Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

This Month's Book Of The Month, as voted by you, Is "Concealed in the Shadows", by Gabrielle Arrowsmith.

We invite everyone to read along with us and post your thoughts and views here in this post. I will be posting some "discussion questions" that I hope you will all come and share your thoughts on.

You can get your free copy of the book from :-

Smashwords - (Which has ALL formats)

Barnes and Noble -

Amazon -

Discussion Questions - (These will be added in the conversation feed as well but I will post them here too so that they are easily found for people joining in later in the month :)

1. What did you think about the idea of a set number of "parenting years"?

2. There was a lot of talk of how reliant on their tablets many people are. Do you think this is becoming more and more true today?

3. Lots of dystopian books are adopting the idea of microchipping people in various ways. How would you feel about having a microchip?

4. Do you think you could fight as hard as some of these characters do for someone you just met ... someone who is practically a stranger?
V""V

Just grabbed a copy :)

I'm excited to discuss with everyone!

So here are my first 2 questions (which I will also add in to the first post)

1. What did you think about the idea of a set number of "parenting years"?

2. There was a lot of talk of how reliant on their tablets many people are. Do you think this is becoming more and more true today?


My answers .....

1. I found this a very interesting way of trying to control population. Certainly not one that I have read about before. As with any situation like that where things are so rigid with no flexibility there are always going to be major problems. I cannot imagine having to make those kind of decisions.

2. I think children especially today are too reliant on technology although adults are falling more and more guilty to the same pattern. We actually have a rule in this house that during meals and "family movie time" no cell phones and surprisingly it was my parents (68 and 78 respectively) who are seeing to find it the most difficult to comply with on their visit here at the moment lol. I actually had to confiscate my mum's phone!

V""V

Melanie, that's so funny that you had to take your mom's phone away. One thing I hate to see is kids on their phones during passing time in school. Some would rather text their friends rather than walk down the hallway to chat with them in person. What!? And kids are always crashing into each other as they walk to class because they're so fixated on their messages/games...

Don't get me wrong I LOVE my phone and my tablet .... but there is a time and a place for it. Same reason we make sure we have family meals as often as we can .... around a table .... with no outside distraction. I hate when we go out to dinner and you see that families now just stick a tablet in front of their children rather than teaching them social behaviour :( Maybe I am a bit old fashioned ...... V""V

It's great that you are! I think your practices are awesome. I think more families should adopt no-device-time.

Just got my copy! Will start reading today!

1.) I agree with Melanie that it is a unique way to control society. When the government is that harsh there are bound to be problems. :)

2.) I definitely agree that technology is becoming more popular today but not just with the younger population. I'm 14 and my mum is more likely to pull her phone out during a family meal/family TV night than me. :) We've been brought up that there is a time and a place for technology to be used but not everyone has. I could see it becoming a bigger problem in the future

1. I agree with you, Melanie, that this is a unique means of population control. I think one problem that would arise from that is the overcrowding of orphanages/children's homes if a family had already used it's allotted number of years and ended up with another child. I would be devastated if I had used up my years and something terrible happened to my sister and I couldn't get custody of her child.

2. I definitely agree that society has increasingly become more dependent on phones and tablets and other technology. As mentioned already, it isn't just the younger people doing it, but they do rely on technology a lot. I hate when I am eating in a restaurant and I see everyone at a table using their phones or tablets instead of engaging in conversation. When I am having dinner or another meal with someone, I have a strict no-device rule.

This book is presenting some scary realities because they aren't actually a far cry from society today!

1. What struck me with this part of the story is what decisions families would have to face if a woman fell pregnant and had run out of or only had very few parenting years left after having other children. Would that mean you had to give up your baby right away or know that you could only have the child for a few years and get to know it, love it, care for it before it was taken and given to someone else? It's really chilling. Also Heather makes a really interesting point about taking on your sibling's kids, that just wouldn't be possible in this situation and then kids would go to strangers rather than family :( It's truly awful the more you think about it!

2. I would not be invited to any of your dinner tables girls - I am definitely an obsessive person who has to have my phone at my side and check for messages constantly. I hate to feel like I've missed something important, but I am also aware of what that dependency does to your brain. I only ever feel truly relaxed now when I'm in a foreign country and I have no signal!

Loving all the answers here!! This book certainly does raise some issues and I agree K.C I feel that it is frightening because we really aren't that far from this being some kind of possibility. So with that in mind here is question 3....

Question 3. Lots of dystopian books are adopting the idea of microchipping people in various ways. How would you feel about having a microchip?

I find this one very difficult. With all my medical conditions it is really only a small step of for me than my medic alert and some of the home security things we have looked at for the house. Lots of people now have these "linked up" home security things so really anyone with one of those COULD be being monitored by the government really ........ Of course with every benefit there is going to be a downside and the temptation for corruption from the higher ups. For me though if it was available it could literally save my life ... so I have to say I might be tempted ..... V""V

I am not really sure how I feel about having a microchip. Reading the question before your response, my initial thought was that I would be very upset if I had to had a microchip. I do not like the idea of the government being that watchful of my life. It creeps me out to think someone would be able to find my exact location at any given time. I like the idea of having a right to privacy.

