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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Reading We are the Ants three years ago, I’d fallen in love with Shaun David Hutchinson’s stories and until now, aspire to create something of the sort.
Nothing is different for At the Edge of the Universe.
I. Writing Style
While creating Science Fiction media, a certain pressure exists in trying not to sound pretentious. For others, they just put in whatever sounds smart with reckless abandon.
Though, Shaun David Hutchinson never fails to write with sincerity while putting his own spin; proving itself in At the Edge of the Universe.
The first thing I always recognize is Shaun David Hutchinson’s writing style balances between being descriptive enough to capture a vivid image while at the same time, being not too descriptive to cut away from the momentum and in turn immerses readers in the narrative without trouble.
II. Characters & Characterization
I found the cast frustrating or in particular: their style of dealing with problems—though I’m saying this in a positive light.
Rather than making his characters perfect role models, he shows flaws with all the humps and bumps—exhibiting this helplessness and restlessness as they muddled their way through the story.
I saw a duality in how the characters struggled just in the mere trying to help each other; ranging from not knowing what to do all the way to fearing change and the consequences which makes the reader feel such dismay, they instead want to be the one reaching out and lending a hand with the notion of the character being unreliable in that moment.
My only nitpick: I would have liked to see Dustin have a more prominent role in the story, but again, nothing too negative regarding the big picture itself.
III. Plot
Spoiling as little as possible, this an interesting concept of a novel.
Reading this reminded me of Classic Literature a little bit.
If something you knew your entire life vanished, and you were the only one who remembered, what would you do? What would that mean?
It sounded like a philosophical dilemma fit for the classics, and I’d like to think this is just a modern take on it.
Another duality to admire in Shaun David Hutchinson’s works is the science—evidence, statistics and objectivity—intertwined in a clever way with philosophy which lies upon vagueness, theory and subjectivity. For something so heavy with technicality, I found it ironic, witty or sad depending on the occasion, much to my amusement.
The same irony could be found in the center itself. Ozzie is the protagonist but At the Edge of the Universe makes a show of it also not being about him too—once more reminding the reader of the things we need to account for despite being outside of our own perception.
The ending didn’t turn out the way I would have expected. I’m still 50/50 whether I dislike how everything turned out or I feel satisfied.
IV. Conclusion
At the Edge of the Universe deals with existentialism tastefully; with the unknown being both the uncertainty of having a place in the vast void and its purpose and the looming possibilities of the future.
It punches you in the face with its harsh realities and leaves you to figure it all out on your own. Not unlike We Are the Ants, it makes you crave something permanent, but ambiguity has always been part of its charm.
Nothing is different for At the Edge of the Universe.
I. Writing Style
While creating Science Fiction media, a certain pressure exists in trying not to sound pretentious. For others, they just put in whatever sounds smart with reckless abandon.
Though, Shaun David Hutchinson never fails to write with sincerity while putting his own spin; proving itself in At the Edge of the Universe.
The first thing I always recognize is Shaun David Hutchinson’s writing style balances between being descriptive enough to capture a vivid image while at the same time, being not too descriptive to cut away from the momentum and in turn immerses readers in the narrative without trouble.
II. Characters & Characterization
I found the cast frustrating or in particular: their style of dealing with problems—though I’m saying this in a positive light.
Rather than making his characters perfect role models, he shows flaws with all the humps and bumps—exhibiting this helplessness and restlessness as they muddled their way through the story.
I saw a duality in how the characters struggled just in the mere trying to help each other; ranging from not knowing what to do all the way to fearing change and the consequences which makes the reader feel such dismay, they instead want to be the one reaching out and lending a hand with the notion of the character being unreliable in that moment.
My only nitpick: I would have liked to see Dustin have a more prominent role in the story, but again, nothing too negative regarding the big picture itself.
III. Plot
Spoiling as little as possible, this an interesting concept of a novel.
Reading this reminded me of Classic Literature a little bit.
If something you knew your entire life vanished, and you were the only one who remembered, what would you do? What would that mean?
It sounded like a philosophical dilemma fit for the classics, and I’d like to think this is just a modern take on it.
Another duality to admire in Shaun David Hutchinson’s works is the science—evidence, statistics and objectivity—intertwined in a clever way with philosophy which lies upon vagueness, theory and subjectivity. For something so heavy with technicality, I found it ironic, witty or sad depending on the occasion, much to my amusement.
