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A review by rosalind14
Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
4.0
4.5.
I never know how to rate A.S. King's books. She writes on a whole different level than a lot of other young adult authors both in terms of prose and plot/themes, but something-- it could be the lack of action-- keeps me from the five-star rating. What I do like about her books are the characters. They are not particularly interesting or likable at first glance, but that's because they're so realistic and honest, and we're not used to reading about people we come across in real life, the kind of people we wouldn't normally give a second glance to. Quick summary of Everybody Sees the Ants: Lucky Linderman has a squid for a mother and a turtle for a father, and has been terrorized by the same bully since 2nd grade; he's also been visiting his grandfather, who disappeared years ago in the Vietnam War, in the jungles of Laos-- in his dreams. Then he goes to visit his mother's brother and his crazy Aunt Jodi in Arizona and meets a ninja girl. (See why A.S. King is so amazing? Who else could combine all of those seemingly random elements into a book, and a good one at that?) I loved the title of the book and the whole ant thing. Anyway, I gave this book four stars because her first book, Dust of 100 Dogs, got five, and I enjoyed it better on the whole.
I never know how to rate A.S. King's books. She writes on a whole different level than a lot of other young adult authors both in terms of prose and plot/themes, but something-- it could be the lack of action-- keeps me from the five-star rating. What I do like about her books are the characters. They are not particularly interesting or likable at first glance, but that's because they're so realistic and honest, and we're not used to reading about people we come across in real life, the kind of people we wouldn't normally give a second glance to. Quick summary of Everybody Sees the Ants: Lucky Linderman has a squid for a mother and a turtle for a father, and has been terrorized by the same bully since 2nd grade; he's also been visiting his grandfather, who disappeared years ago in the Vietnam War, in the jungles of Laos-- in his dreams. Then he goes to visit his mother's brother and his crazy Aunt Jodi in Arizona and meets a ninja girl. (See why A.S. King is so amazing? Who else could combine all of those seemingly random elements into a book, and a good one at that?) I loved the title of the book and the whole ant thing. Anyway, I gave this book four stars because her first book, Dust of 100 Dogs, got five, and I enjoyed it better on the whole.