Monday, October 28, 2013

Insurgent (Divergent, #2) by Veronica Roth

I started this book yesterday morning and read until I couldn't stay awake last night. As soon I woke up I devoured the last couple of chapters and am diving into book 3.

The story of Tris and Tobias continues on the high level of tension and excitement that Divergent left you hanging at in its closing pages. I am so glad I didn't have to wait for this one to be released and could dive right in.


What is outside the fence that surrounds Chicago (not named but clearly the setting city)? Are we as humans made up of a dominant trait that can be used to categorize us, to break up up into factions that rarely intermingle? How corrupting is power and what will those with it do to keep it? What will those without it but who crave it do to get it? Can love be felt in the face of pain and war? And is there a place for forgiveness?

What makes people who they are? Nature, what we are born with, or nurture, how we are raised and what we are exposed to? I think this is the bog question addressed here. When people are raised in a "faction" and have to live only following the edict of certain traits and must deny others for a long time and then are given the choice to stay or to join another group what wins out, and what happens to the other parts of their character?

Like book 1 this was well written and gripping. Now onto the conclusion.....

(finished October 28, 2013)

Divergent (Divergent, #1) by Veronical Roth

At the suggestion of my friend Ann, who shares my love of YA and books about dystopian society and the conversations they evoke I started this trilogy.

On Sunday I finished this book and ran out and got books 2 and 3.

But about this book specifically, I was very impressed. The writing was well done, the pace was excellent and the amount of tension was awful in the best possible way. The characters felt 3-demensional. They were all flawed but the struggle between the flaws and weakness and the desire to do or be better felt real. In the cases where the character wasn't conflicted but just not a nice person, the effect was chilling (Eric).

While the page count was not skimpy, the read was fast. One of the best compliments I feel I can pay a book is that when the hundreds (over 500 in this case) of pages are done and I feel like I just started and want more.

(finished October 27, 2013)