The Measure: A Book Review

Title: The Measure

Author: Nikki Erlick

Publisher: William Morrow

Copyright: 2022

Life changed for everyone the day the boxes arrived. The world awoke to a wooden box with a single string inside. Before long, the phenomenon of the strings and their purpose became clear–each string is a measure of the amount of life that remains for each person.

While some were encouraged by the length of their string, others were given the harsh truth that life would end sooner than they’d hoped. Before long, the world began to dichotimize into Long Stringers and Short Stringers. Those with longer strings called the shots and limited those with shorter strings to “safe” roles in society.

Things became more complicated for those relationships where one learns they will far outlive the other, and society is rocked as it begins to wrestle with the terms of the strings and how each person should live out the remaining days or years.

This is a thought-provoking tale of

-an archetect who is afraid to tell his family of his fate

-a politician who uses the strings as a campaign ploy

-an editor who learns to cherish her partner and their moments together

-a college student who bravely chooses to serve his country in his final days

-a doctor who is near retirement

-a teacher who refuses to open her box

Each of these people are connected to a support group for those with short strings. Together, they ask the tough questions–now that you know your time is short, how will you spend it?

This story was equal parts engaging and thought provoking. I fell in love with the characters and questioned my life right along with them. Erlick beautifully wove some of life’s most important questions into a story about likeable characters. This was my favorite book of 2022 so far, and a debut novel for this author.

Be sure to follow me on Goodreads to see what I am reading next and to check out other reviews like this one.

The Ameri Brit Mom