Rosoff, Meg. 2004. HOW I LIVE NOW. New York: Wendy Lamb Books/Random House. ISBN 0385746776.

Fifteen-year-old Daisy has problems: her mother died when she was born, her father has remarried “Davina the Diabolical” and is starting a new family, she has anorexia, and now she has been sent away from her home in New York City to stay with her Aunt Penn’s family in an old drafty house in the English countryside. To her surprise, Daisy seems to fit into her cousins’ lives as easily as the last piece in a jigsaw puzzle fits into the remaining empty space. Her apparently psychic cousins Edmond, Osbert, Isaac, and Piper accept her without question, and they begin to fill the empty space marked “family” in her heart. But Daisy’s new life falls apart when, while her aunt is away on a trip to Oslo, England is invaded and the borders are closed. Bombings and acts of terrorism worldwide signal the breakdown of conventional society and the children are left to fend for themselves. The young people form their own small commune, insulated from the craziness of the outside adult world, eating food from the garden, looking after the farm animals, and taking care of each other. Love of a deeper nature begins to grow between Daisy and Edmond but war intervenes when their cozy home is commandeered as an Army command post. Daisy and Piper are transported to a foster home while the boys are sent to work at another farm many miles away. The children struggle to return home and rebuild their shattered family against the backdrop of an occupied, war torn Britain.

This debut novel by Meg Rosen features a stream of consciousness approach that includes paragraph-long sentences and little spoken dialog. The writing style takes a bit of getting used to, but places the reader firmly inside the main character’s shoes, learning and experiencing the story bit by bit as Daisy does, mimicking reality as we all experience it.
The story is told from Daisy’s point of view in a believable, acerbic teen voice capable of cutting to the heart of a situation yet revealing a vulnerability that is engaging and true. Many humorous passages reflect Daisy’s wry worldview:

“The first thing I did was to check my phone for messages, but all it said was NO NETWORK and I thought Oh boy so much for civilization and felt a little freaked out and thought of that movie where they say No One Can Hear You Scream…

…I put some clothes on and managed to find the kitchen after discovering some pretty amazing rooms by mistake, and Issac and Edmond were there eating marmalade on toast and Piper was making my tea and seeming worried that I’d had to get out of bed to get it. In New York, nine-year-olds usually don’t do this kind of thing, but wait for some grown-up to do it for them, so I was impressed by her intrepid attitude but also kind of wondering if good old Aunt Penn had died and no one could figure out a good way to tell me.”

How I Live Now is an original and unusual chronicle of war set in a contemporary western country complete with cell phones, internet, and CNN. Ms. Rosen shows readers how easily a technological society can be disrupted through the loss of such essential services as electric power and communications. It is when the underpinnings upon which their culture depends crumble and the thin covering of civilization is removed that people’s lives boil down to essentials. Such a transformation is not dependent upon a specific time period or country of origin. As Daisy notes, “If you haven’t been in a war and are wondering how long it takes to get used to losing everything you think you need or love, I can tell you the answer is No time at all.” Meg Rosoff’s dystopian novel reminds us that growing up is never easy, but those who persevere in the face of adversity can overcome such obstacles and emerge the stronger for them.

The author uses descriptive passages to give readers a view of the story’s rural setting and at the same time offer insights into the characters’ personalities through their responses to the world around them.

“The feeling of the cold water and the hot sun and having the river just flow over your skin like a dolphin wasn’t something I had enough words to describe but was the kind of feeling you never forget…I got out and flopped down on a blanket in the warm sun and waited patiently while the heat stopped the shivering in my skin and gradually warmed my blood all the way through and then I just closed my eyes and watched the petals fall and listened to the heavy low buzz of fat pollen-drunk bees and tried to imagine melting into the earth so I could spend eternity under this tree.”

The story characters are divided equally between male and female, while the problems they face are gender-specific (anorexia), equivalent (loss of a parent), and universal (making/finding their place in the world). Bossy Osbert feels the responsibility of being the oldest, telepathic Edmond compensates by keeping shuttering his personal feelings, empathic Isaac is more comfortable with animals than people, and innocent Piper inspires protectiveness from everyone. Cultural details, like cobblestone streets, village pubs, and rural footpaths are woven into the story as both Daisy and the reader learn about this new country in which they find themselves.

Reviews and Awards

Kirkus Reviews: “This is a very relatable contemporary story, told in honest, raw first-person and filled with humor, love, pathos, and carnage. War, as it will, changes these young people irrevocably, not necessarily for the worse."

The Bulletin starred review: “Readers will remain absorbed to the very end by this unforgettable and original story.”

Horn Book starred review: “A winning combination of acerbic commentary, innocence, and sober vision . . . Hilarious, lyrical, and compassionate.”

Publisher’s Weekly review: “This riveting first novel paints a frighteningly realistic picture of a world war breaking out in the 21st century…Teens may feel that they have experienced a war themselves as they vicariously witness Daisy's worst nightmares. Like the heroine, readers will emerge from the rubble much shaken, a little wiser and with perhaps a greater sense of humanity.”

YALSA Michael L. Printz Award 2005
Julia Ward Howe Prize (Boston Authors Club) 2005
Branford Boase Award 2005 (Britian)
Guardian (British newspaper) Children's Fiction Prize 2004
Der Luchs des Jahres Book Prize (Die Zeit and Radio Bremen) 2005 (Germany)

Connections

Teens could discuss how Daisy felt and reacted to the events in the story: her father’s new family, travelling overseas, the outbreak of the war, her eating disorder, the steps she and her cousins took to survive, etc. Students could compare how they might deal with similar occurrences. Young adults could also take a scene from the book and create a readers theater script and then perform it. Students could also write a story extension about what they feel might happen next in Daisy’s life, after the book ends.

Other novels by Meg Rosoff:
Meet Wild Boars (2005)
Just in Case (2006)
What I Was (2007)
Jumpy Jack and Googily (2008)
Wild Boars Cook (2008)