June marks the 10th anniversary of The Testing, the first title in a riveting and New York Times bestselling dystopian trilogy from Joelle Charbonneau. We took some time to reflect with the author on the book's impact. Read on to hear more!

You have spent years in schools talking about the book with your readers, what do you most often hear from your readers?

I’d already published several adult mysteries before I wrote The Testing, so I thought I understood all the things that came with being an author. It didn’t take long for me to realize that publishing a young adult book was a whole new world. Teen readers aren’t just passionate about the characters in their books. They are deeply interested in asking questions that connect to the world they see around them and since The Testing is often taught in schools, I continue to hear their thoughts on it almost every day. To my surprise, students write a lot about the ending of the final book in the series. Most of the dystopian series on shelves end with an epilogue of some sort, so readers are surprised when they get to the end of Cia’s journey and don’t learn what happens to her ten years later.  Some readers are frustrated that they don’t get to know whether the changes Cia fought for really make a difference or whether she and the boy she cares about will officially end up together. Most think the ending was a cliff hanger because they didn’t get answers about the future and that I’m secretly working on another book in the series. I’ve even had some ask if I will ever write a new ending to make sure people don’t have those questions. All of those thoughts are the reason I love the ending that I wrote. Things in life don’t wrap up in a neat bow like they often do in books. Life continues past the end and when The Testing series ended with Graduation Day, I wanted those last moments with Cia to feel less like the end of a book series and more like a real graduation, where something ends with people thinking they know how they want life to turn out, but until that life is lived you have no idea what is going to happen. I have no idea what happens to Cia ten years from those final moments, but I’m pretty sure she’s still working to make the world a better place.

Have you seen any change in their responses from teens to the books over the years? Has your own relationship to the books changed over time?

I’ve seen the responses to the books change over the years. While students still continue to identify with the high stakes of the exams in The Testing, opinions on the system of governance in The Testing has shifted a great deal. For the first few years after publication, teens believed the United Commonwealth’s leaders should be condemned. Now, a lot of teens think that government system is far more reasonable than the one they are currently living with. I’ll never forget a school assembly I did about five years go. A student stood up and said he’d prefer go through The Testing if it meant he never had to experience another presidential election cycle. And he had reasons. Lots of reasons. When I asked if there were others that felt that way almost half of the auditorium raised their hands. The teachers were stunned. So was I. And sadly, that isn’t an aberration. The number of students who have expressed that kind of opinion has grown over the last few years.

For those who haven’t read the series, the tests in The Testing are dangerous. The smartest kids are put through a series of tests that can kill them with a wrong answer and those who survive and demonstrate they are the best become the country’s next generation of leaders. The fact that teens think that system is more reasonable than what they see in our world now, should serve as a wake-up call to everyone. Kids are paying attention to everything that is happening even when adults don’t think they are and they aren’t okay with what they see.

I guess it isn’t a surprise that my own relationship with the books I wrote so many years ago has changed and it’s because of those teens. When The Testing came out, the common thought in publishing is that dystopian books were dead and that publishing needed to move on. But for teens, passion for the dystopian genre has grown and characters like Cia are the reason why. Between the book bans, lock-down drills, anti-education/LGTBQ+ bills in state houses, teens are looking for hope that the change they want to create is possible. I used to think of the dystopian genre as grim and dangerous. Over the years, I’ve realized that while it can be dark and violent, dystopian books are a ray of light in the darkness for teens showing them that they can make a difference. And hopefully when we celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the series, the teens reading The Testing and other dystopian books now will be in the process of changing this world into the version of it they hope it can be.

What do you think has kept the book so relevant to schools and libraries?

The very first marketing plan I saw for The Testing targeted honors students because those were the readers they felt would connect with Cia. We learned pretty quickly, teens, no matter the grades they got and the classes they were in, identified with Cia and her feelings during the tests she’s forced to take—the worry that one wrong answer can destroy everything—that no matter how hard she works she might not rise to the top—and that some people are just shut of the process and never get a chance to prove themselves. Students continue to connect with those feelings and Cia’s desire to make things different for everyone no matter how dangerous that change might be. And Cia’s insistence on asking questions, pushing for answers and fighting for things to get better while adults in power tell her to wait her turn resonate in ways I continue to be humbled by. Teens are the ones that are going to change the world and I’m thrilled that I get to continue to cheer them on through this series.

Is there anything that you especially want librarians and teachers to know about the books?

First, I want librarians and teachers to know how grateful I am for standing up for their students every single day. Their jobs have always been important and difficult, but the last few years things have gotten harder and I hope they know all of us writing stories out here for their students stand with them. I guess I also want them to know that I’m honored they continue to use these books in classrooms and love when they share the unique escape rooms, art projects and amazing work their students do with me. When I first started writing The Testing, I had no idea it was going to be a trilogy. I hadn’t a clue how the first book would end or where the story would go from there. But I know the journey wouldn’t have been possible at all if it weren’t for the teachers and librarians who work so hard to unlock the love of reading in their students and who give them books that encourage them to ask questions about the world. Teens often see Cia as a hero. To teachers and librarians, I see a hero in each of you.

Has there been something that has surprised you vis-à-vis the ten year publication history of the book?

When it comes to The Testing series everything has been a surprise. Dystopian was supposed to be dead when The Testing was released and yet, here we are ten years later with students still reading the book and people wanting to talk about Cia’s journey. Perhaps the greatest shock has been the number of my high school and college friends who send me a picture of the book their son or daughter was just assigned to read in school and I see The Testing’s shiny blue cover. I never dreamed I’d ever write something that would become homework or that a book that discusses the flaws of our testing system is actually used for tests. But the most amazing thing? So many of the students assigned to read The Testing are glad they did. Whenever I’m struggling with the project I’m working on, I remind myself of that and keep working because the last thing I want to do is let them down.