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I Am The Messenger

by Markus Zusak (Goodreads Author), Marc Aden Gray (Narrator)

4.07 · rating details · 16,896 ratings · 3,300 reviews

Meet Ed Kennedy—underage cabdriver, pathetic cardplayer, and useless at romance. He lives in a shack with his coffee-addicted dog, the Doorman, and he’s hopelessly in love with his best friend, Audrey. His life is one of peaceful routine and incompetence, until he inadvertently stops a bank robbery. That’s when the first Ace arrives. That’ s when Ed becomes the messenger. ...more

Audio CD, 7 pages

Published September 26th 2006 by Listening Library (Audio) (first published January 1st 2002)

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Nov 18, 2011

Maja rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: own-a-dtb, readalong, wonders-from-down-under, all-the-right-choices, amazing-writing, contemporary-fiction, favorites, male-pov, never-saw-it-coming, reviewed-in-2011

My full name’s Ed Kennedy. I’m nineteen. I’m an underage cabdriver. I’m typical of many of the young men you see in this suburban outpost of the city – not a whole lot of prospects or possibility. That aside, I read more books than I should, and I’m decidedly crap at sex and doing my taxes. Nice to meet you.

After accidentally preventing a bank robber from escaping, Ed Kennedy receives his first playing card with three addresses written on it. He understands that he needs to deliver a m...moreMy full name’s Ed Kennedy. I’m nineteen. I’m an underage cabdriver. I’m typical of many of the young men you see in this suburban outpost of the city – not a whole lot of prospects or possibility. That aside, I read more books than I should, and I’m decidedly crap at sex and doing my taxes. Nice to meet you.

After accidentally preventing a bank robber from escaping, Ed Kennedy receives his first playing card with three addresses written on it. He understands that he needs to deliver a message to each of these places, but the card offers no further instructions. Relying on his intuition alone, Ed starts touching people’s lives and trying to understand what he has to do. The messages vary from simple to horribly complex and painful, but they all have one thing in common: they need Ed to shake them up and save them from themselves.

I think the most wonderful thing about Zusak is the surprising humanity of his characters. Not only do they come alive for the reader, but they also take so many different roles in the process. Their simple acts of kindness often end up being impressive and life-changing. I’d noticed this about so many characters in The Book Thief and I feared it was a one-time deal, but Ed might be the best of them all. In complete contrast to the ending, Ed is one of the most real and tangible characters I’ve ever stumbled upon. The fact that he’s completely unaware of how extraordinary he is just adds to his charm. My only regret is that the same cannot be said about Audrey. I really needed her to be just as well developed, but she was the only one who didn’t feel real to me, and that’s the sole reason for my 4-star rating.

I Am the Messenger will make you happy in at least three ways: it will give you a truly authentic, approachable story that will go straight through your heart, it will make you examine the way you treat complete strangers and it will catch you completely off guard.
I wish I could hold up that knife and tear open the world. I’d slice it open and climb through to the next one.
In bed, I cling to that thought.

I suppose many people will not be comfortable with the ending. I thought it was unexpected, brilliant (like the man himself), mind-blowing (still picking up the pieces) and audacious. It didn’t take anything from the story, it didn’t diminish the importance of any of the characters, and it added an extra dose of memorability the book wouldn’t necessarily have otherwise.

Choosing a favorite quote this time was just like choosing a favorite child, but there was one I needed to share:
What would you do if you were me? Tell me. Please tell me! But you’re far from this. Your fingers turn the strangeness of these pages that somehow connect my life to yours. Your eyes are safe. The story is just another few hundred pages of your mind. For me, it’s here. It’s now. I have to go through with this, considering the cost at every turn. Nothing will ever be the same.

For this and more of our reviews, visit The Nocturnal Library

Thanks to the lovely Jasprit for reading this with me.

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Apr 15, 2009

Shelly rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: listened-to-on-ipod

I downloaded this on itunes today because my job is super boring and I like to have stuff to listen to and/or watch online. Plus it's popular with some friends, and I'm a follower like that. Anyway, I had to force myself to turn it off today so that I would have something to look forward to tomorrow. I'm halfway through. The story and the reader's voice are mesmerizing! Don't want it to end.

Review starts here:

There's a series on PBS about these doctors--it may even be c...moreI downloaded this on itunes today because my job is super boring and I like to have stuff to listen to and/or watch online. Plus it's popular with some friends, and I'm a follower like that. Anyway, I had to force myself to turn it off today so that I would have something to look forward to tomorrow. I'm halfway through. The story and the reader's voice are mesmerizing! Don't want it to end.

Review starts here:

There's a series on PBS about these doctors--it may even be called "The Doctors," (can't remember)--anyway it's a documentary that follows a handful of Harvard Medical students from their first days in the classroom, to residency, to their eventual careers. I haven't seen each episode but my boyfriend was telling me how one of the students went on to become an ophthalmologist and would go to third world countries to examine people and hand out glasses every chance he got. He (the doctor) also confessed to being lonely because he worked so much and went on to talk about how when he retires he wants to travel and distribute more glasses. My reaction was that a lot people who recognize where there is a need somewhere see it as something so overwhelming that even if they were to do something THAT something wouldn't be enough so they choose to do nothing (or, at least I tend to feel that way). Whereas this guy is working hard and when the time comes for him to stop working and take some time for himself and his family all he can think about is all the people out there whose lives would be improved if they just had a new pair of glasses. So simple. God bless him.

