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A review by tiemzahra
The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Melanie’s routine was fixed every day. Every day, she would wait to be picked from her cell to the classroom, at gunpoint and strapped in a chair. She thought they didn’t like her.
Introducing Sergeant Parks, the military guy who was rigid, had no exceptions in his rules; hungries are hungries, no matter if they look human or a literal child. He would treat them with contempt, because for him, they were threats. Dr. Caldwell, a purely logical-thinking scientist, treating the kid hungries as test subjects. They were important for the sake of humanity progression. Feeling sorry for them only hinder their progress with the dying civilisation. And Miss Justineau, despite the nature of the kids, treated them with compassion. She believed they were just innocent sensitive kids and didn’t deserve any of the mistreatments in the centre.
Miss Justineau might be the most morally right, but with the current situation they were in, you would understand both Parks and Caldwell’s POV, and will be stuck in moral dilemmas. I personally agree with the three of them at different situations, and even Miss Justineau at times was being dramatic that she almost jeopardised the whole crew. Parks’ instinct ensured their survival, while Caldwell’s study led to the new world they had to prepare for. While Justineau, with her compassionate personality, would be educating the future leaders of the new world. I just concluded that these three distinctions were necessary to keep them going.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Minor: Vomit and War