After reading your response, it made me think about the positive side to having a microchip. It really could save a life. I had a scary medical thing happen last spring and if my family hadn't known where to find me, it could have ended very badly. A GPS chip would have helped if nobody knew how to find me.

So it's really a toss-up for me. I am not sure if the positive outweighs the negative, or vice-versa. I like how thought provoking your question and response are.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Heather :). The fact that you found it thought provoking made me smile. I try to come up with questions to make people think. V""V

Here is a fake newspaper article I wrote on the subject of chip implants (used as a guest post). I also wrote one from the opposite viewpoint, but can't seem to find it...

Vote NO! Chip Implants: An Extreme Violation of Rights

Above all else, the United States of America has been a shinning symbol of democracy and freedom. Thank God we are still exercising democratic policy so that we the people can vote to protect our right to liberty.

I still don’t believe that we truly voted to deprive ourselves of geographical freedom but, nonetheless, “county� living will soon be our reality. The government is now trying to pass chip implants off as the only way that they can enforce the law that we supposedly passed.

The propaganda states that the chips� ability to track citizens will not only enforce our civic duty to be selfless and live within a specified circle, but that they will help locate kidnapped children, abducted adults, and people with Alzheimer’s or mental illnesses who are lost. Really, the chips will allow the government to track citizens� every move. That is a severe invasion of privacy, especially for those individuals who are leaders of the current protests.

The chips are also being advocated for because they will eliminate the need for paper money–lowering our national debt and reducing crimes like identity theft and the purchase of illegal substances. But since the government will have omniscient control of these chips, do we really trust that their automatic tax withdrawal will be fair? Personally, I don’t put it past them to give unlawful breaks to their preferred businesses, thus driving the economy as they see fit.

Perhaps most concerning is that the chips will monitor individuals� health. With an ever-increasing rise in cancer and other fatal illnesses, the opportunity to catch these and other diseases early can be alluring. However, I happen to know that Congress� next draft of the relocation bill will include stipulations on population growth. In fact, I believe this push may take the front seat from energy conservation. Pregnancies beyond the allowance or of a certain type will be considered a health concern. I fear what the technological advance chips might be able to do in such cases.

Mandatory chip implants are an extreme violation of our rights. We must not be so naïve as to think the historically proven ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely� is not applicable to our country. Yes, our duty is to protect the future of our country. De-unifying our strong nation and putting unprecedented power in the hands of its leaders is not my suggestion for safeguarding the existence and success of The United States of America. I will vote no. I beg you to consider what could become, and do the same.

I'm really freakish with anything like surgery or even needles, I don't like them. At all. I also value my privacy a lot and don't know whether I would be comfortable with people (especially the government) knowing my every move etc. If it was life or death situation then I'd like to think I would have it done. I guess you just have to think about the context of the situation. In this book's sense, I would find it creepy that someone thought they had the right to do something like that to me and claim it was for our own good. :)

Thank you for sharing that, Gabrielle! How creative to do news articles line that! The chips are such an interesting topic right now. I've actually had conversations with people outside of book discussions about chip implants. A bunch of people across the country believe that microchips are next after the Affordable Care Act. I'm not sure if I believe that or not, but it's interesting to read about this issue in dystopian stories. It is chilling to think that the worlds we read about in fiction could someday be a reality. (Here's hoping we don't actually have to compete in the Hunger Games!!!!!)

I just finished reading Concealed in the Shadows, which was very good by the way. The idea of parenting years was really refreshing. It's the first time I've come across this type of solution for population control and I think it adds a lot more to the story than the microchip issue. As for the chip, it seems just about every dystopian story out there has their population microchipped in some form or another. I believe that is probably the result of everyone's deep-seeded idea of their worst nightmare, technology that turns against society as a whole. The dependance on the tablet in this story was a very good way for the author to reach out to the audience and say, "See what you're doing? See where this is going to lead you?" I think it really helped to grab you and make you think about such simple pieces of technology having such a big impact on more than just an individual. Unfortunately, I really do believe we are becoming more and more reliant on devices like these to take the place of person to person socialization. And the scary part is more business transactions are relying more on computerized programs and devices that will most certainly open the door to the future need for something like a microchip to "help serve you better". The whole thing sends a shiver down my spine.

4. Do you think you could fight as hard as some of these characters do for someone you just met ... someone who is practically a stranger?

My Answer - I honestly don't think I could. I would love to say YES ABSOLUTELY but in my heart I just think that my first instinct would to be protect me and my family. Selfish sadly but I think true. V""V

I don't know if I could either. It's a nice thought, and maybe if I had survived in that type of lifestyle, I could. But the way I live now, I don't think I could risk my life for a complete stranger. I put others before myself in many situations, but they are minor, seemingly insignificant situations. I don't think I am brave enough or selfless enough to risk my life like that.

The Davids brothers made an exception for Sydney - one they've never dreamed of making - because she is very dear to them. They've never spoken with her before, but after years of studying her, they feel as though they know her. They sympathize with her struggles because they've been there themselves. This connection helps them act with bravery that otherwise might not come as readily.

Cy especially is a rare breed in his selflessness, as mentioned. Realistically, I'm a far cry from that level of bravery and loyalty, which makes me very thankful that there are people willing to risk and give up their lives to protect me and defend the rights of civilians in other parts of the world (and at home too) with whom they have no personal connection. It's amazing, really!