This, for me, is the message of Zusak's "I Am The Messenger": You don't have to be great to do good, you just have to do it. The story's protagonist, Ed Kennedy, is (as the book emphasizes) an ordinary 19 year old guy. He has no special skills, or talents. He's not really strong, or really funny, or really good at math. He's a cabbie who plays cards with his friends and has had a crush on the same girl since he sprouted his first pube but is way too passive and laid-back to do anything about it, like, for example, move on when it's not reciprocated. Ed's Mom is a complete nag who makes it clear to him that she prefers his siblings to him and that she expects nothing more from him than for him to fuck up.
Yet Ed, like most ordinary 19 year olds, doesn't dwell on his unfortunate relationship with his mother. Or the unfortunate state of affairs that are his life.

But the unfortunate byproduct of Ed's unfortunate obliviousness to the reality of the world around him is that Ed is missing out on the big things. Like he says at one point "Big things are just the small things you notice." (Or something like that.)

Much like The Ghost of Christmas Past or Earl's list of bad deeds he must apologize for in the name of Karma, an outside source enters Ed's life to help lead him off the road of mediocrity and onto the road of good deeds. Ed's messages from an ominous stranger come in the form of playing cards in his mailbox with cryptic clues written on the back that Ed then must decipher and act upon. Ed has no clue who's behind the cards, or what the purpose of all this is but he carries on, unwittingly improving the lives of all the other ordinary people around him and in the process coming to understand himself, his mother, his friends and the girl who is the object of his desire on a deeper level.

What I loved so much about this book, aside from the writing and the characters and the setting and the suspense and the emotion, was that despite the novel's outlandishness, Ed's achievements and his impact on others is completely believable. You know that there is nothing significant about Ed. He has no superpowers, his acts of goodness were not preordained. Yet you don't doubt for a second that Ed's simple deeds make his world a better place.

This story is sweet and thrilling and captivating and inspiring. I have no idea what makes it a "Young Adult" book and I refuse to be embarrassed for liking it so much. Unlike "The Hills" which is clearly young adult and something any person over the age of 21 should be embarrassed to admit to liking. Fucking Spencer! What an asshole! (less)

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Jul 15, 2008

Annalisa rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: older youth, as in not really youth anymore

Recommended to Annalisa by: amy m

Shelves: young-adult, book-club, literary, favorites

I can't seem to get enough Zusak. Once again his language is magic. Instead of falling into the "he (or she) said" pitfall, the dialogue takes on the action of the predominant emotion. If he wants to reach for a friend, the words reach. And the way he breaks his sentences to evoke emotional pauses is poetic. Plus it makes his stories delectably quick to read. The perfect combination of length and pause. But his prose is not even the most powerful thing about his writing. Zusak pulls th...moreI can't seem to get enough Zusak. Once again his language is magic. Instead of falling into the "he (or she) said" pitfall, the dialogue takes on the action of the predominant emotion. If he wants to reach for a friend, the words reach. And the way he breaks his sentences to evoke emotional pauses is poetic. Plus it makes his stories delectably quick to read. The perfect combination of length and pause. But his prose is not even the most powerful thing about his writing. Zusak pulls the words lingering on the edge of your brain as if you'd written them yourself. In a way, his writing transcends language.

Here we have an ordinary 19-year-old taxi driver who is going nowhere with his life and has no plans to ever make something of himself either. When Ed inadvertently foils a bank robbery, he is praised as a local hero. Some people have it in them to make a stand, to be more than ordinary. That's when the assignments come. Written on the ace of diamonds are three addresses. Ed must figure out who is in need of help at these locations and what he can do to touch their lives.

As Ed engulfs himself into these strangers' lives he learns to care for them personally and insightfully discovers a message for them that will alter their lives. Sometimes the messages are easy to deliver, other times they require all he can muster to give. But always he finds the courage to follow through. And his answers are never what I would expect.

"There are countless saints who have nothing to do with church and almost no knowledge of God. But they say God walks with those people without them ever knowing it." As we follow Ed through his journey from "just another stupid person" to messenger, we see him grow emotionally as the assignments touch him deeper. In touching other people's lives he finds the purpose in his, his way of being great.

At one point he says he thought he was doing one of these people a favor but "I realize it's the opposite. I'm the privileged one." Is that not how it always is? We don't want to get involved with helping other people, even developing new friendships, because it require something from us. But what we fail to realize is what we get out of it is more than what we put in it. The effort to connect with people instead of drift through each other's lives is always worth it. This book could almost be church worthy if it weren't for the swearing and sex.

