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The City of Ember is about a city where the sky is always black, and the only light comes from the overhead floodlights. Citizens of Ember are assigned work at twelve years of age.

Lina Mayfleet wants to be a messenger. Instead she gets the dreaded job of Pipeworks laborer, which means she has to work in the damp tunnels underground.
Doon Harrow draws messenger, and asks Lina to trade! Doon wants to be underground, because that's where the generator is. For as long as he can remember, he's wanted learn about electricity to fix the lighs that have illuminated the city of Ember and driven away darkness. But now the lights are starting to flicker...