Donald Maass Literary Agency

Publishers Weekly: The universe appears to be literally shrinking around Ozzie Pinkerton: erasing people, obliterating the stars, and reducing the world to little more than his town of Cloud Lake, Fla. Ozzie alone remembers the world as it was […] As in We Are the Ants, Hutchinson uses a science fiction overlay to explore important topics, including self-mutilation, gender identity, and child abuse. Ozzie’s friends remind him that the world doesn’t revolve around him, but Hutchinson playfully disagrees, turning the literal shrinking of the universe into a smart metaphor for Ozzie’s introversion and alienation. Ozzie’s wit and concern for his friends make him a captivating narrator frozen by the changes and choices he faces. The conceit also works as a powerful parable for victimization, as everything Ozzie knows is stolen and the people he should be able to trust constantly undermine him—or disappear altogether.

Library Journal: Palmer’s sequel to Too Like the Lightning brings the next phase of Mycroft and ­Bridger’s journey in a sphere that is beginning to collapse. While the dense prose may be rough going for some readers, the eloquence of Palmer’s reflections on social issues cannot be denied.

The world is at peace; there has been no war for as long as anyone can remember. Automation is in play, the global Hives have replaced most nationalities, and gender and religious identities have not only dissipated but been forbidden. Yet the full depths of humanity cannot be subsumed completely. Something new has arisen, a power that can bring inanimate objects to life. A force that will be hidden, used, and fought over. The power of a child named Bridger.

School Library Journal: VERDICT A closing revelation may frustrate some, but this smartly written, profound look at the wells of human despair will stay with readers. Recommended for all YA collections where Hutchinson’s work circulates heavily.

Oswald “Ozzie” Pinkerton is facing a gauntlet of problems: his parents are divorcing; his older brother is skipping college to join the military, and Ozzie is afraid he’ll be killed; and Ozzie’s boyfriend since eighth grade, Tommy, has vanished. To make matters worse, everyone in the town of Cloud Lake seems to have erased Tommy from their memories, even Ozzie and Tommy’s best friends, gender-fluid punk rocker Lua and quiet valedictorian Dustin. Also, the universe is shrinking, and Ozzie appears to be the only person who realizes it. Ozzie has no idea how to function without Tommy, but when he’s paired with solitary Calvin for a physics project and Calvin mentions Tommy’s name, Ozzie begins to hope that Tommy is still out there. Hutchinson follows up We Are the Ants with a deep and introspective novel full of angst and suffering. Readers will feel Ozzie’s nearly radiant pain, but Universe isn’t singularly focused. All of the characters are neatly fleshed out and have their own personal anguish: Lua deals with being gender-fluid in a small town; Dustin, whose father loses the family fortune, has to confront a future where his dreams cannot be attained; and Ozzie’s trials serve as a lens through which readers can examine the scope of human experience in this (shrinking) universe.