June Iparis is a military prodigy, born into an elite family, and groomed for success in the Republic's highest circles. The novel centers around Day (Daniel Altan Wing) and June Iparis, two 15-year-olds on opposite sides of the economic spectrum. Legend is set in a flooded, fortified, and futuristic version of Los Angeles, ruled by the totalitarian Republic of America. Also, she chose Los Angeles as the setting for the novel since she lives there and she thought Los Angeles demonstrates the dramatic economic disparity between the wealthy and poor that is further illustrated in the novel. She notes that she drew inspiration from the SATs when creating the nationwide test both June and Day had to take in the novel. įurthermore, Lu was inspired by her life in the United States. In an interview with Rick Margolis for the School Library Journal, Lu revealed that her experiences while living in China and being at Tiananmen Square hours before the massacre indirectly shaped the novel by changing the way she saw things. Īdditionally, Lu drew inspiration from events in East Asia such as the Eugenics movement in early 20th century Korea and the Tiananmen Square Massacre in China. In an interview with Judith Pereira from The Globe and Mail, Lu explained that watching Les Misérables drew her to adapt the criminal versus detective narrative to make it a teen version. One of her biggest inspirations was Les Misérables, basing her characters of Day and June on the police inspector Javert and ex-convict Jean Valjean in the movie. Lu drew inspiration from several sources while writing this novel. Published by Penguin Young Readers Group under the Putnam imprint in July 2010, Legend is Marie Lu's first published work. Lu draws inspiration from events and experiences throughout her life and media she has consumed such as the movie Les Miserables. It is the first book in the Legend series followed by Prodigy, Champion, and Rebel. Legend is a 2011 dystopian young adult novel written by American author Marie Lu. Print ( hardcover and paperback), audiobook, e-book

The prodigy a marie