It took me a second read through the twist at the end to make the connection. If you don't understand who the random stranger sitting on his couch is, give it a second read because it adds to the purpose of the novel. I think the tool was more surreal when Vonnegut used it, but here its purpose is to bring home the powerful message of the last card and so intense in its own way.

We are left with our own challenge. We find our own names on an ace and we can take this message as ours: that anyone, no matter how ordinary can be great, and put it to practice in our own lives. Or we can discard our aces and go back to going through the motions. (less)

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Apr 26, 2008

Kim rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: the-kids-are-all-right, gmba, favorite-authors

Stamp it on my forehead, folks. I'm here, I'm a blubbering fool, get used to it.

I didn't have high expectations going into this novel, I'd heard it wasn't as good as 'The Book Thief'(pfft...whole box of kleenix on that one). But, I finished it in 7 hours and what can I say?

Um... I.AM.A.SAP

Okay, I can see the flaws, I mean..I'm not a stupid sap. I could see the formula... I knew what was coming. But, the writing makes up for it.

Plus, a 19-yea...more

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Jul 27, 2008

Jackie "the Librarian" rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: teens of all ages

Shelves: mysteries, teen-books-adults-can-enjoy

I threw this book across the room, and then I picked it back up, held it at arms length, and shook my head at it. And then I thought about the way it held me in suspense, how it kept the kids in my teen book group reading and thinking, and I dusted it off and gave it a hug. Markus Zusak, you bastard!
What has me reacting like a schizophrenic? Why, I can't tell YOU. That would spoil the book for you, and you really should read it. The basic plot is, a guy stops a bank robbery, gets written u...more

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Sep 04, 2007

Kevin Fanning rated it

· review of another edition

OK: one of the best first chapters of any book, ever. Like, SO good. Perfectly executed.

The rest of the book: I liked it. Interesting premise, moved along at a decent pace. The "twist" at the ending was good.

There are a few iffy spots, where he describes a scene and it's not at all clear what exactly just happened, or he over describes and reminds the reader that what's happening at the moment is related to something that happens previously, and you're like "...more

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May 29, 2007

Chelsea rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: older teens

Shelves: ya, favorites

After reading The Book Thief, I went to great lengths to find another Markus Zusak book, and when I finally found this one, I couldn't have been happier. I think I read it in about two days. Markus Zusak's powerful prose is still at work, although Ed Kennedy is hardly an ideal subject for poetry. Zusak's protagonist is an underage cab driver with a coffee-addicted dog, a foul-mouthed mother, and an intense love for his best friend Audrey. Ed thinks he's destined to be another nothing of the city...more

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Mar 07, 2009

Meaghan rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Zusak fans and people who like funny books

Shelves: childrens-young-adult-fiction

This book was hilarious -- it had one of the funniest bank robberies in the history of literature and I was often literally falling out of my chair laughing. The suspense was also well-done -- I was dying to find out who The Messenger was. The only thing I didn't like about the story was the ending. It almost ruined the whole book for me, in fact. I won't give it away except to say this: it was a cop-out. Very clever, a wonderful little literary conceit, but still a cop-out. It pissed me off. If...more

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May 22, 2011

Isamlq rated it

· review of another edition

The gushing starts here:

I first came across Zusak in The Book Thief. In that one, I knew I had come across another favorite~ book or author, take your pick. And while I am the Messenger is not the same genre as the former, it is just as good as (and at certain points better than) the former. Each word, each line in it carefully chosen to paint Ed Kennedy’s world as clearly as possible. And what a world it was: one peopled with ordinary, sometimes mediocre individuals, all hilarious...moreThe gushing starts here:

I first came across Zusak in The Book Thief. In that one, I knew I had come across another favorite~ book or author, take your pick. And while I am the Messenger is not the same genre as the former, it is just as good as (and at certain points better than) the former. Each word, each line in it carefully chosen to paint Ed Kennedy’s world as clearly as possible. And what a world it was: one peopled with ordinary, sometimes mediocre individuals, all hilarious and quirky in their own right. And then there’s the intrigue and romance thrown in.

Like I said every word, every line was used for some impact. But the thing is I am the Messenger isn’t a just the mystery that I fear I am making it out to be. While it starts off as that, it’s simply too beautifully written, to just be called just a mystery or just a romance or just a young adult contemporary fiction. Even if it is all of the above.

Ed is ordinary. He has a job he hates, a dog that stinks but loves nonetheless, some friends he hangs out with, and a best friend whom he loves but doesn’t reciprocate. He is the epitome of ordinariness, that is, until they get held up. Thereafter, he finds himself tasked to accomplish some small and big things for people unknown to him. The ‘why’ is unknown. The ‘by whom’ is likewise a mystery.

I hope it doesn’t just come across as just a mystery because it's so much more. There are a lot of memorable moments in it. The romantic sap in me was blinking back tears when his friends got his moment! The happy daughter that I am had a lump in her throat for Ed and his mother. The happily-ever-after addict that I am was was knitting her brows trying to figure out what the ending was about, praying it wasn’t another one of those Stranger Than Fiction moments.

