Bumped by Megan McCafferty

Bumped by Megan McCafferty


Published: April 26th, 2011
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Series: Bumped, Book 1
Rating: YA 14+
Format: eGalley
Source: NetGalley
Amazon ❘ Goodreads


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. 

**This Review is based on an ARC (Advanced Reader's Copy). The final text/cover may be different.**

What a controversial subject! Bumped is such a different dystopian– nothing about the world ending, or a new race of humans taking over, or people dying here and there. It just looks at the more REALISTIC side of life...teen pregnancy.


When everyone over the age of 18 becomes infertile...who's left to give childbirth?? That's right! Teens. Megan McCafferty has looked at such a big issue in our world today and seems to give us the pros and cons of it in her book Bumped. I've read several mixed reviews of this book so I wasn't very sure what to expect. But guess what? I LOVED IT. It's so different, yet it kind of ties in with the whole "depending on children and teens thing" that they have in Gone by Michael Grant...except without the powers and supernatural stuff.


I found it interesting to look at the story from two perspectives, the twins Melody and Harmony. I was generally more lenient towards Melody, as I found Harmony sometimes too religious, but then in the middle of the story, when things start unravelling, BAM, Harmony's story became more in demand. Melody's the much funnier one I have to say though. Her sarcasm and remarks are sometimes really hilarious!
Harmony's perspective I have to say was much for interesting though. It's cool to see how someone who is extremely (or not SO extremely) religious sees the rest of the world with their eyes. How they perceive different things done, well, differently than the way they do it themselves. Just saying.
I LOVE Zen, and hate Jondoe. Just saying.


Some of it didn't make any sense at all, because there was a whole new vocabulary in this time period (I definitely know it's past 2025 in this book :P) and it was just kind of confusing with all the pregnancy talk and stuff. Like "pregging" and "bumping" and other stuff. I kinda ended up ignoring all the random vocab talk (it kinda reminded me of Uglies by Scott Westerfeld's world!) and went straight on into the story.
I found it interesting how media plays such a big in this novel. It kind of connects our world to theirs– there isn't so much of a difference if you think about it. We spend LOADS of time on Social Networking sites and in Bumped there's something called MiNet which is quite similar. It keeps updating statuses and such. And the media...from the start of the novel we can see how much advertising works into this book. Babiez R U is a huge example, and of course there's a link between quikiwiki and wikipedia, supplying tons of information.

Overall, Bumped is portaying what could happen in the near-future. It's got a realistic side to it, and it's a different and amazing dystopian which enthralls readers and leaves them wanting more with a cliffhanger ending. I have McCafferty's other book Sloppy Firsts, which is part of the Jessica Darling series, and I still have yet to read that. Can't wait for book 2 of Bumped!

If you like this, try...

• Uglies by Scott Westerfeld (Review ❘ Amazon ❘ Goodreads)
• Memento Nora by Angie Smibert (Review ❘ Amazon ❘ Goodreads)