The Bar Code Tattoo

Last updated
The Bar Code Tattoo
Author Suzanne Weyn
LanguageEnglish
Genre Science fiction, Dystopia
Publisher Scholastic
Publication date
1 September 2004
Publication placeUnited States
Pages256 pp
ISBN 978-0-439-39562-5
OCLC 56326076
LC Class PZ7.W539 Bar 2004
Preceded bynone 
Followed by The Bar Code Rebellion  

The Bar Code Tattoo is a young adult science fiction novel written by American author Suzanne Weyn. It takes place in the not so distant future, and is about a girl, Kayla Reed, as 17 year old girl who can get a bar code tattoo as an ID, but suspects that there is something politically wrong with the tattoo.

Contents

In 2005, the American Library Association named it as a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. The Nevada Library Association nominated the novel as a 2007 Best Young Adult Fiction. The Bar Code Tattoo was translated into German and in 2007 was nominated for the Jugendliteraturpreis given by the Federal Republic of Germany.

Plot summary

In 2025, the Human Genome project has finally understood the entirety of the human genetic code - enough to have the code imprinted onto bar codes, along with other personal information regarding things such as bank accounts, social security numbers, and purchase records, allowing doctors to predict future diseases based on genetic history. Kayla Marie Reed is about to turn seventeen, the age when she can get her bar code tattoo (or "too" as often referred to in the book). Despite her friend's assurance, she is still somewhat indecisive about the idea of branding herself. This is furthered when her father commits suicide, triggering an expanding suspicion of the tattoos. After moving away with Kayla and gradually changing her behavior, Kayla's mother begins to go insane and loathe the tattoo. Immediately before her death in a kitchen fire, Kayla's mother reveals dire information to her daughter about unknown happenings at the crack attic and reveals other data stored in the tattoo including genetic information which will make it incredibly difficult to become insured by insurance companies and even hired if one has a bad genetic history. Kayla's mother believed that the "tattoo" was the reason her father died. After becoming wanted by the police for the possibility of murdering her mother, Kayla goes on the run and makes friends who are against the tattoo, including her former classmates that have joined together with Senator Young to form an organization known as "Project Decode" whose aim is to make the tattoo a personal option. Soon, it becomes illegal not to wear the "too" by the United States Government (whose President is also the CEO of the multinational corporation Global One, commonly called G1). After evading the 45 authorities for some time, Kayla finds that the police have taken in a girl who was previously a member of her resistance group and begins promoting the law and, along with a former member of resisters, becomes the spokesperson for Tattoo Gen.

Reception

Teen Ink praised the book, calling it "instantly addicting". [1] The School Library Journal overall panned the novel, writing that it "tries to cover too much territory and relies too heavily on coincidence and far-fetched plotting". [2]

Natalie Hatch of the Children's Book and Media Review praised the "complex and well-thought-out" characters and wrote that the "struggles that teenage girls face with emotions, relationships, believing in others, wanting to fit in or conform, and even a difficult home life are tackled well." Hatch recommended the novel to "lovers of dystopian plots." [3] Michael M. Jones of the SF, Fantasy & Horror's Monthly Trade Journal described it as a "chilling story spinning out of a logical progression" with a "fascinating" concept and "sound" reasoning. However, he also wrote that it "falls short is halfway through, with the introduction of psychic powers and a kind of forced evolution." [4]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Truth About Forever</i> 2004 novel by Sarah Dessen

The Truth About Forever is a novel by Sarah Dessen. It's her sixth novel and was published in hardcover on May 11, 2004, and in paperback on April 6, 2006.

<i>Ironside</i> (Black novel) 2007 novel by Holly Black

Ironside: A Modern Faerie Tale is a young adult urban fantasy novel by Holly Black. It was published in 2007 by the Margaret K. McElderry imprint of Simon & Schuster and is recommended for readers aged "14 and above".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathe Koja</span> American writer

Kathe Koja is an American writer. She was initially known for her intense speculative fiction for adults, but has written young adult novels, the historical fiction Under the Poppy trilogy, and a fictional biography of Christopher Marlowe.

The Quill Award was an American literary award that ran for three years, from 2005 to 2007. It was a "consumer-driven award created to inspire reading while promoting literacy".

<i>Gallows Hill</i> (novel) 1997 novel by Lois Duncan

Gallows Hill is a 1997 supernatural thriller novel for young adults by Lois Duncan. It was her first and only young adult novel written after the death of her daughter. It was written eight years after her previous young adult novel, Don't Look Behind You. It is about a girl who moves to a small town with a secret.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paolo Bacigalupi</span> American science fiction and fantasy writer (born 1972)

Paolo Tadini Bacigalupi is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He has won the Hugo, Nebula, John W. Campbell Memorial, Compton Crook, Theodore Sturgeon, and Michael L. Printz awards, and has been nominated for the National Book Award. His fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Asimov's Science Fiction, and the environmental journal High Country News. Nonfiction essays of his have appeared in Salon.com and High Country News, and have been syndicated in newspapers, including the Idaho Statesman, the Albuquerque Journal, and The Salt Lake Tribune.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suzanne Weyn</span> American author (born 1955)

Suzanne Weyn is an American author. She primarily writes children's and young adult science fiction and fantasy novels and has written over fifty novels and short stories. She is best known for The Bar Code Tattoo, The Bar Code Rebellion and The Bar Code Prophecy. The Bar Code Tattoo has been translated into German, and in 2007 was nominated for the Jugendliteraturpreis for youth literature given by the German government. It was a 2007 Nevada Library nominee for Young Adult literature and American Library Association 2005 Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melissa Marr</span> American writer

Melissa Marr is an American author of young adult/urban fantasy novels.

