Novel Review
It is true that we are not our mistakes, nor perfect; however, we are the choices we make. In Patrick Ness’ “The Knife of Never Letting Go”, Todd Hewitt, a boy of twelve years and twelve months, is on the run from an army of the townspeople he once knew from his home settlement, Prentisstown, with the help and support from his furry, loyal companion, Manchee. Along the way, he meets Viola, a girl who crashed into his planet, New World, by spaceship from Old World and lost her parents in the crash, and she accompanies him and Manchee for the remainder of the story. Throughout the novel, Todd struggles to escape from the grasp of his hometown and to make decisions with entirely different outcomes through series of unfortunate events.
…show more content…
First things first, this novel is absolutely horrible.
The reason why it’s so horrible is that it’s remarkably heart-jerking and addicting--incredibly addicting to the point that it compels you to stay up late at inhuman hours, sobbing over characters that are simply a figment of one’s imagination. In other words, this novel is amazing. No words can describe the specific pain and awe the book has caused for readers. This fiction is amazing because the plot is unique compared to other dystopian novels. The idea of Noise and talking animals is interesting, and Ness perfectly portrays how the world would be if we were able to hear every living creature’s thoughts. Furthermore, this novella has a realistic relationship development between Viola and Todd and fascinating quotes that are relatable to our everyday
lives. The novel has many impressive strengths, but one that stands out from the rest are the allusions written within the text. One example is when Viola and Todd encounter a fork in the road while on the run to Haven, and Todd detects that “the left fork looks smoother, flatter, like the kind thing you should be rolling carts over. The right fork is narrower with higher bushes on each side and even tho it’s night you can just tell it’s dusty (Ness 218).” This situation is similar to Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken”. Like Frost, they both encounter two roads within the woods, one that was worn from passings, and the other filled with undergrowth. They both eventually “took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference (Frost 19-20).” As amazing as this narrative sounds, it does have some minor flaws, such as the author’s decision of hiding certain information the narrator knows from the readers, as displayed in the following quote: “One month’s time is the first thing it says-- And here comes my birthday-- The day I’ll become a man-- And-- And-- And there it all is-- What happens-- What the other boys did who became men-- All alone-- All by themselves-- How every last bit of boyhood is killed off-- And-- And-- And what actually happened to the people who-- Holy crap-- And I don’t want to say no more about it. And I can’t say at all how it makes me feel” (Ness 52). This quote takes place when Ben explains to Todd why he is preparation Todd to run away by opening up his mind to him about what happens in the town when a boy reaches manhood. Although the author is attempting to hide the surprise of what actually happens, it only seems like a desperate attempt to build suspense without spoiling anything, especially since the novel is written in first person in real time. There are various approaches the author could have used that would not cut the reader off from the feeling of experiencing the event firsthand, as this course did. Ness is able to portray a dystopian society of transparent thoughts impeccably through the eyes of a boy. Despite the minor blemishes, the writer is able to draw many clever allusions and intelligent quotes that make us stop and think, along with being able to cause an immense amount of grief for the readers. The book is suitable for those who enjoy action-packed, dystopian tales, in addition to a great sob story.
Hatchet by Gary Paulson is a fiction novel about a thirteen-year-old boy named Brian that survives a plane crash after the pilot dies of a heart attack and Brian is forced to land the plane himself, and in doing so, lands in a lake around the setting of a Canadian forest. Throughout the duration of the novel, Brian is to survive this dangerous situation with nothing except for a literal hatchet that was gifted to him by his mother prior to getting on the plane to go visit his father in the Canadian North Woods as his parents are newly separated after a recent divorce. Gary Paulsen was inspired to write Hatchet from his own life and personal experiences as both of his parents gave him a hard time growing up through their rocky marriage and unstable parenting as well as the fact that he grew up in the country and had to provide for himself. Hatchet also received a 1988 Newbery Honor award for its excellency. The fiction book is a piece of his life and it’s struggles as he wrote it to convey the following opinions: positivity can get you far no matter what the situation at hand may be, man can
Michael Patrick MacDonald lived a frightening life. To turn the book over and read the back cover, one might picture a decidedly idyllic existence. At times frightening, at times splendid, but always full of love. But to open this book is to open the door to Southie's ugly truth, to MacDonald's ugly truth, to take it in for all it's worth, to draw our own conclusions. One boy's hell is another boy's playground. Ma MacDonald is a palm tree in a hurricane, bending and swaying in the violent winds of Southie's interior, even as things are flying at her head, she crouches down to protect her children, to keep them out of harms way. We grew up watching Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow and Peanuts. Michael Patrick MacDonald grew up watching violence, sadness and death.
As a child you do many things that are horrible but you do them because you either do not care or do not know the consequences to their actions. Percy was a teen who lived in Bend, Oregon and he was happy to live there. He started to see people from California, Seattle, and Portland come to his town which he felt they were invading his territory. Percy and his friends would do many bad things to the rich people because they hated them and wanted them out. Bend was a place where there was a lot of empty land usually grass field. “ When I go back to Bend now, I don't recognize it. I get lost driving around. There are roads where there were none before. There are roundabouts where there were once intersections. Acres of sagebrush have given way to big box stores”. Percy left Oregon for a long time, but when he came back he saw something he had never expected to occur. As he drove around Percy got lost because this was a new...
Christopher McCandless’ stubborn personality causes him to leave a loving home in order to start a new beginning as “ Alexander Supertramp, master of his own destiny”(Krakauer 23). He refuses to further educate himself with a law degree, instead taking a journey into the wild, leaving behind his mother, father and caring sister. Chris grew up as an intelligent individual excelling in almost everything he did. His parents supported him and often encouraged him in his endeavors. Unfortunately, and for clear reasons, Chris did not reciprocate his parents’ love, instead he creates an illusion of normality, causing his parents to believe that everything was fine, while he slowly drifted away from them both physically and emotionally. Chris “let them think they were right”, so they would begin to think that he was beginning to see “their side of things”, when in truth, he was merely waiting for the right time to completely “ knock them out of [h...
