Module 9 – Double Helix by Nancy Werlin

1. Citation - Werlin, Nancy. Double Helix. Mar. 2004. 256p. Dial, (0-8037-2606-6)
   
2. Summary – Eli is a high school senior trying to figure out his future. He has a strained relationship with his father, his mother is in the final stages of a terminal disease, and he keeps his girlfriend/best friend at an emotional distance. When he gets a job at a research lab, his father is furious but will not tell him why. The story unfolds with twists and turns dealing with genetic manipulation and his past.
   
3. Impressions of the Book – I have mixed feelings about this book. I was pleased with the storyline, but felt that it could have gone so much deeper. The author spent a lot of time discussing his emotions and made Eli sound very whiny (more like a 13-15 year old). She also didn't expound very much on his "extra" capabilities, other than the fact that he was tall, athletic, and had an easy time with academics. The book does bring up a relevant topic regarding genetic manipulation and the questions scientists must battle regarding ethics. That being said, the whole story felt a bit "forced". It didn't flow as well as I would have liked, and the characters needed more depth. Everything gets wrapped up in the end, but it really did feel more like a soap opera than a sci-fi mystery.
   
4. Reviews -
   Werlin, N. (2004). Double Helix (Book). Booklist, 100(11), 975. Retrieved from MAS Ultra - School Edition database.
   

   With Killer's Cousin (1998), Black Mirror (2001), and now this exciting book to her credit, Werlin has proved herself to be one of the best youth thriller writers working today. Her plotting here is a little creaky, as it has been in past books, but she is a master at building suspense and creating the sort of clever manipulations that keep readers eagerly turning the pages. This time, Werlin delivers more than just a solid thriller-cum-growing-up story. She offers a thoughtful consideration of genetic engineering and takes a stand, but not at the expense of an intriguing mystery. Samuels, 18, can't get close—not to his caring but preoccupied dad; not to his smart, generous girlfriend, Viv; and certainly not to his mother, who has been institutionalized for years with a devastating midlife degenerative disease, the gene for which Eli may carry. Confused, heartsick, unable to get the answers he seeks from Dad, and needing time to think about his life, Eli decides to forgo college and, despite his father's unexpectedly vehement disapproval, takes a job at Wyatt Transgenetics, where he receives a surprisingly warm welcome from world-renowned geneticist Dr. Quincy Wyatt. What's all that about? Readers will be as intrigued as Eli, who discovers more than he ever bargained for. A solidly crafted, thoughtful novel featuring a clever, obsessed kid who finds truths, small and large, about life, family, and, of course, himself. —Stephanie Zvirin
   

   
    

5. Use in a library setting – I would use this book in combination with newspaper and magazine articles to have a book group discussion regarding the topic of ethics in science. However, I would have to gather other books, as this is not completely representative and only shows one side of the coin.