Mostly, it was the simple tasks that he had to accomplish that touched me: an ice cream, some companionship and honesty. And it’s funny. He and his friends, the way they talked to each other, how they mocked each other, and simply hung out… had me laughing a lot. Yes, they were annoying at times, But I really enjoyed hanging out with the bunch of them.

Beautiful.

4.5/5(less)

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Jan 12, 2009

Hillary rated it

· review of another edition

I wanted so badly to like this book because I liked the Book Thief so much, but I just couldn’t. I couldn’t get past the constant swearing, the sweaty smelly characters, and the story line kept shifting back and forth from horribly bad to decent and the decent didn’t compensate for the horrific. . In the Book Thief the charm of the characters seemed to make up for their lack of poise and class, this book couldn’t pull that off.

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Jan 26, 2012

Shauna rated it

· review of another edition

Lua and Marie are holding hands.
They look like they’re so happy, just inside this moment, watching the kids and the lights on their old fibro house.
Lua kisses her.
Just softly on the lips.
And she kisses back.
Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.

Ed, our protagonist, is a loser. A loser, but a beautiful person. In the way he is, and the way he views and interacts with the world around him. He deserve...more

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May 16, 2011

Shirley Marr rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: aussie-ya

Having read the rest of Markus Zusak's catalogue, I was excited about this - a tale about card-playing, taxi-driving, lovable-loser Ed who's ordinary lives is tipped sideways and weird sh!t goes down when he starts recieving cryptic playing-cards in his letterbox with instructions to carry out. Ed suddenly finds himself as The Messenger under the mercy of a mysterious stranger whose intentions he does not know.

I knew I would love it. I just never expected to be having a love-hate-rel...more

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Dec 08, 2008

Michael rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2008

Ed Kennedy is your typical, directionless "slacker." At the age of nineteen, he's barely graduated high school and finds himself in a no-end job as a cab driver--and he had to forge his age up a year in order to get that job. He's got an unrequited crush on his best friend, Audrey and he and his friends are you typical group of buddies, who hang out, drink beer and play cards. One day while waiting in line at the bank, Ed thwarts a robbery. He's dubbed a hero by the local paper, bu...moreEd Kennedy is your typical, directionless "slacker." At the age of nineteen, he's barely graduated high school and finds himself in a no-end job as a cab driver--and he had to forge his age up a year in order to get that job. He's got an unrequited crush on his best friend, Audrey and he and his friends are you typical group of buddies, who hang out, drink beer and play cards. One day while waiting in line at the bank, Ed thwarts a robbery. He's dubbed a hero by the local paper, but his life doesn't make any huge dramatic change.

Except for the fact that he begins receiving the aces from a deck of cards, each with a hand-written list of people, addresses or instructions. It's then up to Ed to determine what the cards mean and determine what his "mission" is based on the list. Early on, Ed befriends a lonely widow, helps a young runner and drives off a man who is abusing his family. As the story progresses, Ed's missions become more and more elaborate and slowly being to hit closer and closer to home, until he gets the final card.

In a lot of ways, "I Am the Messenger" reminded me of "Quantum Leap" or "Reaper" with a hero being given missions to have an impact on the lives of people he comes into contact with. The "Reaper" part comes from the fact that we're not quite sure who or what is behind's Ed missions until late in the story, though Marcus Zusak does a good job of planting seeds of who and what could be behind these mission early and often.

And while the question of who is behind the missions and why Ed is being assigned them is intriguing, it's the character of Ed that makes the story work so well. We're taken on the journey with Ed, finding out about him, seeing his frustration at not being able to find a connection with Audrey and wondering why how and why he's making such an impact on those around him. Ed is a fascinating character because while he's a slacker in terms of his career and his life, we see that he can become devoted to a cause and passionate. At several points, it would be easier for Ed to "give up" or throw in the towel, but he won't do so. He wants to see the missions through to their conclusion, even when it means having to help his three closest friends--and in the end, himself.

As with "The Book Thief," the power of "I Am the Messenger" comes from the language Markus Zusak uses to create his world. Told from the first-person perspective of Ed, Zusak makes some interesting choices, placing the reader inside Ed's head and though process as the story unfolds. Zusak also foregos using the he said, I said to indicate dialogue at times, making it feel as though you are right there, talking to the people with Ed.

It's a fascinating story and, yes, I will admit there were some heavily cliched moments. Zusak doesn't break new ground with the missions Ed is given and some readers may be able to guess why Ed is there before he does. But I think part of this may be the experience of having read or seen so many other stories along these lines and not a fault of the story itself. I will give Zusak credit for not making Ed take too long to realize what the purpose of his mission is and how to achieve it. He walks a fine line of having the reader be more in the loop that Ed but not making Ed seem too dense or unlikeable.

