The Bar Code Tattoo (The Bar Code Trilogy, Book 1) (1)

"The Bar Code Tattoo" is a look at the dystopian world of 2025 - a world that mixes up ethical questions with the Biblical passages concerning the mark of the beast - Revelation 13:15-18.What would you do if once you turned 17 years old, you were required to get a bar code tattoo - or not be able to buy, sell, go to school, or ...? The protagonist of the story, Kayla Reed, has to decide which side she'll be on - tattooed or non-conformist. If she decides NOT to get the mark, things could get very complicated and dangerous. What information is contained within the tattoo? Why are people committing suicide after receiving the mark? Why is the government, controlled by the Global-1 Corporation, conspiring to get everyone tattooed?Kayla, her parents, psychic rumblings, best friends, genetic mapping, the Bible, Mfumbe, Zekeal, Eutonah - all are mixed together in an exciting look at "what ifs."The author was a tad bit ambitious on how much material to cover in a fairly short (252 page) novel. The book would have benefitted with some hardcore editing, weeding out a few of the possibilities and focusing her efforts on two or three of the primary ideas. Also, character development could have definitely been better. The characters were very one-dimensional and shallow.But, all in all, this is a thought-provoking book. It does make you question what your actions would be in similar circumstances. And it is frightening because it is too believable in these days of bar codes, scanners, debit cards, card readers, standardized European money, shopper's club cards, iris scanners, and so much more that seemed like total science fiction even 15-20 years ago.The second book in the series is  The Bar Code Rebellion .

Book came in great condition and my students have enjoyed it.

I have definitely found this book interesting, though not my typical genre. I usually read romance/smut. But as I was going through books at home, I found the second book in the series and figured I would read the first so I could read the second and have it make sense. :-)While it is a future dystopian world, I don't consider 2025 to be very futuristic. Granted, the book was written in 2012 I believe, but that's still not looking forward very far. So I had a hard time imagining a world with a barcode requirement at this point. 50 years or 100 years into the future, sure. Because I'm not there to know better. But for it to only be 15 years out from the book being written, it just wasn't working for me since I'm reading it in 2023. But I will continue the series cuz I do find it interesting and I want to know what happens.The names are a struggle too. The spellings are odd. And Zekeal was terrible in the end! Definitely surprising. Yet, not surprising knowing who he works for.Either way, it's an interesting read and I will continue on to the next book.

A new take on vampires, the downfall of society and one little girl. What would happen if an expedition, funded by the US Military, came across beings that could extend our lives but found out they were violent? Why we would find a way to use them as a weapon, duh.... And who better to experiment on then convicts? Until one day a 6 year old girl, abandoned by her mother, is kidnapped for the same reason. And what happens if these experiments were to get loose? Bye-bye society as we know it. Amy, because she was so young or is it because of what she is before the experiment, is different through Amy mankind might yet be saved. The Passage is book one in a series by author Justin Cronin. It had some issues, boy were there spots where this book dragged, and dragged and dragged some more. I wasn't prepared for the huge jump by about 100 years in the future, the transition was lacking. There were times I was so ready for the book to be done that I had to put it down and read something else. I felt a disconnect with the characters and have no desire to go and read anymore in this series. I just can not take book two being the same as book one. The dragging..... Did I mention the dragging? The last time a book dragged like this was "The Corrections" by Jonathan Franzen (worst novel EVER written, Oprah I despise you for recommending this book and hailing it as the great America novel or some such drivel. After the horror that was "The Corrections" I would refuse to read an Oprah book suggestion. *shudders*), that being said it wasn't nearly as bad as "The Corrections". I could have done without reading this book, but I don't hate myself for wasting my time reading it.

I just read the book in about 10 hours. As a fan of Utopian/Dystopian/Social fiction, I was intrigued when I heard about it. It is geared to younger readers, which may explain the sometimes superficial approach to a very involved background. I grew more aware as I neared the end that the book was always meant to be serial in nature. That's not a terrible thing. If you enjoyed taking the author's journey by the end of the book, you won't mind buying the sequels. I'm not certain if I will continue, because I could almost see actors and actresses from "Gossip Girl" playing the parts of the story's teens, and I don't even watch "Gossip Girl." A lot of concepts are thrown around, with genetic modification, cloning, and totalitarian control by a non-government organization representing the bad side, and an odd but interesting Paganism-meets-evolution neo-culture representing the good side. If individuality versus collectivism is a theme, there is a schism in the theme, since the opposing sides appear to both be heading toward a collectivist end. The bad guys represent a fascist enforcement of conformity while the good guys are ascending into unified spiritual/philosophical beings. All in all, the book was worth the read, and was an easy read. It's kind of like watching a show for the pleasure of it, rather than for its ability to make you think too hard. That's not meant as a negative. Filet mignon and Big Mac, "Citizen Kane" and "Sorority Boys," and "Brave New World" and "The Bar Code Tattoo" are all enjoyable, according to mood and purpose.

I bought it for my 13 year old & she was hooked straight away. She has since recommended it to other friends.

Ich vergebe selten ad hoc eine Bewertung von ganzen fünf Sternen, aber diesmal ist das meiner Meinung nach gerechtfertigt. Nicht weil das Buch eine überragend gute Sprache aufweist oder innovative Strukturen (beides lässt jedoch wenig zu bemängeln), sondern weil die Thematik dermaßen aufrüttelnd ist, dass man nicht umhin kann, auch nach der letzten Seite weiter darüber nachzudenken.Im Buch wird darüber diskutiert, ob man auf den Bar-Code - ein Tattoo am Handgelenk, das alle Kreditkarten, Versicherungskarten, Patientenakten und weit mehr ersetzen soll - nicht schon seit den 1990ern zugegangen ist. Ob die Menschen so an Kontrolle gewöhnt sind, dass es ihnen auch egal ist, ob eine global operierende Firma ihr ganzes Leben von der Geburt an vorherbestimmen kann. Ob es letzten Endes darauf hinauslaufen wird, dass nur der überlebt, dessen genetische Disposition gut genug ist, das äußerste Extrem des Überlebens des Stärkeren.Eingebettet in eine gute Geschichte werden hier Fragen behandelt, die uns alle angehen, und die wir möglichst bald beantworten sollten; jeder für sich, aber auch öffentlich. Sonst stehen auch wir bald vor der Entscheidung: Bar-Code oder ein Leben als Ausgestoßene?

very well written story line , really enjoyed this book

Will be using this as class novel....I teach 18 to 21yr old imildly intellectually challenged young adults and I think this will really interest them. Characters are great and plot interesting.

This was an interesting book about a subject that might just become reality one day soon. It seemed more like a short story than a book because it was a very quick read.