Wednesday, November 19, 2008
I AM THE MESSENGER
Author: Markus Zusak
Genre: YA Fiction
Published: 2005
Personal Rating: 3.75/5
Yearly Count: 150
Ed Kennedy, a 19-year-old cab driver with not much more ambition to do anything else with his life, is plagued with anonymous playing cards with secret messages inscribed on them. Ed doesn't understand the meaning or the purpose of the cards, but he's willing to find out. This willingness sends Ed on a tumultuous ride in life.
I Am the Messenger's theme, setting and interesting characters all contributed to my enjoyment. Hovering over Ed as he followed his instincts, and wondering where and why he was being lead to certain destinations was fun and engaging. However, the ending turned out to be a bit of a letdown. That put a damper on my final feelings of the book. One thing I loved, every time I heard it (audiobook), was the name of Ed's dog. What a clever name! Zusak has a unique voice in his writing that I enjoy. I will be happy to pick up another book by him.
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Sorry the ending was disappointing. You've got me curious about the dog's name : )
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear you enjoyed this one, even if the ending was a disappointment. I'm going to have to go dig this out of my piles to find out what his dog's name is now!
ReplyDeleteSorry the ending let you down. I am looking forward to reading The Book Thieft next year and do plan on reading this at some point.
ReplyDeleteMary ~ Tee Hee It wasn't a bad ending - I just expected more.
ReplyDeleteDebi ~ Now that you found out the dog's name - do you like it? And, while you have the book out, you may as well read it. :) It really was a good one.
Rhinoa ~ Hi! I almost gave it a 4 (very good). The Book Thief is another story - terrific book!
I've been wondering about this one since reading The Book Thief. It sounds like I might like it--I'm not very picky about endings, I've learned.
ReplyDeleteI found the ending weird, and I am really not sure exactly what happened, but I didn't care, because I loved the story, and Ed's faith, and belief in himself and doing what was right, so much that the ending didn't matter.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite books from last year.
I just loved this book. I recall the ending being a bit strange, but like raidergirl13 said, I didn't care because I loved the story so much. And I loved the overall message.
ReplyDeleteYou wound up liking this one better than me. I only gave it a 2.5/5 (Fair).
ReplyDeleteChain Reader ~ If you're not picky about endings, you will probably really enjoy this one.
ReplyDeleteRaidergirl3 ~ I liked the mystery surrounding the cards, so the ending didn't give me satisfaction in its resolution. I agree that the message was a good one.
Charley ~ I didn't like some of the ways in how the message came about, so the end didn't justify the means for me.
Les ~ I actually was flip-flopping all over the rating scale with this one. There were times when I didn't care for it and others that I thought were fabulous, so I can understand your rating. Overall, the story kept me intrigued and to me that's important.
I've wondering about this one. It sounds good, maybe I'll get it on audio as well... very curious about the name of the dog now! :-) Too bad the ending disappointed you - I hate when that happens.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering how good this one would be--I really really enjoyed The Book Thief. I'll have to keep an eye out at the used book store!
ReplyDeleteI liked this one. Have you read The Book Thief? I have his "girl" book, I can't remember the title right now. I'm sure I'll get to it sometime next year.
ReplyDeleteJoanna ~ The audiobook worked for me. :)
ReplyDeleteLaura ~ It has very high ratings, so others think it's great.
Maw Books ~ Yes, I loved The Book Thief. Are you referring to Getting the Girl? I looked it up and it is the sequel to Fighting Ruben Wolfe. Did you read that one?
I really liked this book. After reading The Book Thief, I thought I would be disappointed in his other books. But Messenger is so diferent. I'll be interested to see how his other books stack up.
ReplyDeleteI've been kind of on the fence about this one since I loved The Book Thief and have heard kind of mixed things about this one. You've convinced me that I should definitely check it out (and brace myself for the ending).
ReplyDeleteI've been meaning to read this one but just haven't gotten around to it. I'm trying to keep my expectations in check because The Book Thief was just amazing. I loved that book.
ReplyDeleteFramed ~ I'd like to read more, but The Book Thief was just the best. It's hard to beat that one, I think.
ReplyDeleteTrish ~ It's an interesting read, Trish - definitely worth your time.
Iliana ~ That's a wise move. When you do read it, I hope you like it just as much. :)
I recently read the Book Thief and loved it, so I'm going to have to check this one out and just brace myself for the ending. It's always a bummer when the ending is a letdown, especially after the author does such a great job of building everything else up. Thanks for the great reivew, Joy!
ReplyDeleteKari ~ I really hope you enjoy this one. It was interesting - to say the least.
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