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Summary

Community summary are the opinions of contributing users. These summary do not represent the opinions of the Edmonton Public Library.
Spare, unselfconscious, this debut novel is as startling in its premise as it is in its sense of "rightness." It is a small gem. Julia, the narrator and main character, is an eleven-year Southern California only child whose mother, a part-time acting teacher, and father, an ob-gyn, respond to the world in markedly different ways, leaving Julia to occupy the middle ground linking them together. Her observing voice recalls, from a distance, the long-ago time when a day lasted 24 hours, divided predictably between darkness and light. But on the cusp of adolescence, Julia's ordinary concerns (flat-chestedness, popularity, soccer) are eclipsed by an epochal shift, soon named The Slowing: days are gradually lengthening, rendering "clock time" meaningless. Julia's telling of this catastrophic change never strays into the histrionic. The result is completely, disturbingly believable novel that will resonate with YA and adult audiences alike.