Paperback: 479 pages
Released: May 5th 2008
Publisher: Walker Children's
Source: Bought
Amazon ││ Goodreads
Summary: Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming, never-ending stream of Noise. Just a month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd and his dog, Manchee - whose thoughts Todd can hear too, whether he wants to or not - stumble upon an area of complete silence. They find that in a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden - a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.
But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought?
Released: May 5th 2008
Publisher: Walker Children's
Source: Bought
Summary: Fleeing before a relentless army, Todd has carried a desperately wounded Viola right into the hands of their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss. Immediately separated from Viola and imprisoned, Todd is forced to learn the ways of the Mayor’s terrifying new order. But everything is shrouded in secrets. Where is Viola? Is she even still alive? And who are the mysterious Answer? And then one day, the bombs begin to explode. . . .
Paperback: 624 pages
Released: May 5th 2008
Released: May 5th 2008
Publisher: Walker Children's
Source: Bought
Summary: "War," says the Mayor. "At last." Three armies march on New Prentisstown, each one intent on destroying the others. Todd and Viola are caught in the middle, with no chance of escape. As the battles commence, how can they hope to stop the fighting? How can there ever be peace when they're so hopelessly outnumbered? And if war makes monsters of men, what terrible choices await? But then a third voice breaks into the battle, one bent on revenge - the electrifying finale to the award-winning "Chaos Walking" trilogy, Monsters of Men is a heart-stopping novel about power, survival, and the devastating realities of war.
Thoughts:
You may want to skip reading this if (A) You didn’t like the trilogy (B) You get easily annoyed by a gushing 16-year old (C) You haven’t finished the first two books (I’m so lazy I did a review for the whole series).
I actually have a history with this trilogy. After finishing the first two books in The Hunger Games late 2009, I vowed that I will never judge a book by its cover; that I must never buy booksbased on a cover on an impulse to avoid wasting money. I LOVED Ms. Collins’ books and I was new to YA so I did my research on YA Dystopia and YA in general. I was intrigued by most people’s answers on a forum that I came across. The question was, ‘What is the best young adult series you have ever read?’ Almost half of the correspondents replied with The Knife of Never Letting Go. That was the time I started obsessing about having the Chaos Walking trilogy. It took me over a year to finally have copies in my possession (Blame the super late release of some books here in the Philippines). I went nuts inside when I caught sight of the series at NBS.
The first few pages of the first book started out slowly. The incorrect spelling bothered me and I couldn't comprehend some of the things at first. It gave me the impression that I might not finish it at all (yeah I'm easily intimidated by thick books). Perhaps because I have been hooked to reading contemporary titles lately—most of which I devour for 3-5 hours—that I felt myself giving in to laziness and doubting it a little. Fortunately, the reminder of my year-long wait was enough motivation to give it a shot. I began to get used to the writing after 50 pages or so and I learned to appreciate the uniqueness of Patrick Ness’ writing. It perfectly caught the emotions that the characters feel and successfully share it with the readers. Not only work did it for me, I also realized that it could not have been better.
Patrick Ness has the Mayor’s power of influence. I could like a character and hate it the moment they showed either redeeming or hideous personalities. He’s also defined the meaning of an unpredictable plot. You know the feeling of holding your breath involuntarily and releasing it after realizing you need to breathe? I have experienced that a couple of times while reading Chaos Walking. Neither am I crying person. Sure, I have read many books which almost made me cry, but then I managed to stop myself from weeping most of the time. This series on the other hand had been so emotionally exhausting that I've lost count to how many times I'd cried. I was such a mess by the time I finish Monsters of Men. Patrick Ness broke my heart into pieces and patched it up - even long after I've flipped the last page.
The relationship between Todd and Viola was built skillfully. They did not trust each other at first but they eventually saw their similarities. From being a boy and a girl, they have grown into a man and a woman in a span of more than eight months of surviving together. War has made them think and act maturely. It came to a point when Todd and Viola became the face of leadership and peace, and that made them better than the adults. Both have proven that they could rely and seek refuge in one another.Their faith, loyalty, and love are the strongest and the most admirable I have ever read. All these things have strengthened throughout the trilogy. Most importantly, they are human. They have flaws, they made mistakes and stupid decisions, and to some extent, all of those are things the person in the mirror can relate to.
And who could forget about the minor characters? Each has a noteworthy quality especially Davy, Wilf, Ben, The Sky and The Return. All of them made the trilogy more effective and extraordinary as ever.
This series has taught me about love, loyalty, morality, war, and leadership among many other significant things. I believe this belongs to a league of books that everyone has to read at some point in their lives. In my case, I know that in the future, I will be going back inside its pages and grow up with Todd and Viola again, and again, and again.
Now I urge you to do the same... Read it. Experience it.
I actually have a history with this trilogy. After finishing the first two books in The Hunger Games late 2009, I vowed that I will never judge a book by its cover; that I must never buy books
The first few pages of the first book started out slowly. The incorrect spelling bothered me and I couldn't comprehend some of the things at first. It gave me the impression that I might not finish it at all (yeah I'm easily intimidated by thick books). Perhaps because I have been hooked to reading contemporary titles lately—most of which I devour for 3-5 hours—that I felt myself giving in to laziness and doubting it a little. Fortunately, the reminder of my year-long wait was enough motivation to give it a shot. I began to get used to the writing after 50 pages or so and I learned to appreciate the uniqueness of Patrick Ness’ writing. It perfectly caught the emotions that the characters feel and successfully share it with the readers. Not only work did it for me, I also realized that it could not have been better.
Patrick Ness has the Mayor’s power of influence. I could like a character and hate it the moment they showed either redeeming or hideous personalities. He’s also defined the meaning of an unpredictable plot. You know the feeling of holding your breath involuntarily and releasing it after realizing you need to breathe? I have experienced that a couple of times while reading Chaos Walking. Neither am I crying person. Sure, I have read many books which almost made me cry, but then I managed to stop myself from weeping most of the time. This series on the other hand had been so emotionally exhausting that I've lost count to how many times I'd cried. I was such a mess by the time I finish Monsters of Men. Patrick Ness broke my heart into pieces and patched it up - even long after I've flipped the last page.
The relationship between Todd and Viola was built skillfully. They did not trust each other at first but they eventually saw their similarities. From being a boy and a girl, they have grown into a man and a woman in a span of more than eight months of surviving together. War has made them think and act maturely. It came to a point when Todd and Viola became the face of leadership and peace, and that made them better than the adults. Both have proven that they could rely and seek refuge in one another.Their faith, loyalty, and love are the strongest and the most admirable I have ever read. All these things have strengthened throughout the trilogy. Most importantly, they are human. They have flaws, they made mistakes and stupid decisions, and to some extent, all of those are things the person in the mirror can relate to.
And who could forget about the minor characters? Each has a noteworthy quality especially Davy, Wilf, Ben, The Sky and The Return. All of them made the trilogy more effective and extraordinary as ever.
This series has taught me about love, loyalty, morality, war, and leadership among many other significant things. I believe this belongs to a league of books that everyone has to read at some point in their lives. In my case, I know that in the future, I will be going back inside its pages and grow up with Todd and Viola again, and again, and again.
Now I urge you to do the same... Read it. Experience it.