And then, there's the ending and all of its implications. It's an ending that provides closure to this story of Ed and leaves the reader hopeful for more for this character. It's the perfect and logical ending to the story. Nothing more, nothing less. And it that, it's wholly satisfying.
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Jan 20, 2012

Aly (Fantasy4eva) rated it

· review of another edition

RATED: 4.5

It's no 'THE BOOK THIEF' but it hold its own pretty well. Ed' a 19 year old cab driver with not much going on in his life. His sisters have married off, his brother is studying to be a lawyer, his father passed away a few months ago and his mother treats him like absolute shit. Life feels pretty hopeless but he manages to pass the time how he can. Mostly he just plays cards with his mates: Richie, Marv and the girl he is hopelessly in love with: Audrey. But then he starts to ...moreRATED: 4.5

It's no 'THE BOOK THIEF' but it hold its own pretty well. Ed' a 19 year old cab driver with not much going on in his life. His sisters have married off, his brother is studying to be a lawyer, his father passed away a few months ago and his mother treats him like absolute shit. Life feels pretty hopeless but he manages to pass the time how he can. Mostly he just plays cards with his mates: Richie, Marv and the girl he is hopelessly in love with: Audrey. But then he starts to receive cards in his mailbox. Cards that give him names of people and places. People and places he has to visit to make things right. As he takes on these tasks, there's a change in Ed. And I think the change is pretty obvious. He's no longer nobody. He is somebody, he has a purpose. At first I felt guilty about how I was feeling towards him. I wanted to shake him so damn bad and tell him to get over himself and stop being so pathetic. But even in his most roughed up days, he's a hell of a guy. I kind of adore him. He's so funny and witty. Completely likeable. And I think I have such a soft spot for him because I haven't come across a nice genuine guy in a book for such a long time. Because when you get down to it, he really really didn't have to do the things he did, he didn't, but he did. He visited each person on that card even when he no longer needed to. (view spoiler) I mean, come on, call him what you want but our dear Ed's a gentleman

There's a love interest. Although I don't think it would have affected me much if he didn't have one. Even though I don't know if I still like Audrey, I'm still glad he has someone he's truly fallen hard for. I mean, fuck her, I couldn't care less about her after all the heart-break she puts him through, but Ed, he deserves to to finally feel loved back. He made me laugh so much throughout the book. His mates aren't the best to love, but regardless, he deals with thier crap and is there for them when they need him. He is more patient with Audrey and his mother than they deserve, and sometimes, he has these moments where he will say something so deep that either I'll be completely charmed or just sadly touched.

The ending. At first I was just straight out pissed. But I gave it a few minutes, re - read it, and decided that I loved it. So yeah, I am so glad I read I AM THE MESSENGER. Because not only can I appreciate and wholly like a character like Ed. But when I give it some more thought. When I re -read those quotes below. I think to myself. This book is all kinds of beautiful.

I bookmarked the hell out of it. SO I just have to share a few. <3

I don’t know about Marv, but I feel a camaraderie as we kneel down and do the paint job. It feels like youth as we write the words. At one stage, I look across at my friend. Marv the argumentative. Marv the tight arse with his money. Marv with the girl who vanished.When the job’s done, he smacks me on the shoulder and we run off like handsome thieves. We both laugh and run, and the moment is so thick around me that I feel like dropping into it to let it carry me.I love the laughter of this night Our footsteps run, and I don’t want them to end. I want to run and laugh and feel like this forever. I want to avoid any awkward moment when the realness of reality sticks its fork into our flesh, leaving us standing there, together. I want to stay here, in this moment, and never go to other places, where we don’t know what to say or what to do. For now, just let us run. We run straight through the laughter of the night.

His angry hair shrouds his face. His freckles light up under the streetlight.I look at the boy and think about what I have to do.I wonder if these Rose boys have ever been tested in the world.They’re about to be.

She cries, momentarily, as she watches. She allows herself at least that. There are tears on her face and ice cream on her lips. It doesn’t taste like it used to.

His car doesn’t start.“Not one word.” He eyes me.We both snigger slightly.This is a good day. I can feel it.

I watch her all the way up the street, till she turns the corner. Just before she does, she knows I’m standing there, and she turns one last moment and waves. In answer, I hold up my hand, and she’s gone.Slowly. At times painfully. Audrey is killing me.

“I just want you”—she breaks it—“to make something of yourself.” Slowly she makes her way to the front steps and says, “You have to realize something, Ed.”“What?” “Believe it or not—it takes a lot of love to hate you like this.”I try to understand.

Behind me, I hear a father talking to his son.“Do that again,” he says, “and I’ll kick your arse so hard you’ll fall into the fire.” His voice sweetens sardonically. “And we wouldn’t want that now, would we? Santa won’t be too impressed with that, will he now? No, he won’t.”Marv, Ritchie, and I all enjoy hearing that.“Ahhh,” Ritchie sighs happily. “This is what Christmas is all about.”We’ve all heard that from our fathers. At least once.

I cried at his funeral.I let the tears trample my face in complete silence, guilty that I couldn’t even summon the courage to speak about him. I knew everyone there was only thinking about what a drunk he was, while I was remembering the other things as well.“He was a gentleman,” I whisper now.

