--- product_id: 12495723 title: "THE PEOPLE OF SPARKS" price: "$19.30" currency: USD in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.us/products/12495723-the-people-of-sparks store_origin: US region: United States of America --- # 4M+ copies sold worldwide Published since 2005, a modern classic 352 pages of immersive storytelling THE PEOPLE OF SPARKS **Price:** $19.30 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > 🔥 Ignite your bookshelf with a story that’s as thought-provoking as it is thrilling! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** THE PEOPLE OF SPARKS - **How much does it cost?** $19.30 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.us](https://www.desertcart.us/products/12495723-the-people-of-sparks) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Deep Social Themes:** Explore timely issues of community, tolerance, and conflict resolution. - • **Award-Winning Series:** Join millions who’ve embraced this critically acclaimed dystopian saga. - • **Highly Rated & Beloved:** 4.6-star average from over 4,000 reviews—don’t miss out on this must-have! - • **Epic Post-Apocalyptic Adventure:** Dive into a richly illustrated world where survival meets hope. - • **Perfect for Millennial Parents & Educators:** A meaningful read that sparks conversations on ethics and society. ## Overview THE PEOPLE OF SPARKS by Jeanne DuPrau is a 352-page illustrated paperback published in 2005, continuing the beloved City of Ember series. With over 4 million copies sold and numerous literary awards, this middle-grade dystopian novel explores the challenges of survival, community integration, and moral dilemmas in a post-apocalyptic world. Praised for its rich storytelling and relevant social themes, it’s a top-ranked children’s dystopian book with a 4.6-star rating from thousands of readers. ## Description Just when the future looks bright for the people of Ember, a new darkness lurks. This highly acclaimed adventure series is a modern-day classic—with over 4 MILLION copies sold! Lina and Doon have led the citizens of Ember to an exciting new world. They’ve been given safe haven in a small village called Sparks, a place filled with color and life. But they’re not out of danger yet. Although Sparks seems like the answer the long-suffering Emberites have been hoping for, tempers soon escalate. The villagers have never had to share their world before, and it only takes a tiny “spark” to ignite a battle between the two struggling groups. Lina and Doon will have to work together to avoid a disaster not only for their people, but also for the people of Sparks. Praise for the City of Ember books: Nominated to 28 State Award Lists! An American Library Association Notable Children’s Book A New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing Selection A Kirkus Reviews Editors’ Choice A Child Magazine Best Children’s Book A Mark Twain Award Winner A William Allen White Children’s Book Award Winner “A realistic post-apocalyptic world. DuPrau’s book leaves Doon and Lina on the verge of undiscovered country and readers wanting more.” — USA Today “An electric debut.” — Publishers Weekly, Starred “While Ember is colorless and dark, the book itself is rich with description.” — VOYA, Starred Review: Excellent topics and content for young readers - I think this is a really extraordinary book for young readers, introducing some serious real life topics through the story. I read this aloud to my 6yo son after first reading the City of Ember. Honestly, I didn't really connect with the first book; I found it slow and the plot a little weak, besides what I saw as scientific holes in the story. Canned food lasted 200 years? How do people not have rickets and other vitamin D deficiencies from living in the dark? And what about inbreeding in an isolated small population for 8-10 generations? However, my son wanted to continue, so we did and this second book was a wonderful surprise. The people of Ember are taken in, reluctantly, by the people of Sparks. This is a time after 'the disasters', which is never fully explained but was a time of war, disease and famine. There are no fossil fuels and there are multiple references to the technologies that used to exist. This is a great introduction to fossil fuels as a finite resource and our assumptions that other modern technologies will always exist. The town of Sparks is finally becoming self-sufficient after much struggle, but taking in 400 Emberites is a huge strain. They have worked hard for what they have and feel like it is 'theirs', but what is their (our) obligation to help people in need? The characters of both Doon and Lina become much more developed in this story; they are both confronted with things that confront their character and integrity. Sometimes it is hard to choose the good path. Some of the themes I liked were the challenges of different groups of people getting along. How do we identify with our group? It is easy to vilify people who are strangers or think of them as less intelligent. This is a common theme in our real world of borders and refugees and I think this book gives great fodder for conversation. Lina also contemplates war; what leads to war and why anyone would participate in this hugely destructive act. In the story, some events begin to create conflict between the two groups. Through a series of misunderstandings and assumptions you can see how anger, revenge and violence begin to spiral out of control, to the harm and destruction of everyone. Much of the deeper content of this book was over my sons head although he did enjoy the story. In general I think it would be more appropriate for a little bit older group, maybe 8-13. I will definitely keep this and come back to it again as a read aloud. Review: Deep but Beautiful Middle Reader - When the people of Ember thought all was lost, a couple of young kids were able to find their way out of the underground, dying city. Now, in The People of the Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau, the people of Ember must find a way to survive in a whole new world. Lina and Doon knew they couldn't stay in Ember any longer, but they didn't anticipate how life would be aboveground. It was beautiful, full of light and color like nothing the over 400 Ember refugees had ever seen. After three days, they stumbled upon a town called Sparks where life was hard, but people were living. In a world where multiple