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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
The story itself is great
But I can't get over how amazing the audiobook is! It's one of the most well produced audiobooks I've listened to; there's music, sound effects, and two different versions available! One has Jack Black and the other has Samira Wiley. I personally prefer Wiley's performance, but both are excellent!
But I can't get over how amazing the audiobook is! It's one of the most well produced audiobooks I've listened to; there's music, sound effects, and two different versions available! One has Jack Black and the other has Samira Wiley. I personally prefer Wiley's performance, but both are excellent!
As someone who hadn't played Minecraft, knew nothing of the world or game play, and is a big fan of survival books, I could not put this down.
I was first introduced to this book by Pinterest where someone remarked that the audio book is narrated by Jack Black. That in itself was reason for me to look into it, then I found out that the author is the same person who created World War Z. My expectation going into it was high. Very High.
I found the audiobook - it did not disappoint. In fact afterwards I immediately found a hard copy of the novel and read it within a week. The ability to accurately describe the mental battle that occurs during a life and death situation, how isolation affects survival strategies, and the innate response to adapt and survive - all within a fictional game world built out of blocks - outstanding!
I was first introduced to this book by Pinterest where someone remarked that the audio book is narrated by Jack Black. That in itself was reason for me to look into it, then I found out that the author is the same person who created World War Z. My expectation going into it was high. Very High.
I found the audiobook - it did not disappoint. In fact afterwards I immediately found a hard copy of the novel and read it within a week. The ability to accurately describe the mental battle that occurs during a life and death situation, how isolation affects survival strategies, and the innate response to adapt and survive - all within a fictional game world built out of blocks - outstanding!
adventurous
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It’s a cute book that made me giggle. While it’s no literary masterpiece, it was a fun story (albeit a little dark in someways) that kept me entertained most of the read. At points it was a bit slow and repetitive, but this is a children’s book and those messages being repeated are probably ones worth repeating so I give it a pass on that.
Small warning: I have never played Minecraft, so any in-jokes or highly specific references are going to go straight over my head.
But the name "Max Brooks" was enough to get me interested in "Minecraft: The Island," the first official novel based on the popular sandbox video game. This book literally feels like what would happen if a hapless human being -- who is kept something of a blank slate -- was transported into the world of Minecraft and had to fumble his way through surviving there. It's not a spectacular story on its own, having not much of a plot, but Brooks' nimble writing and sense of humor keep it light and fun.
A nameless protagonist wakes up in the middle of the ocean, and manages to find his way to a nearby island... only to discover that the sun is now a square, the clouds are rectangles, and he himself has become a blocky humanoid without proper hands. Unsurprisingly, he completely freaks out. But the necessity of survival arises, and the protagonist begins learning how this strange pixelated world works -- how to get food, interact with animals, craft different items, and keep himself safe from zombies. Oh yes, did I mention there are zombies?
And those are only the beginnings of his woes -- he has to deal with strange Creeper creatures that nearly blow him up, giant spiders, skeleton archers, and more zombies attacking every night. And at the same time, he has to accomplish all of what human beings have created throughout the ages (weaponry, agriculture, fire, mining, etc) in his ongoing efforts to keep himself sane, safe, fed and comfortable. But new perils keep cropping up all the time, and Minecraft Protagonist may not be able to handle them all...
This is not a book to get if you are a Minecraft virgin, as I discovered when I had to do some research on Wikipedia to understand what the creeper was. Rather, this a fantasy for Minecraft players about actually LIVING as your character for a time as you build your little world. It doesn't have much of a central plot besides that -- it's just about living on a weird deserted island full of monsters and farm animals, and learning the rules that will allow you to survive there (like building a workbench).
As such, Minecraft Protagonist is kind of a blank slate -- we and he do not know how old he is, where he comes from, what his name was, or anything else about him. All we know about Minecraft Protagonist is that he's highly excitable, kind by nature and a fast learner ("’Cause thanks to my new method, the Way of the Five P’s, I’ve just kicked the Stone Age into the Iron Age!”). Plus his best friend is a cow named Moo. There's just something highly endearing about his earnest, enthusiastic survival methods.
A lot of that endearing quality is due to Brooks' writing. Since there's little plot and the main character is a blank slate, it falls to Brooks to keep the reader invested -- and he doesn't shy away from any aspect of the story, including the fact that everything is in blocks and cubes ("If you have two cubes of water and you put them three blocks apart..."), or the oddly disturbing scene where Minecraft Protagonist kills a bunch of chickens. His writing is nimble and funny, with a lot of Minecraft Protagonist talking to himself or other creatures ("Get back here and get in my furnace!”), but he knows how to yank on those heartstrings at times (Minecraft Protagonist trying to save his animals from lava).
"Minecraft: The Island" is a wispy idea for a book, and it doesn't have much plot, but Max Brooks' energetic, quirky writing style is more than enough to keep readers glued to the page. If nothing else, read it for his writing.