This book teaches the importance of self-expression and independence. If we did not have these necessities, then life would be like those in this novel. Empty, redundant, and fearful of what is going on. The quotes above show how different life can be without our basic freedoms. This novel was very interesting and it shows, no matter how dismal a situation is, there is always a way out if you never give up, even if you have to do it alone.
Although, Chris McCandless may be seen as stupid and his ideals uncanny, he gave up everything to follow his heart he escaped the world that would have changed him, he wrote his own tale to feel free, and he left a conformist world to indulge in true happiness. How many people would just give up their lives, family, material goods, to escape into a world of perfect solitude and peace; not many and Chris was one of those that could and he became and inspiration. “The idea of free personality and the idea of life as sacrifice” (187).
“Into The Wild” by John Krakauer is a non-fiction biographical novel which is based on the life of a young man, Christopher McCandless. Many readers view Christopher’s journey as an escape from his family and his old life. The setting of a book often has a significant impact on the story itself. The various settings in the book contribute to the main characters’ actions and to the theme as a whole. This can be proven by examining the impact the setting has on the theme of young manhood, the theme of survival and the theme of independent happiness.
In three dynamic pieces of literature, the desperate yet hopeful characters gallantly endure the struggles of achieving their dreams as they experience the pain of desolation and the life-fulfilling happiness of a friendly companion. Through hostile resentment, the intense repulsion created by generations of territorial disputes tears apart two vengeful foes, Ulrich and Georg, in Saki’s captivating tale. Whereas in Remarque’s gory war novel, the pure terror of battle brutally slaughters the once innocent minds of soldiers as they undergo changes in their heart and soul within themselves. Although impervious to the influence of the reclusive residents tied to the ranch, as they quest for their shared aspirations, George and Lennie forge an invincible friendship in Steinbeck’s calamitous novelette.
Loss of Innocence is a classic theme in literature. Protagonists are forced into situations where they must sacrifice their goodness/what they believe. It is a theme that runs through both “ Young Goodman Brown” and “ The Most Dangerous Game”, though each of them happen in a different way.
“The Hero’s Journey.” Ariane Publications, 1997. Course handout. AS English I. Dept. of English, Woodside High School. 26 October 2013.
Inevitably, there comes a point in everybody’s life at which they have an experience that completely alters their view of the world. This moment is when one loses his or her innocence, or comes of age, and he or she realizes that they do not live in a utopian Golden Age. Parents are charged with the monumental duty of protecting their children’s innocence, but everybody inescapably grows up. This experience can be anything from an embarrassing situation at school to coming within seconds of death. In the short story “Ambush” by Tim O’Brien, the author tells the true story of his daughter confronting him and asked him if he had ever killed anyone. In an effort to be a good parent and protect the nine-year-old’s innocence, the author does not share with her the story he goes on to tell to the reader. He explains how many years ago, he was serving in the army and was taking a shift guarding his troop’s campsite when all of a sudden, a young man from the opposing army came walking up the trail. Without a second thought, O’Brien killed the boy with a grenade, and he lost his innocence after realizing he had killed a defenseless man without hesitation. Tim O’Brien develops Ambush as a coming of age story through the use of literary devices.
Innocence is something always expected to be lost sooner or later in life, an inevitable event that comes of growing up and realizing the world for what it truly is. Alice Walker’s “The Flowers” portrays an event in which a ten year old girl’s loss of innocence after unveiling a relatively shocking towards the end of the story. Set in post-Civil War America, the literary piece holds very particular fragments of imagery and symbolism that describe the ultimate maturing of Myop, the young female protagonist of the story. In “The Flowers” by Alice Walker, the literary elements of imagery, symbolism, and setting “The Flowers” help to set up a reasonably surprising unveiling of the gruesome ending, as well as to convey the theme of how innocence disappears as a result of facing the harsh reality of this world.
Growing up is a natural part of life. Everyone grows up. The loss of childish innocence and blind faith in what is said is one chief mark of growing up. Loss of innocence, however, presents itself in many forms, even to adults, and with it brings a greater understanding of the world at large. In literature, authors use the process to explore society and humanity. Through the characters’ loss of innocence, the authors of both To Kill A Mockingbird and Of Mice & Men discuss ideas of prejudice, family, and courage.
Determination is all it takes to keep one on task and to prevent them from becoming discouraged. Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen, recounts Brian’s struggle to survive in the Canadian Wilderness after he barely escapes with his life from. The story commences with Brian experiencing his pilot suffering a heart attack and dying on his bush plane. With little knowledge of how to fly a plane, With little knowledge of how to fly a plane, Brian crashes into an l-shaped lake and is now alone and in the wild with no food or any plan of survival. Although he may have been impulsive and impatient, this trying experience teaches Brian that by taking control of the situation, he is taking control of his life.
The fictional life and death of a twelve year old little boy named Robert is vividly articulated in this moving tale by Thomas Wolfe. The reader learns of the boy’s life through four well developed points of view. The reader’s first glimpse into Robert’s character is expressed through a third person narrative. This section takes place on a particularly important afternoon in the boy’s life. The second and third views are memories of the child, through the eyes of his mother and sister. His mother paints the picture of an extraordinary child whom she loved dearly and his sister illustrates the love that the boy had for others. Finally, an account from the narrator is given in the ending. It is in the last section of this work that the narrator attempts to regain his own memories of his lost brother.