Qualify

In May we chose “Qualify” by Vera Nazarian for our start of the summer reads. This is a young adult novel set in a future facing a world ending asteroid. While it appears all is lost, the sudden arrival of the descendants of ancient Atlantis bring the possibility of hope. Advanced in technology and physical skills, they invite some of humanity to be saved. But there’s a catch. One must qualify to be admitted. And only teens competing in qualification are allowed. Most of humanity will die.

Gwen Lark is one of four siblings who manage to participate in the qualification process and move through the stages of training and increasingly challenging qualification tests. During training all the teens meet some of the Atlanteans, learn new skills, and master new technology to prepare for the final qualifying events that are life and death competitions. And as a sixteen-year-old navigating boys and the stresses of life, Gwen has to learn to trust her smarts, friends, and family to progress through the grueling qualification.

This was a fun read that most of our group enjoyed. While our group is well over the target audience age, it was still compelling enough to enjoy watching the characters as they struggled. We talked about how each qualifying candidate were sorted into different groups, and because we were participating online, it was easy for us to all take an online test to figure out which group we would be in. The book is the first in a four-book series, that several members of our group have read on to completion. It was an enjoyable read and a unique take on the lost city of Atlantis story.