Return to your favorite fantasy realms, lose yourself in some epic romances, and find yourself in stories that will linger in your mind long after you’ve finished reading through our November most anticipated YA books. Put on your reading socks, wrap yourself in a soft, warm throw, grab a hot drink from the café to […]
Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe
Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe
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Overview
Fresh from Neal Shusterman and a host of collaborating authors comes even more content set in the Scythe universe. Explore more characters, backstories and alcoves from the daunting world of MidMerica.
There are still countless tales of the Scythedom to tell. Centuries passed between the Thunderhead cradling humanity and Scythe Goddard trying to turn it upside down. For years, humans lived in a world without hunger, disease, or death with Scythes as the living instruments of population control.
Neal Shusterman—along with collaborators David Yoon, Jarrod Shusterman, Sofía Lapuente, Michael H. Payne, Michelle Knowlden, and Joelle Shusterman—returns to the world throughout the timeline of the Arc of a Scythe series. Discover secrets and histories of characters you’ve followed for three volumes and meet new heroes, new foes, and some figures in between.
Gleanings shows just how expansive, terrifying, and thrilling the world that began with the Printz Honor–winning Scythe truly is.
Product Details
ISBN-13: | 9781797145891 |
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Publisher: | Simon & Schuster Audio |
Publication date: | 11/08/2022 |
Series: | Arc of a Scythe Series |
Edition description: | Unabridged |
Product dimensions: | 5.10(w) x 5.90(h) x 0.80(d) |
Age Range: | 12 - 18 Years |
About the Author
Neal Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty award-winning books for children, teens, and adults, including the Unwind dystology, the Skinjacker trilogy, Downsiders, and Challenger Deep, which won the National Book Award. Scythe, the first book in his series Arc of a Scythe is a Michael L. Printz Honor Book. He also writes screenplays for motion pictures and television shows. Neal is the father of four, all of whom are talented writers and artists themselves. Visit Neal at StoryMan.com and Facebook.com/NealShusterman.
Jarrod Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling coauthor of the novel Dry, which he is adapting for a major Hollywood film studio with National Book Award winner Neal Shusterman. He is also the coauthor of the accoladed novel Roxy. His books have all received critical acclaim and multiple starred reviews. Jarrod wrote his most recent title, Retro, with Sofía Lapuente, and together, they teach a course on writing at UCLA. They are partners in every sense of the word, with love and multiculturalism as an ethos—living between Madrid, Spain, and Los Angeles. If they are not working, it means they’re eating. For behind-the-scenes author content and fun videos, follow them on Instagram and TikTok @SofiandJarrod.
Read an Excerpt
1. The First Swing The First Swing
Slicing through the air with effortless aplomb,
the moment you take your first swing,
you wield your axe
like you are a master in the art of gleaning.
Those before you are in awe.
They cannot imagine what your next move will be.
You carry yourself as balanced and poised as a performer
dancing brutally among them;
the searing star of stars,
your robe cascading to the earth
in showers of gold.
But that is not the truth.
Your worth does not matter
to those who now matter to you.
You are truly nothing but a tiny sunspot
to the eyes of others like yourself.
An insignificant fleck.
And as you take that first swing,
they laugh at you.
You try to rise above their derision,
to be noticed in some small way.
To find favor from the old ones,
who are never old.
To gain respect from the young ones,
who have slain their own youth.
To justify the arrogance
that comes with the pride
of being chosen.
But that is not the truth either.
It will be years until you come to know the truth:
That those you revere are merely servants
to the collective that we prune.
It was their choice to let us choose
all those years ago.
The awed, terrified, relieved spectators;
the real ones in power,
the puppeteers of your actions.
Standing in a perfect line before them,
a cutting edge,
wielding our axes,
each one of us is the same as the last.
We are one in all,
We are all in one, and
We.
Shall.
Kill.
Our mantra, our commandment,
our duty to remind the immortal of mortality.
To teach them
that eternal repose may be distant,
but not lost.
Who are We?
We are Scythes.
And the weapons We wield
are not by any means our friends.
The devastating force
of bullet, blade, and bludgeon
tears us apart each day, every day,
piece by piece,
and leaves us with wounds that will never heal.
This is what ties us to the masses,
yet restrains us from being one with them.
And with each new gleaning,
We bleed and break anew,
yet our resolve never changes.
For We are scythes.
Nothing will ever change that fact.
And when it is your time to bleed,
you will know,
and you will learn.
—Joelle Shusterman