Today I’m bringing you another young adult dystopian book by one of my fellow ACFW authors, and I’ve got to give her kudos for tackling tough subjects: teen pregnancy and abortion.

Title: The First Principle

Author: Marissa Schrock

Genre: dystopian

Age group: young adult

Back-cover blurb: “In the not-too-distant future, the United Regions of North America has formed. Governors hold territories instead of states, and while Washington, D.C., is gone, the government has more control than ever before. For sixteen-year-old Vivica Wilkins, the daughter of a governor, this is life as usual. High school seems pretty much the same–until one day, that controlling power steps right through the door during study hall. When Vivica speaks out to defend a pregnant student against the harsh treatment of Populations Management officer Martina Ward, she has no idea she’s sowing the seeds of a revolution in her own life. But it isn’t long before she discovers her own illegal pregnancy. Now she has to decide whether to get the mandatory termination–or to follow her heart, try to keep the baby, and possibly ruin her mother’s chances at becoming president.”

Like I said at the beginning, kudos to Marissa Shrock for tackling the tough subject of abortion. In this futuristic society, all teens take mandatory pregnancy tests every three months, and if they are found to be pregnant, they are required to have the pregnancy “terminated” because, of course, having a baby would “ruin” the girl’s life. She’s not even allowed the option of giving it up for adoption. In other words, abortion is not only legal, it’s required. And in a law that’s rather communist in nature, even the adults are allowed only two babies. If an adult woman gets pregnant a third time, she must pay a special fee for the third child or “terminate” it.

Unlike last week’s young adult dystopian Impervious which I reviewed and found more allegorical in its Christian nature, this one is much more straightforward. It’s what I would consider “textbook Christian fiction.” In other words, you can expect scenes about one character trying to convince another character to accept Jesus as her Lord and savior, as well as a “Come to Jesus” moment.

Will this book change anyone’s mind on the pro-life/pro-choice debate? I don’t think anyone heavily entrenched in the pro-choice camp will change their mind after reading this book, but I think teens would find Shrock’s fast-paced story an interesting read, and I think it could open the doorway to some very good conversations between parents and their teenage children about sex, pregnancy, and valuing life.