Skip to main content

Gone by Michael Grant

By
Brief synopsis (no spoilers)
Suddenly, all the adults in town disappear, and the kids are left behind to take care of themselves. Chaos is the norm at first, but order must be established. Heroes and bullies grapple for power. And then there's the element of mutation. Some kids develop special powers. Some animals gain deadly abilities. And the chaos doesn't end: as kids turn 15, they disappear too.

 Category
YA Fiction

Why I chose this book
I saw the series on a shelf in my son's school classroom, and I'm a sucker for series

 My personal opinion (the review)
I loved most of it. Special abilities, romantic interest, coming of age, gripping story line, sub plots, hard to put down. I love the hero-villain matches. Every "good" character has an equally matched "bad" character.
But the violence was done on little kids. Starvation, murder, accidents- they all happened to kids under the age of 15. That sort of thing is hard to stomach.

 Warnings:
Language - none
Violence - fairly common, some fairly graphic; bullies abound
"Adult" situations - innuendo only
Death - fairly common, but no major characters

 Movie rating equivalent
PG-13

 Protagonist description
Sam is a reluctant hero, and it's his sense of moral obligation that causes him to step up and take that role.

 Point of view of story
Always third person omniscient, but jumped perspectives within each chapter

 Book length
Long, in a good way

 Story flow
Excellent, gripping

 Grammar and spelling issues
None

 Character connection (no spoilers)
I wish more had been done for Mary. She's amazing, yet she has a dark vice (bulimia). It's not damaging to anyone but her, yet. But she's so much better than her problem. I wish she would overcome it.

 For series:
Independent or integral (stand-alone or back story dependent)
I have a feeling it'll be integral, but I've only read this one

 Series review as a whole
I have high expectations

 If you only have time for one, read: (which one)
Gone (this one)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Happily Ever After Kiera Cass

By
Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Short novellas and after stories from the perspective of other main characters from The Selection Series. Includes: -The Prince (with the two bonus chapters), Maxon’s novella -The Guard, Aspen’s novella -The Queen, Amberly’s novella -The Favorite, Marlee’s novella -Three scenes from Celeste’s POV -Lucy’s scene (bonus scene from The One) -The bonus epilogue -Where are they now? Category: YA Why I chose this book: Selection of novellas filling in gaps in The Selection series.  My personal opinion (the review): Of the entire series this was by far and away my favorite. I loved getting to hear parts of the stories from other perspectives. There was also additional details not found in the original story. All my questions or things I wondered about where answered through these stories.  Warnings Language: None  Violence: None "Adult" situations: As with the other novels, a few scenes with more description than I would have liked. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson

By
Summary: Every book needs you to turn the pages. But not every book needs you to tap it, shake it, jiggle it, or even blow it a kiss. Innovative and timeless, Tap the Magic Tree asks you to help one lonely tree change with the seasons. It begins with a bare brown tree. But tap that tree, turn the page, and one bright green leaf has sprouted! Tap again—one, two, three, four—and four more leaves have grown on the next page. Pat, clap, wiggle, jiggle, and see blossoms bloom, apples grow, and the leaves swirl away with the autumn breeze. (Amazon) Attention Span/reading level: Perfect for my three year old. I would say that ages 2-10 would really enjoy something like this. It really keeps kids engaged and makes them feel like part of the story. There is one word to one sentence per page. Good uses for book in teaching: Interaction, that the reader takes part in making the story, what a tree can do (leaves, blossoms, fruit) Favorite part:      Child: The fact that ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Blackbird by Anna Carey

By
Brief synopsis (no spoilers): A girl wakes up in LA, beside a train track, with a backpack and no memory. There's money in the backpack, a map, and some other supplies. But she has no idea who she is, what her history includes, or where she's going. One thing is for sure- people are trying to kill her. Category : Fiction Why I chose this book : Sale on Amazon My personal opinion : No, thanks. The storytelling was captivating, and the premise was intriguing, but the violence and the sex scenes were too much. I do not recommend it to anyone. Warnings Language: Infrequent, but strong (f-words) Violence: Yes, frequent "Adult" situations: Yes, two scenes Death: Yes, common Movie rating equivalent : R, for violence and sexual situations Protagonist description : "Sunny" (a name she chooses, since she doesn't know hers) is stronger than she looks, and stronger than she feels. She grows in her confidence Point of view of story : Second and third person, chang...
Post a Comment
Read more