Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
And so commences the postapocalyptic road trip. I once read a review of The Road that explained that, sure, it's a postapocalyptic novel, but at its heart, it is an adventure novel. The Boy at the End of the World is just like The Road, in that it is a picaresque adventure, but with more weird stuff and less cannibalism. And no shopping cart. Fisher could have really used a shopping cart.
Full review on Pink Me: http://pinkme.typepad.com/pink-me/2011/05/the-boy-at-the-end-of-the-world-by-greg-van-eekhout-review.html
Full review on Pink Me: http://pinkme.typepad.com/pink-me/2011/05/the-boy-at-the-end-of-the-world-by-greg-van-eekhout-review.html
Ages 9+
It felt like something massive had struck the building. Debris clattered down. A big chunk of ceiling fell right in front of him, and Fisher discovered another thing he knew: profanity. Profanity was a collection of words that helped express strong feelings.
Fisher uttered a word from his profanity collection now.
It was the first word he ever spoke.
Great lolzy fun. Give it to fans of The True Meaning of Smekday and other tongue-in-cheek sci-fi.
It felt like something massive had struck the building. Debris clattered down. A big chunk of ceiling fell right in front of him, and Fisher discovered another thing he knew: profanity. Profanity was a collection of words that helped express strong feelings.
Fisher uttered a word from his profanity collection now.
It was the first word he ever spoke.
Great lolzy fun. Give it to fans of The True Meaning of Smekday and other tongue-in-cheek sci-fi.
I discovered this book was for preteen readers when I was already halfway through it, and I had to read the line a couple times to believe it.
Set in the future, humans had ruined the world and were wiped out (along with most animals). A few of them were saved in pods in arks (sort of, copies of them, "blank slate" humans). Some kind of accident happened, destroying an ark, and a caretaker robot started waking humans up to save them. He was only able to wake one in time.
Each human and animal in the pod was a blank slate; the waking up process imprints information into their brains. Intended to be one of a village of people, this boy was 'born' with boundless knowledge of fish and fishing. Thus he referred to himself as Fisher. Alone, with only the breaking-down robot for company, after he struggled to survive alone for a while he decided to try to find the other arks. He and the robot (Click), set off. They encountered an orphaned mammoth (sort of) calf, and the boy and it bonded, and so Protein joined their group instead of becoming dinner.
The world building was SO SO SO good. Not just the setting, but the dialogue of all the different "people"/group they met. The evolution of the world was completely believable, as were the characters.
While this is completely a book that an adult reader could enjoy, it is good for young readers as well. One of the main themes of the book was what compassion is. I wish I had highlighted the paragraph, it was so perfect. Fisher said something like:
What is this feeling? Animals should care for themselves first, for staying alive. Why did I risk my life for Protein? Why did Click risk his life for me?
It was such a lovely story, with a great ending. The writing was outstanding, everything about it was perfect.
Set in the future, humans had ruined the world and were wiped out (along with most animals). A few of them were saved in pods in arks (sort of, copies of them, "blank slate" humans). Some kind of accident happened, destroying an ark, and a caretaker robot started waking humans up to save them. He was only able to wake one in time.
Each human and animal in the pod was a blank slate; the waking up process imprints information into their brains. Intended to be one of a village of people, this boy was 'born' with boundless knowledge of fish and fishing. Thus he referred to himself as Fisher. Alone, with only the breaking-down robot for company, after he struggled to survive alone for a while he decided to try to find the other arks. He and the robot (Click), set off. They encountered an orphaned mammoth (sort of) calf, and the boy and it bonded, and so Protein joined their group instead of becoming dinner.
The world building was SO SO SO good. Not just the setting, but the dialogue of all the different "people"/group they met. The evolution of the world was completely believable, as were the characters.
While this is completely a book that an adult reader could enjoy, it is good for young readers as well. One of the main themes of the book was what compassion is. I wish I had highlighted the paragraph, it was so perfect. Fisher said something like:
What is this feeling? Animals should care for themselves first, for staying alive. Why did I risk my life for Protein? Why did Click risk his life for me?
It was such a lovely story, with a great ending. The writing was outstanding, everything about it was perfect.
Fisher is the last human alive on Earth. He has no idea how to survive in this dangerous adapting environment, and his only companion is Click, a robot. Fisher then starts on a journey to find out if he truly is the last of humankind.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
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:
No
What a great middle-grade book! As I was reading I thought of how deftly KA Applegate told adventurous stories with dark edges for children and how lovely it was to see Eekhout doing the same. Simple, straightforward, fun characters, tough lessons for the protagonist and the reader.
What a fantastic MG book! I loved this one. Great characters, tons of action, and so much suspense packed into an exciting story. Full review soon at www.mangamaniaccafe.com
A nicely paced futuristic adventure, complete with robots, mammoths, and giant talking prairie dogs.
Some scary situations, and tense moments heighten the drama in this great middle grade dystopian adventure sci-fi post-apocalyptic novel!
(Are there enough buzz words for you?)
The characters are wonderful and the plot is intriguing. My absolute favorite part in this entire great book? The very last page. DON'T SKIP AHEAD, YOU CHEATER!! ;-)
(Are there enough buzz words for you?)
The characters are wonderful and the plot is intriguing. My absolute favorite part in this entire great book? The very last page. DON'T SKIP AHEAD, YOU CHEATER!! ;-)
Read aloud to my 9-year old — he really enjoyed it! We expected to find a sequel at the library since it ends with what feels like the perfect opening to book two, but couldn’t find anything. Is this really a stand-alone? We still have questions!!