the hero and the heroine, and the supporting characters were intriguing. The book is on the shorter side, however, and only providing the heroine's first person point of view runs the risk of making the hero seem rather shallow (although it does lend him a nice air of mystery). The book is on the shorter side, and the length "let's talk about the philosophy of scoring vs. not scoring!" discussions between the hero and the heroine really slowed the pacing down. Given how intriguing the world building is, I would have liked to see the heroine experience more and talk less.
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