“I’m sorry,” I tell him now as I get up to leave. “I’m so sorry, Dad.”I walk away, afraid.Afraid because I don’t want my own funeral to be that forlorn and empty.I want words at my funeral.But I guess that means you need life in your life. Walking now Just walking. Just walking.

I hold the card and drop the catalog book to the counter.Bernie’s concerned. “What is it, Ed?”I look at him and say, “Wish me luck, Bernie. Wish me the heart to get through this.” He does.Still holding the card, I walk out onto the street. Outside, I meet the darkness and uncertainty of what will come next.I feel the fear, but I walk fast toward it.

I realize I’m alone.I’m alone because there’s a young man with blood across his mouth who has taken a few extra steps. He’s walked forward, toward the house. The girl he used to meet in the field and make love to till dawn is on the porch They’re staring, each to each.

“Thank you,” I say, but they don’t hear me. It seems a shame that they never will.
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Sep 09, 2010

Emily rated it

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Shelves: didn-t-finish

It only took me 30 pages to decide I wasn't going to like this book. It certainly sounds like an interesting premise--cards in the mail, the need for someone to care and to act--but the language turned me off, and when the main character starts reflecting on his pathetic sex life I decided this book was not for me. It didn't help that Zusak made his characters so completely unlikable. And in only the first 30 pages! I flipped through to see what else the book might hold, but only saw more of the...more

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Jul 03, 2011

Jo rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ya, down-under, 2011, blog, you-got-a-friend-in-me

Initial Final Page Thoughts.
Say what?

High Points.
The beginning- what a hilarious opening. Hopefully I’ll never be caught in the middle of a bank heist, but I just know that if I ever were, that is exactly how I would act. Marv and Richie! The Doorman. Australia! Pa-pa-pa-poker faaaace. Mystery. Intrigue. Clues. (Most of) The messages were beautiful and made my little northern ice-heart melt.

Low Point.
I am still undecided about whether I liked Ed, I’ll discuss...more

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Nov 06, 2011

Choco rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 0-loved

It took me a long time to pick up this book and start reading it because I LOVED The Book Thief so much. I was scared to be disappointed and let down because I didn't believe anyone who has written a book that good could have created another book that's good. Weird logic? Bet it makes sense to some of you.

Zusak's love for stupid humans (we are all stupid in a way) is evident, and characters and what happens to them in The Messenger are both funny and beautiful. As I read about Ed, Ma...more

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Apr 15, 2009

Michelle rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jun 14, 2008

Moses rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: books-of-07-08

After reading the Book Thief, I did not hesitate to read Markus Zusak's other book, I Am The Messenger. The question was, would it live up to the Book Thief?

The answer is yes--and no.

First of all, if you're looking for the same historical epic the Book Thief was, forget it. This was actually written two years before the Book Thief, and so Zusak is still finding his flaws and his strengths and applying them. Secondly, this is a more gritty, modern novel, and if you don't l...moreAfter reading the Book Thief, I did not hesitate to read Markus Zusak's other book, I Am The Messenger. The question was, would it live up to the Book Thief?

The answer is yes--and no.

First of all, if you're looking for the same historical epic the Book Thief was, forget it. This was actually written two years before the Book Thief, and so Zusak is still finding his flaws and his strengths and applying them. Secondly, this is a more gritty, modern novel, and if you don't like that style, woe be to the reader.

The style is due to the plot more than anything else. Nineteen-year old Ed Kennedy is a wipeout taxi driver who is the perfect image of mediocrity. His friends are the idiot, the logical one, and the lazy ass, respectively. His dog is addicted to coffee and Mom won't treat him with the respect she treats his siblings with.

Then he accidentally stops a bank robbery.

After his 15 minutes of fame, Ed receives the first message: an Ace playing card with a list of addresses and times.

So there you have it. A simple setup will eventually blow out to a list of twisted missions. Sadly, this is where one of the principle flaws of the book lie. There is one story. No subplots. No random interludes. People with short attention spans may drop the book in some of the more confusing or boring moments.

Thankfully, the book's characters bring the dimension to the story. Ed is an understandable, down-to-earth guy who we respect and want to do good. His friends, while not perfect role models, are supportive, funny, and real. The addresses hold many interesting people in store, and even though most of them aren't angels, they're at least honest. You can see the story unfolding in real-life because the people are real-life.

While I Am The Messenger isn't flawless, its honesty and wit make it a winner to read. If I ever get to compiling a list of favorites, no doubt this will be somewhere close to the top.

