After
Dystopian sci-fi adventure for kids aged 9, 10, 11, 12 - a thought-provoking story of AI and humanity
Published on 6. March 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
240 pages
978-1-5295-1780-4 (ISBN)
Description
"A thrilling and thought-provoking sci-fi adventure that's shot through with humanity. A great read." Christopher Edge
"Shades of C3PO and Blade Runner ... In a nail-biting series of plot twists, human and droid loyalties are tested." The Observer
The Last of Us meets Wall-E in this post-apocalyptic tale of family, hope and survival from a multi-award-winning author
Jen and her father are making their way across a deserted world after a technological collapse brought civilization as people knew it to an end. The Flood took out all all technology, but also many people who were connected to a central information hive. Those who are left behind must find each other and build a new life. But Jen's father isn't related to her by blood - he is a human-appearing AI, a glitch in the system, and a secret that must be kept, even from those she wishes she could trust...
Exploring themes of what it means to be human, the value of every individual and where true danger lies - in our technological creations, or the ones who create them - this is a powerful and hopeful dystopian adventure for readers age 9+
"Shades of C3PO and Blade Runner ... In a nail-biting series of plot twists, human and droid loyalties are tested." The Observer
The Last of Us meets Wall-E in this post-apocalyptic tale of family, hope and survival from a multi-award-winning author
Jen and her father are making their way across a deserted world after a technological collapse brought civilization as people knew it to an end. The Flood took out all all technology, but also many people who were connected to a central information hive. Those who are left behind must find each other and build a new life. But Jen's father isn't related to her by blood - he is a human-appearing AI, a glitch in the system, and a secret that must be kept, even from those she wishes she could trust...
Exploring themes of what it means to be human, the value of every individual and where true danger lies - in our technological creations, or the ones who create them - this is a powerful and hopeful dystopian adventure for readers age 9+
Reviews / Votes
A thrilling and thought-provoking sci-fi adventure that's shot through with humanity. A great read. -- Christopher Edge This thought-provoking, elegantly condensed dystopian novel for 9+ addresses ethics, innovation and what it means to be human. * The Guardian * Shades of C3PO and Blade Runner ... In a nail-biting series of plot twists, human and droid loyalties are tested. * The Observer * Kenny is a brilliant world builder and he writes with a clarity that belies the complexity of ideas in this gripping novel. * The Irish Times * Endlessly topical, After is a short novel that has much to say on AI technology, social divisions, and humanity. Kenny's finest work yet, this is a powerful story with real emotional heart, I cannot recommend it enough. * The Irish Examiner *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Target group
Children/juvenile
Interest Age: From 9 to 12 years
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 126 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
216 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5295-1780-4 (9781529517804)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Padraig Kenny is an Irish writer from County Kildare, now living in Limerick. Previously an arts journalist, a teacher and a librarian's assistant, he now writes full-time. His first novel Tin and recent The Monsters of Rookhaven were both Waterstones Books of the Month. He has twice won the Children's Books Ireland Honour Award for Fiction, has been nominated for the Carnegie Medal and shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards.