Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams

McWilliams writes the story from two points of view, Beth and Agnes. The result is a book that manages to embody a concept as nebulous and personal as faith. In fact, that connection expands to include the earth and animals. In this book, McWilliams has instead focused on their humanity through the eyes of Agnes and her connection to the Prayer Space. In many dystopian novels, the focus is on people’s inhumanity to one another. Agnes is dystopian, yes, but it offers something totally new in both its cult-content and its writing.

McWilliams herself is a mixed-race writer and describes herself as drawn to stories about “crossing boundaries” and “forging new identities” (McWilliams, 2020).Ĭritical Evaluation: Agnes at the End of the World brings something new to a genre that has seen many (some might say too many) imaginings since The Hunger Games. She currently lives in Colorado with her partner and daughter (McWilliams, 2020).Īgnes at the End of the World benefitted from a We Need Diverse Books Mentorship (McWilliams, 2020). McWilliams has also worked as a staff writer for Romper. Escaping the cult of Red Creek is one thing what awaits Agnes in the post-apocalyptic landscape outside? Will her own relationship to faith be enough to save those she loves most?Īuthor Background: Kelly McWilliams has been a published author since the age of 15, when her first novel Doormat was featured in Seventeen Magazine (McWilliams, 2020). And when the Outsiders bringing the medicine also bring news of a deadly infection, Agnes will have to rebel in ways she never has before. Agnes has been breaking the rules for years, sneaking Outsider medicine to her brother Ezekiel. But there is no such thing as perfect faith. To her sister Beth, to her father, and to the other citizens of Red Creek she follows all the laws of the Prophet.

Plot Summary: On the surface, Agnes has perfect faith. Reading Level/Interest Level: Grades 9 & up (School Library Journal) Genre / Format of the Title: Dystopian/Speculative Fiction/Supernatural Fiction/Survival/BookĪwards or Honors: none as of the publication of this blog Agnes at the End of the World by Kelly McWilliams