Gone by Michael Grant

Rating: 3.8/5.0

Re-Read? Probably not because of the general size of the book. But maybe a chapter, here and there.

Recommend? Yes, I recommend this really to anyone.

Release Date: Reprint: April 28, 2009
Publisher: Harper Teen
Pages: 576

Synopsis:

In the blink of an eye.

Everyone disappears.

Gone.

Everyone except for the young. Teens. Middle schoolers. Toddlers. But not a single adult. No teachers, no cops, no doctors, no parents. Gone, too, are the phones, internet, and television. There is no way to get help.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day.

It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen and war is imminent.

The first in a breathtaking saga about teens battling each other and their darkest selves, gone is a page-turning thriller that will make you look at the world in a whole new way.

My Thoughts:

Poof. That's how it went. Teachers, adults, parents-- everyone fifteen and older, just gone. Fourteen year old kids are now having to take charge in a world very unlike the one they are used to. Gone portrays a world as it would be if the world were suddenly ruled by pre-teens. Simply... Anarchy.

Gone really surprised me. I thoroughly enjoyed the plot line and the character development was executed well. I really got to know the characters in those five-hundred sum pages. I also liked the POV change throughout the book because it really gave you insight to a lot more characters then just Sam, Astrid, Quinn, and Edilio. I really liked Sam, which is important because I have a hard time getting through books with badly written protagonists. Gone was a quick read for being the five-hundred sum pages it is. Once in awhile I felt it lagging a little, but just as quick it would pick up the pace again.

Gone's world appeared to be a parallel to the actual world, just a children's edition. The strong pick on the weak, the clever find roles for themselves, and a leader emerges. This book describes how people change when cornered with a crisis; how their true forms emerge and how they bloom to meet the task at hand.

I liked this book, and I recommend it to anyone who might find a Darwinist approach applied cleverly in a YA package appealing. Because I did. Hunger, the sequel to Gone, is now available. I know I'll be picking it up!

Details:

Cover: 3.5
Plot: 4.0
Characters: 4.5
Writing: 3.0