plagues and world wars had ravaged the land and left only a few survivors, the people of Sparks were survivors. But with only 300 or so residents of the small settlement, the addition of the 400+ ember refugees makes life tough on everyone. Barely able to feed themselves in rough winters, they have no idea what they are going to do now that they have more than doubled their population. At first people are kind and supportive and even a little amused by the Emberites naivete. They forget the people from the underground city wouldn't know about seasons, mountains, birds, or flowers, but they enjoy teaching them new things. Soon, however, the wear and tear of taking care of people who don't know how to take care of themselves makes charity difficult, and the people of Sparks begin to resent their new arrivals. Doon and Lina know something must be done, but they have very different ideas of how to do it. How do you stop a war between two groups of people who are both right? There is something magical about this series that when I read it, I feel like I am reading a fairy tale. I don't know how to explain it, and it isn't just the "youth" of the story, but it really does feel like reading a fairy tale full or moral and ethical lessons we all need to learn. It seems like a dark and heavy story for a middle reader, but it surprisingly isn't. It is told in a way that middle readers can relate to and never be overwhelmed by, which is the genius behind this series. This is a great second installment to the series, as it takes the people of Ember in a whole new direction. But more importantly are the central themes of outsiders, being different, tolerance, and helping people even when it makes things difficult for you. This is a beautiful series to read in your class with your students or at home together with your child as it has so much to offer as they grow and learn about the world. It should be a staple in every library as well. I am impressed by DuPrau, and can't wait to see where the story takes us! ## Features - Author: DuPrau, Jeanne. - Publisher: Yearling Books - Pages: 352 - Publication Date: 2005-04-12 - Edition: Illustrated - Binding: Paperback - MSRP: 6.99 - ISBN13: 9780375828256 - ISBN: 0375828257 - Other ISBN: 9780375890505 - Other ISBN Binding: printisbn - Language: en ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #9,863 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #5 in Children's Dystopian Science Fiction Books #233 in Children's Action & Adventure Books (Books) #653 in Children's Literature (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 4,153 Reviews | ## Images ![THE PEOPLE OF SPARKS - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81iwez+rpQL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Excellent topics and content for young readers *by S***L on October 8, 2020* I think this is a really extraordinary book for young readers, introducing some serious real life topics through the story. I read this aloud to my 6yo son after first reading the City of Ember. Honestly, I didn't really connect with the first book; I found it slow and the plot a little weak, besides what I saw as scientific holes in the story. Canned food lasted 200 years? How do people not have rickets and other vitamin D deficiencies from living in the dark? And what about inbreeding in an isolated small population for 8-10 generations? However, my son wanted to continue, so we did and this second book was a wonderful surprise. The people of Ember are taken in, reluctantly, by the people of Sparks. This is a time after 'the disasters', which is never fully explained but was a time of war, disease and famine. There are no fossil fuels and there are multiple references to the technologies that used to exist. This is a great introduction to fossil fuels as a finite resource and our assumptions that other modern technologies will always exist. The town of Sparks is finally becoming self-sufficient after much struggle, but taking in 400 Emberites is a huge strain. They have worked hard for what they have and feel like it is 'theirs', but what is their (our) obligation to help people in need? The characters of both Doon and Lina become much more developed in this story; they are both confronted with things that confront their character and integrity. Sometimes it is hard to choose the good path. Some of the themes I liked were the challenges of different groups of people getting along. How do we identify with our group? It is easy to vilify people who are strangers or think of them as less intelligent. This is a common theme in our real world of borders and refugees and I think this book gives great fodder for conversation. Lina also contemplates war; what leads to war and why anyone would participate in this hugely destructive act. In the story, some events begin to create conflict between the two groups. Through a series of misunderstandings and assumptions you can see how anger, revenge and violence begin to spiral out of control, to the harm and destruction of everyone. Much of the deeper content of this book was over my sons head although he did enjoy the story. In general I think it would be more appropriate for a little bit older group, maybe 8-13. I will definitely keep this and come back to it again as a read aloud. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Deep but Beautiful Middle Reader *by O***N on October 29, 2012* When the people of Ember thought all was lost, a couple of young kids were able to find their way out of the underground, dying city. Now, in The People of the Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau, the people of Ember must find a way to survive in a whole new world. Lina and Doon knew they couldn't stay in Ember any longer, but they didn't anticipate how life would be aboveground. It was beautiful, full of light and color like nothing the over 400 Ember refugees had ever seen. After three days, they stumbled upon a town called Sparks where life was hard, but people were living. In a world where multiple plagues and world wars had ravaged the land and left only a few survivors, the people of Sparks were survivors. But with only 300 or so residents of the small settlement, the addition of the 400+ ember refugees makes life tough on everyone. Barely able to feed themselves in rough winters, they have no idea what they are going to do now that they have more than doubled their population. At