The Maze Runner begins in pure confusion. Imagine finding yourself sitting in a box with no idea who you are and no memories of your past.You know only your name. People are staring down at you and talking about you using words you can't fully grasp. This is the world Thomas finds himself in.
He emerges among boys of similar age. They live in a sort of community in a village at the center of a maze. The boys are tortured by both what they do and don't know of the place that is now their home. They live in a square inside a maze with moving walls and deadly mechanical blobs out to destroy them. every day boys are sent out in an attempt to solve the maze with the understanding that once they do they will be released from this torturous world.
Though the elements of this story were interesting and engaging, I found the writing to be filled with too many unneeded words. I was constantly trying to skip forward to the dialog then reading back just to find out the paragraph didn't say anything relevant after all.
The Maze Runner had its own unique slang phrases which may have been less distracting if I was doing the audio version.
This book is a first in a series. It's ending is pretty complete with just a little sneak in at the end to keep you thinking about where the next book is going.
Despite its short fallings, I was curious about what would happen to these inhabitants of the maze and that kept me moving through the book at a quick pace.
Why is this book so mega popular right now?
What special elements does James Dashner bring to the (YA) writing world?
Are you ever disapointed by books that everyone loves?
I've been wanting to read this one - it sounds really, really interesting, and I've heard a lot of good things.
ReplyDeleteWhat's with you reading all of these survival fics, though? For real. You hate 'em. And dialect! I'm impressed at you.
But this book seems to be doing really well, and I think it's because, among the sea of paranormal in YA, we get a book that seems like a mix of contemporary and the unknown. The fantastical elements don't seem out-there, but there's mystery to it. Personally, when something new hits YA, I flock to it.
Survival is very important to science fiction and I hate that element of it. It is what makes me not a true science fiction fan. True sci fi requires a high element of adventure and I am more about mental adventure than physical.
ReplyDelete