The Measure: A Novel
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The Read With Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick!
"A story of love and hope as interweaving characters display: how all moments, big and small, can measure a life. If you want joy, love, romance, and hope--read with us." --Jenna Bush Hager
A luminous, spirit-lifting blockbuster that asks: would you choose to find out the length of your life?
Eight ordinary people. One extraordinary choice.
It seems like any other day. You wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and head out.
But today, when you open your front door, waiting for you is a small wooden box. This box holds your fate inside: the answer to the exact number of years you will live.
From suburban doorsteps to desert tents, every person on every continent receives the same box. In an instant, the world is thrust into a collective frenzy. Where did these boxes come from? What do they mean? Is there truth to what they promise?
As society comes together and pulls apart, everyone faces the same shocking choice: Do they wish to know how long they'll live? And, if so, what will they do with that knowledge?
The Measure charts the dawn of this new world through an unforgettable cast of characters whose decisions and fates interweave with one another: best friends whose dreams are forever entwined, pen pals finding refuge in the unknown, a couple who thought they didn't have to rush, a doctor who cannot save himself, and a politician whose box becomes the powder keg that ultimately changes everything.
Enchanting and deeply uplifting, The Measure is a sweeping, ambitious, and invigorating story about family, friendship, hope, and destiny that encourages us to live life to the fullest.
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Community Reviews
What’s it about?
Imagine one day the world wakes up and EVERYONE over 22-years-old finds a small wooden box with a string inside. The strings foretell the length of your life. Would you want to know? What repercussions would this knowledge bring?
What did it make me think about?
What makes the measure of a life?
Should I read it?
I read this for book club and I am so mad I am going to miss the discussion! This book was created to provoke thought. I am sure book clubs across the country are going to gobble this one up. Did I like this book- yes. Did I love this book- no. The stories seemed too contrived to make a great novel, and maybe this fact kept me from initially connecting with the characters. Some storylines were more compelling for me than others- but obviously all the stories were coming together to make a point. So the obvious question that will be asked at bookclub this week- would you open your box?
Quote-
“Last night, I looked at my own box for the first time in months. I didn’t open it, but I reread the inscription. The measure of your life lies within.
Sure, it’s pointing to the string inside, but maybe that’s not the only measure we have. Maybe there are thousands of other ways we could measure our lives- the true quality of our lives- that lie within us, not within some box.
And, by your own measure, you can still be happy.
You can live well.”
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