Young adult romance literature is a genre of books written for teenagers. As defined by Romance Writers of America, a romance novel consists of a central love story and an emotionally satisfying ending. Early young adult romances feature a teenage protagonist, who is typically female, white, and middle-class, while books in the twenty-first century include a wider variety of protagonists.

<i>The Dragon of Despair</i> 2004 book by Jane Lindskold

The Dragon of Despair is a 2003 fantasy novel by Jane Lindskold. The book is the third in the Firekeeper Saga, happening about a year after Wolf's Head, Wolf's Heart.

<i>Boyfriends with Girlfriends</i> Book by Alex Sánchez

Boyfriends with Girlfriends is a 2011 young adult novel by Alex Sánchez. The book was published by Simon & Schuster and deals with the pressures of teens coming to terms with their sexuality and of coming of age. Sanchez began working on the novel after receiving e-mails from teens who were being criticized by both their straight and homosexual peers for being bisexual. Boyfriends with Girlfriends has been nominated for a Lambda Literary Award and was a 2012 ALA Rainbow Bridge List novel.

Auline Bates is an American author who writes for young adults and adults. Her teen suspense novels, written as A. Bates, include Party Line, Final Exam, Mother's Helper, The Dead Game and Krazy 4 U.

Alosha is a series of young adult fantasy novels by Christopher Pike. The first book in the series, Alosha, was released in 2004 through Tor Teen and follows a young girl that discovers that she must stop a threat that could destroy the Earth.

<i>Love Letters to the Dead</i> 2014 novel by Ava Dellaira

Love Letters to the Dead (2014) is the first novel by American author Ava Dellaira, published in 2014. This is a teen novel told through a series of letters written by a girl named Laurel who is grieving the recent mysterious death of her sister May. The novel is set in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Hillary Monahan is an American author, best known for her New York Times-bestselling debut novel MARY: The Summoning. Her work includes young adult, horror, urban fantasy, and romance novels. She has published more than a dozen books. Her other pen names include Thea de Salle and Eva Darrows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiffany D. Jackson</span> American YA author and horror filmmaker

Tiffany D. Jackson is an American author and filmmaker. She writes young adult fiction and makes horror films. She is best known for her NAACP Image Award—nominated debut novel Allegedly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arwen Elys Dayton</span> Speculative fiction writer

Arwen Elys Dayton is an American author of science fiction, fantasy and speculative fiction. The author of seven published works, she is best known for her award-winning novel Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful and for her Seeker trilogy. Her 2012 novel Resurrection was an Amazon.com Kindle best seller, reaching #1 and #2 on national and international sales charts. The rights to her 2015 novel Seeker were purchased by Columbia Pictures in 2013. Her 2018 novel, Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful, was cited by Tom Shippey of The Wall Street Journal as one of the best science fiction novels of 2018. She is married to tech entrepreneur Sky Dayton and lives in Oregon's Willamette Valley.

DC Graphic Novels for Young Adults, formerly known as DC Ink, is an imprint of American comic book publisher DC Comics consisting of original one-shots, graphic novels and reprints of books previously published under other imprints. The imprint intends to present traditional DC Universe characters for young adult readers. The first title of the DC Ink imprint, Mera: Tidebreaker, was published on February 2, 2019 and Batman: Nightwalker was the last title to be published under DC Ink. Wonder Woman: Warbringer, the first title of DC Graphic Novels for Young Adults, was published on January 10, 2020.

<i>Pet</i> (novel) 2019 young adult novel by Akwaeke Emezi

Pet is a 2019 young adult fantasy/speculative fiction novel by Nigerian non-binary author Akwaeke Emezi. It was followed by a prequel Bitter, released in 2022.

<i>Elatsoe</i> Young adult novel published in 2020

Elatsoe is a 2020 young adult novel by Darcie Little Badger marketed to young readers aged 12–18. It is Little Badger's debut novel. It was included on Time's list of the 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. Some publications have classed the novel as part of the Indigenous Futurism movement.

References

  1. ↑ "Review: The Bar Code Tattoo". Teen Ink. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
  2. ↑ Rawlins, Sharon. "2005 Cumulative Title Index January-December". School Library Journal. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
  3. ↑ Hatch, Natalie (2018). "The Bar Code Tattoo". Children's Book and Media Review. 39 (1). Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  4. ↑ Jones, Michael M. (March 2005). "The Bar Code Tattoo". SF, Fantasy & Horror's Monthly Trade Journal. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.