The Prophet of Yonwood

The Third Book of Ember

By: Jeanne DuPrau

Narrated by: Becky Ann Baker

Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's Summary

It's 50 years before the settlement of the city of Ember, and the world is in crisis. War looms on the horizon as 11-year-old Nickie and her aunt travel to the small town of Yonwood, North Carolina. There, one of the town's respected citizens has had a terrible vision of fire and destruction. Her garbled words are taken as prophetic instruction on how to avoid the coming disaster. If only they can be interpreted correctly. 

As the people of Yonwood scramble to make sense of the woman's mysterious utterances, Nickie explores the oddities she finds around town - her great-grandfather's peculiar journals and papers, a reclusive neighbor who studies the heavens, a strange boy who is fascinated with snakes - all while keeping an eye out for ways to help the world. Is this vision her chance? Or is it already too late to avoid a devastating war?

In this prequel to the acclaimed The City of Ember and The People of Sparks, Jeanne DuPrau investigates how, in a world that seems out of control, hope and comfort can be found in the strangest of places.

Don't miss Lina and Doon's other adventures in The City of Ember.

©2006 Jeanne DuPrau (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

lost connection

I felt this book lost connection with the series. it did not hint to ember until the last 5 minutes. during the whole book you are left wondering what's going on. it feels like a filler episode if it were a TV show

Don't waste your time with this one...

Over all I enjoyed this series of books. This third book in the series is however a pointless rambling that has no place in the series. You will not miss a beat in the series if you skip this book.

Very imaginative prequel to the City of Ember

This is book 3 of 4 in the "Ember" series which describes a post-apocalyptic earth in hopeful terms. I like that part of the series' approach, though the overall style can be a little pedantic (in my adult opinion) for moral lessons. However, the target audience is juvenile readers so I think the clarity and overt description of moral connections is likely appropriate. All middle and elementary schoolers I have spoken to about this book have really enjoyed it.

This book predates the City of Ember by it seems at least a hundred years if not more. The reader, if s/he started with the City of Ember, will be hooked on wondering how/when the nuclear war will start. The initiate will also be hooked on this question due to DuPrau's skillfull story telling. Character development and plot continuity are well executed here. I probably enjoyed this book a bit more than The People of Sparks, though the entire series is worth a read.

A bit pale in comparison to the rest of 'Ember'

I would recommend this book primarily only to someone who really, really loved the world of Ember and wanted to learn a bit more of the author's imagined history behind it. There are some fun moments and interesting characters, but hardly any of the magic (figuratively) and mystery which makes the rest of the Ember books so endearing. Still, I enjoyed it enough as I do fall into that segment of curious wonderers who were looking for any bits of Ember-related lore to listen to.

Pointless

What would have made The Prophet of Yonwood better?

Last 10 minutes I need to know

Has The Prophet of Yonwood turned you off from other books in this genre?

Very close

What three words best describe Becky Ann Baker’s performance?

Decent narration

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

First book was very good. Second book OK third book pointless

Perfect

This is an amazing book! It teaches beautiful lessons and taught my daughter to love the world. She has a hard time reading and this is perfect for her! This book has astonishing surprises around every corner and a good lesson.

poor integration to the other two book.

What disappointed you about The Prophet of Yonwood?

didn't seem to be relevant of the story of the other two books.

Would you ever listen to anything by Jeanne DuPrau again?

probably not

How could the performance have been better?

it was alright, written for children.

What character would you cut from The Prophet of Yonwood?

none of the characters should be cut. but the book on the other hand.

Skip to 4 you are not missing out SPOILERS Below

This book is somewhat of a prequel, but only remotely hints at anything from the other 3 books at the end. Spoilers below if you don't want to waste your time with a unneeded side story.






Spoilers the book is about a girl's experiences in a kinda cult like religious town named Yonwood. Someone in the town had a "vision from God" of mass destruction, fighting, famine and anything else you can imagine from the end of the pre-ember world and the majority of the town become followers of this "Prophet" and would try and rid the town of evil and sin by following directions like no singing, no lights, and even no dogs all from an interpreter of the prophet. The main protagonist trys to help and do good but finds that she's been hurting more people than helping by following the words of the prophet. She also finds out that the interpretation of the prophecy was incorrect translated as instructions insted of the what the future is to hold. In the last few chapters of the book we learn her father who's only contact has been by weird messages sent via postcards has been gone building ember and when she grows up she becomes the writer of the note book found by the exit of ember.

Less important but is mentioned in book 4 theres a side character named McCoy that is suspected of being evil or a siner but ends up being a astronomy scientist that is seen sending lights into the sky

Returned, endless un-needed descriptive rambling

Has nothing to do with the series or the other 3 books. Useless descriptive rambling for 3 hours before I returned it. I want my 3 hours back. Nothing of any substance for 3 hours. Painful.

A small story and a Prequel

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

In this series I like book 1 best, book 2 second, then this book third. I have not yet read book 4. I preferred book 2 for the simple reason that it was closer to the story that so captivated me in the first book. Book 4 will go back not only to Lina and Doon but to Ember itself. So I am glad to have read this if for no other reason than to be ready to finish out the story.
I liked the book well enough. Though, I was misunderstanding the scope of this work. I have in my head at the beginning of a book an idea of what the story will encompass. I was wrong here. The scope is smaller than I envisioned. Less happens overall and what happens is less relevant overall to the whole. Some people have complained that the connection was too tenuous to the series and only became clear towards the very end, or that it wasn't strong enough to warrant inclusion. I can understand those complaints, and even having read those complaints I still expected a more concrete connection to Lina and Doon and Ember. However, I was satisfied with the connection when it did come, and was actually proud of myself for figuring out ahead of being told exactly what the connection was.
Reviews I read basically said a limited number of things. Most negative reviews were just annoyed it didn't continue the adventures of Lina and Doon. I am not sure why nobody seems to have known this beforehand? Of course we get back to them in book 4 so I don't think that's such a big deal. Some people object to prequels coming in the middle of a series and others (with whom I DO agree) complain there was a more interesting prequel that could have been written but that didn't make me hate this book. I sort of wonder why DuPrau did portray religious fervor so negatively - she had to know that makes people mad especially in a kids book, and I didn't get the vibe that she was really a religion hater.
As often occurs in kids books the adults tend to be useless - which enables kids to drive the action. Particularly the adults of Nickie's family seem to be failing. I felt rather sorry for her. A little girl who needed more attention, in a confusing time and place.
All in all I am satisfied with the book despite some flaws.

story, background noises bad

I'm loving the series but I have auditory processing disorder so the extra background sounds make it hard to process what's actually being said. other than that it's good

Waste of time

Nothing to do with the first two stories apart from the last 8 minutes. Don't waste your time on this 'fill in' book.

Not as good as other city of ember books

Good themes but not the most exciting plot. Its not as good as her other city of ember books

Interesting

Good i enjoyed it but not as much as the first and second one

good, but not quite up to the standard of the first two books. link to Ember suspected but only added in the post script at the end..

Dragged

Was hoping for more, but the book dragged on to the point where I gave up listening to it.