EDIT: This book does contain some mild sexual situations, but none of them are explicit, so it's okay.(less)

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Aug 27, 2009

Rachel rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Tony, Nathan

Recommended to Rachel by: Annalisa,Cami

Shelves: favorites

In reading this book, there were times I teared up. Nothing sad, just the power of Zusak's words. There are beautiful books out there, ones that are lovely and I float away in, but Zusak's words make me feel like I'm really living them or writing them myself. That is how connected I feel. I feel like he's in my head or I'm in his and somehow we are laughing together over little things. He writes the exact way that I see things. Maybe it's the poet in me where inanimate objects come to life...more

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Dec 04, 2008

Anne rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone who can read

Recommended to Anne by: Lauren

Let me just start off by saying that this was one of the best books I've ever read. Zusak has a very unique writing style, but that's not the primary reason for liking it. It refuses to be put down and practically screams at you to be picked back up. Ed is a great character, both morally and in the words that make up his character. Despite the fact that the circumstances of most people are radically different from Ed's, you can still relate to him as an average kind of guy. The end of the b...more

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Jan 11, 2009

K rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: teens

Maybe I'm allergic to Markus Zusak's writing? What he intends as quirky, inspiring, and heartwarming, my brain interprets as affected, cliche, and grossly manipulative. In this novel, an underachieving 19 year old begins receiving cards directing him to various troubled individuals around town. By stalking these people and interfering with their lives at the right moments, he becomes a hero/saint figure, and wins the heart of his beautiful best friend, a girl who'd previously been too afraid t...more

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Feb 13, 2011

Liu Zhen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 11th-grade

Title: I Am the Messenger
Author: Markus Zusak
Pages: 357
Publisher: May 9th 2006 by Knopf Books for Young Readers
Isbn: 0-375-83667-5
Ed Kennedy is a typical cabdriver who, from his own perspective thinks that he himself is a failure in a messed-up family. He is not as smart as his other siblings. He lives under the breath of his mother's scolds and his father's alcohols. Pretty much, he hates his life while he is deeply in love with his best friend,...more

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Dec 24, 2011

Lauren Fidler rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: abusive-relationships, authority-problems, bildungsroman, change-of-life-fiction, daddy-issues, dysfunctional-family-drama, graphic-sexy-times, makes-me-wish-i-had-a-map, mommy-dearest, nostalgia, predictable-villain, reluctant-hero, sex-and-drugs-and-rock-and-roll, that-s-not-a-knife-this-is-a-knife

oh, ed kennedy. we were so close to perfection, you and i.

first, a question: what is about markus zusak's ability to write a profound and poetic sentence about the mundane trivialities of life that so desperately resonates with me? he writes the way that life feels. even the crap bits of life. and i love that about him.

aces:
1. ed - i love him. he's a lovable loser, with his ancient, stinking dog, his go-nowhere career as a cab-driver, and his dysfunctional rel...moreoh, ed kennedy. we were so close to perfection, you and i.

first, a question: what is about markus zusak's ability to write a profound and poetic sentence about the mundane trivialities of life that so desperately resonates with me? he writes the way that life feels. even the crap bits of life. and i love that about him.

aces:
1. ed - i love him. he's a lovable loser, with his ancient, stinking dog, his go-nowhere career as a cab-driver, and his dysfunctional relationships with, well, everyone. he's the robin hood here, replete with the merriest band of slackers south of the equator. his maid marian is audrey, a complicated riddle of a static character who refuses to love, having been mistreated by the ones she held the closest in the past. this proves problematic to dear ed, who, like any other nineteen-year-old boy, merely wants to get up on that. in the sweetest, most awkward ways possible. still, the narrative succeeds because you root for ed. you, who will most likely figure out ed's grail quest before he does, is the least worthy knight imaginable, but, in completing his assignments, manages to become something extraordinary. and you buy it.
2. the cards - this is a great gimmick. i love the idea that there are strangers out there watching us and holding us, at random, accountable for our actions. ed's quest begins with one of the four aces and a list of three addresses and times. each place presents a problem for ed to decipher and "solve" - sometimes with kindness, sometimes with violence. it's a bit reminiscent of asher's "13 reasons why" but handled in a far more positive and captivating way.
3. milla - like ed, milla, i think, is my favorite. i won't spoil her for you here; it wouldn't feel right.
4. allusions - that zusak fella is a smart-smartie. he weaves references to movies, literature, music, and art so seamlessly that you feel immersed in a cultural experience rather than just a work of fiction. ritchie's "richard pryor" tattoo (it's really jimi hendrix), sylvia plath, and "cool hand luke" are all a few pieces of the artistic puzzle that both lingers in the backdrop and accosts ed's narrative. i love feeling connected to a character via shared experiences; anyone who's seen "cool hand luke" knows exactly what ed means when he pleads, "where are you now?"

the joker:
1. symbolism - eh. okay, i love a good symbol, i do, but some of it feels a bit trite or obvious here. lots of fools and jokers surrounding dear old eddie, if you catch my drift.
2. the big reveal - every other scene feels so poetic compared to what should be the most important one in the novel. the conversation gets stilted and a little "deus-ex-machina-y" which i loath (aristotle would not approve!). my biggest complaint, i guess, is that around page 303 i felt a solid cry coming on...not quite the cathartic purge of The Book Thief but definitely a little misty around the ole eyes. then, BAM! my ability to suspend disbelief was challenged violently by the resolution to the book's biggest question. and that's a problem.

as another astute reviewer commented, the ending is a bit precious - and, if you think about it, predictable. which ultimately prevents me from giving this book the coveted five stars, but save for about 20 pages toward the end, it's very, very good.

so, i'm forgiving it. it is, after all, christmas.
(less)

