Book Review: Gone

Title: Gone 

Author: Michael Grant

Genre: Young adult fiction, science-fiction
Publisher: HaperTeen

Publication Date: June 24, 2008

Synopsis: In the blink of an eye. Everyone disappears. GONE.

Except for the young. Teens. Middle schoolers. Toddlers. But not one single adult. No teachers, no cops, no doctors, no parents. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no Internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what’s happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day. Read more...

Review:  To finish off what has been a wonderful summer of reading I wanted a book that I could get lost in, a book that I couldn’t put down, basically, another Hunger Games. I think I came pretty close to this goal when I picked up Gone by Michael Grant. Gone was fast paced, exciting and intriguing. Although the novel was a somewhat lengthy 550 pages long, the novel did not drag on at any point, and took less than 24 hours to finish.

I really enjoyed a number of elements of this novel. From the premise to the changing points of view, the plot was constantly advancing and new elements were being brought forth on a regular basis. Although this novel was more or less a modern day Lord of the Flies I loved the science-fiction elements that Gant introduced into the plot. I don’t really read sci-fi novels and generally didn’t think that I would enjoy aspects of the novel that weren’t really of this world, but I had no problem accepting and enjoying these parts of the story line.

I felt that Grant did a fabulous job of capturing the feelings of the characters. Recently I have read quite a few novels in which young adults have been placed in difficult situations in which they had to make decisions with serious consequences (to kill or not to kill). Some of the characters in Gone were very similar to those found in such novels as The Hunger Games, or Battle Royal, in that they were either pure evil (Drake and Caine) or had a very stable moral compass (Sam and Astrid). In addition to these all good or all bad characters we had Quinn, in Gone. Although I did not love Quinn as a character, I felt that he was probably the most realistic and relatable character in the novel. His fear and selfishness played through very clearly to the reader. Unlike Sam, the unwilling hero, or Drake, the psychopath, Quinn was conflicted between what was right and what was easy, as his fear consumed him.

One tiny problem that I had with the novel as a whole was the representation of the two main female characters, Diana and Astrid. Arguably their powers were more passive than the main male characters’ and I felt that this weakened them. Additionally I felt that Astrid was constantly playing the ‘damsel in distress’ role. Maybe it is because we have been seeing so many strong literary female characters in young adult literature over the past years, but I felt that Astrid, in particular, was not as strong of a female character as I would have liked. I really hope to see her grow in the next novel, and see her developing her powers.

Overall I really enjoyed this novel, and can’t wait to pick up the second installment Hunger.

  

Warning: Clear your schedule before picking up Gone!

You might also enjoy: Lord of the Flies by William Golding, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, or Battle Royal by Koushun Takami 

My Rating: 4.5/5.0