Bumped by Megan McCafferty

 "When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents are forced to pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. 

Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and had never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Until now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend Zen, who is way too short for the job.

Harmony has spent her whole life in religious Goodside, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to bring Melody back to Goodside and convince her that “pregging” for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.

When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common. "-GoodReads.

Hardcover, 336 pages

Expected publication: April 26th 2011 by Balzer + Bray

Source: HarperCollins via NetGalley.

I really almost don't know where to start with this review, there is just so much that I have to say about this book. I had been so excited for this one for a really long time and when it became available on NetGalley I freaked. When I got approved to read it, I freaked again. I started reading that the slang was hard to understand but I wasn't going to let that stop me from trying. Then some reviewers started talking about how much the book made fun of religion and made religious people out to be crazies. Well, I get pretty tired of that in books so I was really really close to just passing Bumped up. 

But, in the end, I read it (obviously, since I am writing this review) and am so glad that I did.

In Melody and Harmony's world getting paid to "bump" is the popular thing. Girls are encouraged to start "pregging" at a young age so that they can have as many babies as they can before their baby making parts shut down for good. 

While Melody has been raised with the thought process that bumping and selling the babies is what she is supposed to be doing, Harmony has been raised to believe that she needs to get married as young as possible to start having kids "the right way".

This book was definitely about extremes, and once I really got into the story it really started making me think. How far away from this type of world are we? 

Teen pregnancy is still on the rise, and it makes me wonder if people will continue to try and discourage it, or go the way Bumped did and start trying to make a profit off of it. Scary thought, aye?

Since it has such major extremes it was harder to relate to the characters, but on a couple levels I did connect to Melody and Harmony. In the way that religion is important to me (like Harmony) and in the way that mine and my husband's families are just waiting for the day we tell them we are having a baby, but until then they like making it clear that they are waiting and not very patiently (like many people in Melody's life).

In this book you really get to see Otherside and all it's little oddities, so I am hoping in the second book we get to see more of Goodside.

The slang is a bit abrasive at first, but I caught on pretty quickly. Even though this book is about teens "bumping" (having sex) there isn't a lot of actual sex, it's mostly just talked about in that worlds slang. But the slang can be sexual, colorful, and very blunt. So, you are now warned.

The one thing I didn't get was how they were able to tell mere hours after the girls has bumped that she were pregnant. I know that right now it's at least two weeks after you have been impregnated that you can maybe get a positive on a test. I guess maybe an advance in pee stick technology?

Even though Bumped was addressing a very serious issue there were some laugh out loud moments, which I felt worked because Bumped's world does make light of the situation. 

And just to clarify, this book is not anti-religion/pro-sex or anti-sex/pro-religion. It really is about being allowed to make your own decisions. Both of these girls world are making them do things they aren't sure they want to do, but have been raised to think that is what they are supposed to do.

I really enjoyed this book, but I enjoyed the message even more.

And Megan McCafferty, how dare you end the book like that! Absolute torture! I cannot wait for the next one and will be waiting incredibly impatiently until I find out what happens to these girls.