The same irony could be found in the center itself. Ozzie is the protagonist but At the Edge of the Universe makes a show of it also not being about him too—once more reminding the reader of the things we need to account for despite being outside of our own perception.
The ending didn’t turn out the way I would have expected. I’m still 50/50 whether I dislike how everything turned out or I feel satisfied.
IV. Conclusion
At the Edge of the Universe deals with existentialism tastefully; with the unknown being both the uncertainty of having a place in the vast void and its purpose and the looming possibilities of the future.
It punches you in the face with its harsh realities and leaves you to figure it all out on your own. Not unlike We Are the Ants, it makes you crave something permanent, but ambiguity has always been part of its charm.
every element of this book was amazing like the universe shrinking thing was so cool & i wish there was more of a science fictiony element to it. i get that wasn’t the point of the book but i’m in love with the concept. i genuinely cared so much about every single character and even the minor characters fit in to the story so well!!!
it was technically an easy read but some of the messages the universe was teaching ozzy felt like a direct call out and i’m having a hard time working through them.
it was technically an easy read but some of the messages the universe was teaching ozzy felt like a direct call out and i’m having a hard time working through them.
mysterious
medium-paced
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Ozzy is still desperately in love with his boyfriend, Tommy. Unfortunately, Tommy has been missing for months and no one besides Ozzy remembers that Tommy ever existed. Even Ozzy's photos and journal have edited Tommy out of Ozzy's life. To make matters worse, Ozzy has been noticing that the universe is shrinking at an alarming rate and, again, Ozzy is the only one to notice. As our story begins, Ozzy boards a plan to seek out Tommy in Seattle, only to be pulled off the flight at his parents' behest by the local sheriff. Ozzy watches the plane take off...and then crash shortly after leaving the runway, killing everyone on board. Understandably shaken and now utterly convinced that the universe is trying to send him a message, Ozzy finds that his life is getting increasingly difficult to cope with. His friendships are becoming strained, he's rejected every therapist that accepts his parent's health insurance, and he can't get Tommy out of his head. Then Ozzy is paired with Calvin, once an overachiever and now a kid who sleeps through class, on a physics project that will ultimately determine their semester grade. As the year moves along with no sign of Tommy, Ozzy finds himself bonding with Calvin. There's a lot of potential for Ozzy and Calvin, but will Ozzy let himself fall for someone else when he's still obsessed with Tommy? At what point does making a decision shut down other possibilities?
At the Edge of the Universe is an unusual novel about love, loss, friendship and uncertainty. Side characters are refreshingly diverse - Ozzy's best friend, Lua, is genderfluid and a burgeoning rockstar; Tommy is/was mixed race; Dustin is Asian/Jewish. As evidenced in Hutchinson's earlier work, his signature recipe of dark humor, unusual plot elements, and occasionally emotionally-devastating twists is definitely at play here. And it works. Recommend this one to fans of A.S. King and Andrew Smith.
At the Edge of the Universe is an unusual novel about love, loss, friendship and uncertainty. Side characters are refreshingly diverse - Ozzy's best friend, Lua, is genderfluid and a burgeoning rockstar; Tommy is/was mixed race; Dustin is Asian/Jewish. As evidenced in Hutchinson's earlier work, his signature recipe of dark humor, unusual plot elements, and occasionally emotionally-devastating twists is definitely at play here. And it works. Recommend this one to fans of A.S. King and Andrew Smith.
Not my cup of tea, to be honest. The writing style was alright, but the story didn't grab me like I'd hoped.
I'd say that writing characters is definitely Hutchinson's strength; I love the way in which he does it.
I read some people's reviews comparing this book to [b:We Are the Ants|23677341|We Are the Ants|Shaun David Hutchinson|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1425574151s/23677341.jpg|43285034] and some of them saying that they're not very different. While the general structure is very much alike, to me, the books felt different.
I must say, I didn't necessarily like the narrator too much in the beginning, but after a few chapters, once I got to know him a bit more, I did.
I really liked the story, the diversity, and the very real characters.
I read some people's reviews comparing this book to [b:We Are the Ants|23677341|We Are the Ants|Shaun David Hutchinson|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1425574151s/23677341.jpg|43285034] and some of them saying that they're not very different. While the general structure is very much alike, to me, the books felt different.
I must say, I didn't necessarily like the narrator too much in the beginning, but after a few chapters, once I got to know him a bit more, I did.
I really liked the story, the diversity, and the very real characters.