But the name "Max Brooks" was enough to get me interested in "Minecraft: The Island," the first official novel based on the popular sandbox video game. This book literally feels like what would happen if a hapless human being -- who is kept something of a blank slate -- was transported into the world of Minecraft and had to fumble his way through surviving there. It's not a spectacular story on its own, having not much of a plot, but Brooks' nimble writing and sense of humor keep it light and fun.
A nameless protagonist wakes up in the middle of the ocean, and manages to find his way to a nearby island... only to discover that the sun is now a square, the clouds are rectangles, and he himself has become a blocky humanoid without proper hands. Unsurprisingly, he completely freaks out. But the necessity of survival arises, and the protagonist begins learning how this strange pixelated world works -- how to get food, interact with animals, craft different items, and keep himself safe from zombies. Oh yes, did I mention there are zombies?
And those are only the beginnings of his woes -- he has to deal with strange Creeper creatures that nearly blow him up, giant spiders, skeleton archers, and more zombies attacking every night. And at the same time, he has to accomplish all of what human beings have created throughout the ages (weaponry, agriculture, fire, mining, etc) in his ongoing efforts to keep himself sane, safe, fed and comfortable. But new perils keep cropping up all the time, and Minecraft Protagonist may not be able to handle them all...
This is not a book to get if you are a Minecraft virgin, as I discovered when I had to do some research on Wikipedia to understand what the creeper was. Rather, this a fantasy for Minecraft players about actually LIVING as your character for a time as you build your little world. It doesn't have much of a central plot besides that -- it's just about living on a weird deserted island full of monsters and farm animals, and learning the rules that will allow you to survive there (like building a workbench).
As such, Minecraft Protagonist is kind of a blank slate -- we and he do not know how old he is, where he comes from, what his name was, or anything else about him. All we know about Minecraft Protagonist is that he's highly excitable, kind by nature and a fast learner ("’Cause thanks to my new method, the Way of the Five P’s, I’ve just kicked the Stone Age into the Iron Age!”). Plus his best friend is a cow named Moo. There's just something highly endearing about his earnest, enthusiastic survival methods.
A lot of that endearing quality is due to Brooks' writing. Since there's little plot and the main character is a blank slate, it falls to Brooks to keep the reader invested -- and he doesn't shy away from any aspect of the story, including the fact that everything is in blocks and cubes ("If you have two cubes of water and you put them three blocks apart..."), or the oddly disturbing scene where Minecraft Protagonist kills a bunch of chickens. His writing is nimble and funny, with a lot of Minecraft Protagonist talking to himself or other creatures ("Get back here and get in my furnace!”), but he knows how to yank on those heartstrings at times (Minecraft Protagonist trying to save his animals from lava).
"Minecraft: The Island" is a wispy idea for a book, and it doesn't have much plot, but Max Brooks' energetic, quirky writing style is more than enough to keep readers glued to the page. If nothing else, read it for his writing.
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There are many, many unofficial Minecraft novels clogging up the Kindle store. I've never read any of them, but I'd be willing to bet that at least some of them are better than this first Official offering.
Brooks chooses to frame this through the lens of a narrator from the real world who somehow (it is never explained how) finds themselves in the world of Minecraft and must learn how this new reality works. The in-game mechanics become the literal physics of the world in which our narrator exists, in other words, allowing the author to waste word count ruminating on how he doesn't need to go to the toilet anymore and explaining the basic fundamentals of the Minecraft game to the reader, who 99.9% of the time will likely already know them.
Aimless and pedestrian.
Brooks chooses to frame this through the lens of a narrator from the real world who somehow (it is never explained how) finds themselves in the world of Minecraft and must learn how this new reality works. The in-game mechanics become the literal physics of the world in which our narrator exists, in other words, allowing the author to waste word count ruminating on how he doesn't need to go to the toilet anymore and explaining the basic fundamentals of the Minecraft game to the reader, who 99.9% of the time will likely already know them.
Aimless and pedestrian.
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Family road trip - picked this one up for the kids last month and they begged us to listen to it as a family. We did and it was both fun and funny. Jack Black was absolutely the ideal narrator for this book. There's humor in it for both adults and kids (mostly kids, of course). I imagine it'd be odd and weird for anyone unfamiliar with the Minecraft game but why would anyone pick this up if they weren't a fan of Minecraft on some level? It's written for a specific audience and my family is that audience. Solid fan-fic.
the audiobook for this was amazing. Jack Black makes for a great narrator especially in something as off the wall as stuck in Minecraft with no idea what Minecraft is. The use of audio from the game was brilliant and really brought me into the setting. The character did annoy me quite often however, not in his lack of knowledge but in his choices and constant imparting of weird morals (way more blatant than other MG fiction)