My first contact with Patrick Ness was the fabulous A Monster Calls which surprised me on many levels. You cannot believe how happy I am that, for once, a Young Adult book actually lives up to the hype that surrounds it. Plus, you can always tell when I’m on holiday and can read all day long. But had I had to work every day, I think I would have raced through this one, anyway.
A MONSTER CALLS
by Patrick Ness
Published by: Walker, 2008
ISBN: 9781406326994
ebook: 496 pages
Series: Chaos Walking #1
My rating: 7,5/10
First sentence: The first thing you find out when yer dog learns to talk is that dogs don’t got nothing much to say.
Todd Hewitt is the last boy in Prentisstown.
But Prentisstown isn’t like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts in a constant, overwhelming, never-ending Noise. There is no privacy. There are no secrets.
Or are there?
Just one month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd unexpectedly stumbles upon a spot of complete silence.
Which is impossible.
Prentisstown has been lying to him.
And now he’s going to have to run…
Prentisstown is a place inhabitated only by men. And boys. That is, one boy, named Todd Hewitt. Eagerly awaiting his thirteenth birthday and officially becoming a man himself, he still has do to chores and walk his new dog, Manchee. Oh yes, and in Prentisstown, everybody can hear everbody else’s thoughts. And animals talk, did I mention that? The set up is wonderfully weird and my biggest concern going into the book was how Patrick Ness was going to make it believable. A society without secrets, without privacy. Also, of course, without women. How is that going to work? Well, it does.
The author creates a world that is alien and believable at the same time. From the very first chapter, when Todd finds a strange spot in the swamp without Noise, where everything is silent and he can’t hear the birds or crocodiles talk, I couldn’t put the book down. It is very fast-paced and only takes an occasional moment to breathe between fighting, running, and other life-threatening action.
I didn’t realize how much the characters – especially Manchee, the dog – grew on me until they were in mortal danger (which is basically all the time). Todd is a remarkable YA hero, not so much because he is special or has a gift that sets him apart from the other Prentisstown inhabitants, but because he is all too human. He makes mistakes, some of them terrible and unforgivable, and I was surprised that the author dared enter a territory which I normally don’t see in young adult fiction. Most writers like to keep their protagonist’s hands clean (see Katniss in The Hunger Games). Not so Patrick Ness. He tells a thrilling story of two people on the run (to say nothing of the dog) but there are deeper layers in this book. It deals with death and responsibility, with history and the danger of hiding it from people.
But it’s not just the character development that is admirable. Ness throws in some unexpected scenes, at least one of which had me in tears (on a train, no less, and I didn’t care what people thought). The revelation about Prentisstown’s past wasn’t as surprising or shocking as it may have meant to be but with an otherwise great book, I didn’t much care.
I enjoyed this read immensely. It was quick, it was a bone-chilling, creepy sort of fun, and I can’t wait to start the next part in the trilogy. That said, I should warn you that The Knife of Never Letting Go ends in an evil cliffhanger. This is probably one of those “trilogies” that are really just one big story spread over three physical books. But what the hell, who cares? I’m happy I can end the year with a fantastic young adult book and since the next two volumes, plus the prequel novella, are already mine, nothing keeps me from seeing what happens to Todd and Viola.
THE GOOD: Great characters, almost non-stop action, a wonderfully weird world, and a lot more depth than you might expect.
THE BAD: The style is strange and may put some readers off. It’s very consistent with the story, though, so I loved it. Also, the ending isn’t an ending at all, the book literally stops mid-action.
BONUS: Manchee!
THE VERDICT: A very good and highly recommended read. The amount of blood and violence may make this not suitable for young children, though.
RATING: 7,5/10 Very, very good
The Chaos Walking Trilogy:
- The Knife of Never Letting Go
- The Ask and the Answer
- Monsters of Men
SFF Book Reviews 