Legend: A Thrilling Dystopian Adventure

 

    In Los Angeles, California, 100 years in the future, America as anything but a bustling Western Democracy which is familiar to us today. After a series of catastrophes, the United States has collapsed into the totalitarian regime of the Republic of America, which is perpetually at war with another successor state by the name of the Colonies of America. Escaping from the Republic's clutches after failing a life-or-death exam, a skilled criminal by the name of Day is seeking to protect his family from an oppressive government and a plague epidemic, while obstructing the Republic's war effort. Everything seems somewhat fine, until one fateful evening, when Republic doctors diagnose someone in Day's family with the dreaded plague.

    This grim alternate world is brought to life in Marie Lu's novel titled Legend. However, the reason the book is so engaging is not simply because of the convincing setting, but also the relatable characters and the important lessons shown throughout the story.

    As one of the two main characters in the novel, Day's numerous actions, crimes, and blunders are all driven by his undying love of his family. For the first few chapters of the novel, every action Day does is done to help his family. Whether it's stealing medicine to help his infected brother, or committing petty theft to rapidly accumulate money, it is clear that Day is doing this all for his family. This fact is obvious enough for his pursuers to use that against him. In the words of another narrator in the story, "I've taken advantage of Day's greatest weakness. He doesn't hesitate, doesn't stop to question what I say...He trusts me - truly, stupidly, wholeheartedly trusts me" (Page 146). This trait makes Day incredibly relatable, and reminds us even more of the humanity of what the Republic views as a heinous criminal.

    Born into the privileged elite of the Republic, June is proven to be extraordinarily gifted, and a prodigy in the eyes of the upper class. Even though June comes from an entirely different background as compared to Day, June still shares a love for her family, especially her brother Metias. After Metias was murdered, and Day pinned as the primary suspect, a grieving June is assigned to track him down. In this way, June's actions are also driven by her love for her family, and June seeks to deal justice to whoever killed her brother.

Together, Day and June's love for their respective families weave together a chain of events that develops the plot of the entire story.

Yet the most important aspects of Legend are the lessons which the story tells us, especially regarding the struggles of the poor. The impoverished in Legend are clearly segregated in every aspect of life. There's a stark distinction between the rich "gem" sectors in a city, and the poor "slum" sectors, shown in quality of life, lighting, cleanliness, and even the general atmosphere of the sector in its portrayal. The rich and the poor are separated when they receive government services together, and in one scene, Day claims that if he was wealthy he'd be "admitted without charge. Or they'd send a doctor for free straight up to where [Day] live[s]" (Page 26). While this segregation is clearly reprehensible, the nail in the coffin for the Republic's poor is the Trial system and its consequences. In the Trial, all of the Republic's children are tested for intelligence and physical ability at age 10. Then, they receive special privileges and career/education assignments based on their capabilities. On paper, a meritocratic system based on a test doesn't seem that bad. That is, it isn't bad until those who perform poorly are denied the right to a good education, and the most under-performing are sent straight their deaths. However, the worst part of the Trial is that it amplifies the problems of equality of opportunity to a stunning extent. When you do poorly on the Trial, you are condemned to a life within the impoverished masses, completely ending any chance of upward mobility. But the problem doesn't stop when you die. Your children are born into a poor family, and they start off automatically at a disadvantage. They don't have competent tutors, good schools, or stable communities. The poor children are left to fend for themselves educationally. So as a result, when Trial day arrives, there is absolutely no surprise that "it's always the slum-sector kids who fail" (Page 7). At the end of the day, one of the most important reasons for success and failure is the sector in which you were born into.

This grim outlook for the poor doesn't simply apply to the people of some fictional novel in some fictional nation. It applies here, in our own communities, in our own nation. While the problems highlighted in the story are clearly supposed to show the worst case scenario, in which almost everything that could go wrong did go wrong, our reality also falls victim to the same problems (albeit on a lesser scale). This novel is only so engaging because everything that happens in that universe is a reflection of the problems faced in our world. 

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I highly recommend that you read Legend, so you can learn about the characters, the setting, and the themes on your own. There's no way I could cover everything about the novel, and every aspect of every character's personality. Some rather important topics were left out, for the sake of conciseness. The best way to enjoy a book you like is to read it yourself. Read it once, twice, three times, or however many times you need. I also suggest you check out the sequel books. For all the reasons stated before, this book (and the whole series) is too good to miss.