Self-help ✦ Penny’s Take
Days Like This
Alison Stewart · 2011
62/100
👎 Skip It
A YA dystopian debut with genuine ambition — climate change, bodily autonomy, and authoritarian control are timely themes, and the world-building shows real craft. But the protagonist stays thin, mainstream recognition is sparse, and darker elements (exploitation of youth, authoritarian violence) mean parents of younger teens should look before handing it over.
✦ Penny’s Take — this is The Review Group’s own editorial assessment. Penny’s analytical review line researched this book from real sources and scored it across the lenses shown below. It’s an honest first-party read — not a page-by-page personal one. The gold ✓ Penny Tested mark is reserved for books Penny reads cover to cover herself.
⚠ Parent note — our reviewers flagged: exploitation of youth · authoritarian violence · mature themes. We still scored it 62; these are context for your family, not an automatic skip.
📚 Buy the book ↗📱 Read on Kindle ↗🎧 Listen on Audible ↗ affiliate links · support the site, never the verdict
As an Amazon Associate and Audible affiliate, Penny earns from qualifying purchases. This never affects the verdict — see our affiliate disclosure.
Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
Faith & family safety65
Substance / usefulness62
Craft & writing68
Originality70
Evidence & accuracy76
Hype vs delivers62
Age-fit72
👁 Human-eye gut-check65
Penny’s verdict62
Cross-pollinate