first people are kind and supportive and even a little amused by the Emberites naivete. They forget the people from the underground city wouldn't know about seasons, mountains, birds, or flowers, but they enjoy teaching them new things. Soon, however, the wear and tear of taking care of people who don't know how to take care of themselves makes charity difficult, and the people of Sparks begin to resent their new arrivals. Doon and Lina know something must be done, but they have very different ideas of how to do it. How do you stop a war between two groups of people who are both right? There is something magical about this series that when I read it, I feel like I am reading a fairy tale. I don't know how to explain it, and it isn't just the "youth" of the story, but it really does feel like reading a fairy tale full or moral and ethical lessons we all need to learn. It seems like a dark and heavy story for a middle reader, but it surprisingly isn't. It is told in a way that middle readers can relate to and never be overwhelmed by, which is the genius behind this series. This is a great second installment to the series, as it takes the people of Ember in a whole new direction. But more importantly are the central themes of outsiders, being different, tolerance, and helping people even when it makes things difficult for you. This is a beautiful series to read in your class with your students or at home together with your child as it has so much to offer as they grow and learn about the world. It should be a staple in every library as well. I am impressed by DuPrau, and can't wait to see where the story takes us! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ The People of Sparks Review *by B***S on December 15, 2013* The People of Sparks, the second book in the Book of Ember series, written by Jeanne DuPrau has won the New York Times Bestselling Author award. The book tells the story of the Emberites coming into the new world, learning about the new world, and after a long journey finding a small town called Sparks. The world they come into is filled with equality and uniformity brought on by the struggles to rebuild. Societies have differences and will run into problems, they must overcome these differences and overcome the troubles they run into or be destroyed. We first meet our characters once again at the mouth of the cave they came out of. Lina and Doon were waiting and hoping that the message they threw down to the city was read. A day passed and just before Lina and Doon were going to give up the first people started to show up. When all of the citizens had come they started off. They only saw one road, so they started on it. The people saw so many new and confusing things; again and again they stopped to study a tree or sometimes a squirrel or bird. They had no idea what any of these things were, but they kept walking. While walking Lina’s little sister Poppy became extremely ill along with many other citizens. It became evident that if they didn’t find some kind of town Poppy and many others would die. Considering this they started walking even faster and before they knew it they were gazing upon a small town. The citizens of Ember marched into the town as the town leaders were coming to meet them. They talked to the town leaders for a while and the town leaders agreed to let them stay and teach them how to survive so they could build their own town. It was just their luck that a doctor lived in the town; the doctor took all of the sick to have medical attention. She started with the youngest and worked her way up treating everyone but Poppy. She didn’t know what was wrong with Poppy so she took Poppy, Lina, and her grandmother in so that she could watch over Poppy. The Emberites soon began working and learning. One day while Lina was sweeping a house she heard the footsteps of oxen and the voice of many people shouting with joy. It was Caspar the person that Lina had been hearing a lot about. Caspar had returned for a short time to give some gifts that he picked up while traveling. Soon though he left and without Doon knowing Lina had gone with him. While Lina was traveling things at Sparks weren’t going too well, they were running out of food, the people of Ember couldn’t get enough work done, and the two towns differences were threatening to ruin everything. The leaders of Sparks didn’t know what to do except for give the Emberites a deadline. The Emberites had six months to learn how to survive before the leaders would make them leave. The Emberites did not like this and thought that the people of Sparks were being selfish. The only way they could think to resolve the problem and resolve their differences was either the Emberites leave or have a war. The town leaders of Sparks discussed the matter and came to the decision that they would make the Emberites leave the next day and if they refused they would use “the weapon”. The next day came along and the Emberites found themselves in a tough decision. They did not want to leave, they wouldn’t survive but if they stayed everyone in the town would most likely all die too. The leaders of sparks wanted a decision but the Emberites didn’t give them one so they brought out the “weapon”. They start to fire it but it explodes due to lack of use, and causes town hall to catch on fire. The Emberites watch passively as the people of Sparks try to save the building, most hoping the building will burn down. But Lina decides to help the people of Sparks, causing most of the people of Ember to pitch in and they all succeed in putting out the fire. As this happens, Doon sees that Torren is trapped in the burning tree by the building, rushes in, and bravely saves him be fore he catches on fire. This act turns around the spiral of resentment and results in a bright future for both the people of Ember and the people of Sparks. The thrilling and suspenseful book keeps your attention throughout the whole story and overall was a fantastic read. ## Frequently Bought Together - The People of Sparks (The City of Ember Book 2) - The Diamond of Darkhold (The City of Ember Book 3) - The City of Ember (The City of Ember Book 1) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.us/products/12495723-the-people-of-sparks](https://www.desertcart.us/products/12495723-the-people-of-sparks) --- *Product available on Desertcart United States of America* *Store origin: US* *Last updated: 2026-07-22*