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Jul 23, 2010

Mike (the Paladin) rated it

· review of another edition

This book has "moments" of great writing. It "at times" it touches on or "skitters past" some real insights. Possibly it brushes up against them and then glances away. The opening "sequence", chapters, or cards seemed to me to go on forever and I was more than ready to move on. It was a case of "okay I get it, your a ne'er-do-well, your mother disrespects you, your father's dead (and you miss him). It was tragic, he was a drunk, your mother was disill...more

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Sep 26, 2011

Melek rated it

· review of another edition

Der Roman handelt von dem neunzehnjährigen Ed Kennedy, der sich eher für einen durchschnittlichen jungen Mann hält und noch nichts in seinem Leben erreicht hat. Ed ist ein Taxifahrer, der schwindelt, was sein Alter angeht, er hat keine Ausbildung und keine Freundin. Nur eine schäbige Hütte und einen sabbernden Hund namens Türsteher.
Sein Leben verändert sich jedoch schlagartig, als er eines Tages zufällig in einen Banküberfall gerät und ein Karo Ass im Briefkasten findet – die erste von vier...more

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Apr 07, 2011

Peep (Pop! Pop!) rated it

Shelves: audio-goodness, liked-cause-im-crazy, read-in-2011, really-liked, what-the-heck, addicted-to-ya

I LOVED how the book started out. That was hilarious and annoying if it were your friend. The author really did do a great job at locking you into a story. A good way to set the mood. I did really like his friends. All had their quirks, but it worked.

I loved how the Narrator, Marc Aden Gray said “Ed Kennedy”. And for some reason, I really enjoyed how he did the girls voices, especially the mom. He made her sound like she was about to start screaming at any minute. I could have listened...moreI LOVED how the book started out. That was hilarious and annoying if it were your friend. The author really did do a great job at locking you into a story. A good way to set the mood. I did really like his friends. All had their quirks, but it worked.

I loved how the Narrator, Marc Aden Gray said “Ed Kennedy”. And for some reason, I really enjoyed how he did the girls voices, especially the mom. He made her sound like she was about to start screaming at any minute. I could have listened to him forever. I think they should have had him read the front and back covers and even the flaps!

I like how Ed Kennedy is just your normal, everyday dude. Nineteen years old and pretty good at being average. He's not terribly good at much, yet he gets chosen for this. He kinda wants to do the tasks, but he also doesn't. I like that he wasn't all of a sudden this super, super hero with all these powers that he didn't know about. He was "just Ed". *wink* That part's from the book.

Didn't you love the doorman? If you say no, then you have no heart. He was such a deary. See, the hubs likes active dogs that will go on a run with you. I love dogs that'll sit around and lounge with you. The Doorman fits my criteria. Well, maybe not the smell. I won't say I'd like the smell. But the looks and conversations with him would likely make me forget that he was stinking up the place.

I enjoyed going along with Ed to complete the tasks on the cards. I think he did a great job, some were a little different than I would have done, but still. I almost stopped listening when it came to the drunk guy, but I'm glad that I didn't. My favorite story would probably be the one with the running girl.

I was warned about the ending when I was almost done with the book. I thought they were talking about something else and I was thinking, “that's not so weird, what are they talking about”. But, then I got to the part they were talking about (trust me, you will know when it happens), and I agree with them. Weird, weird, weird... and I still liked the book though. But I didn't see that ending at all. At all...

So, do I recommend this book? Yes! It's something completely different from the Book Thief, but it's still so good. How in the world do these awesome writers do it? *shakes head in wonder and awe*(less)

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Jul 19, 2010

Cherrie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: summer-is-a-reading-season

I'm glad that I read though the book and make it my fist finished English novel. It is the language that I wanna admire a lot. Zusak, with his sense of humour, lays good foundations in the ealier chapters till he gets the opportunity to reveal the main idea of the whole book: ordinary people can achieve beyond what they think they can. I was quite moved when seeing Ed, the leading roal, accomplish tasks on each card and makes differences to others lives. I think it touches me the same way as wat...more

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Aug 12, 2010

Glenda rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: books-read-in-2010

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Dec 20, 2008

bookczuk rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: bookcrossing, favorite-author, satisfying

Markus Zuzak is the reason why my own YA manuscript moulders away is a musty corner of the house. His books are so good, that instead of encouraging me to trot mine around to publishers and such, I just get discouraged. He blew me away with The Book Thief and basically did the same thing with I am the Messenger. His use of language in unexpected ways is still delicious. The plot entertaining, interesting and thought-evoking. I found myself trying to determine the relationships between the n...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
The ending??? SPOILERS	8	43	Feb 10, 2012 06:40am
SPOILER Question about the ending	14	202	Feb 10, 2012 02:31am
The Bookends: November Read: I Am The Messenger	4	11	Dec 07, 2011 08:07am
Long Distance Boo...: I Am the Messenger	7	1	Nov 11, 2011 02:32pm
Your imagined song	1	23	Oct 18, 2011 11:26pm
Join in the discussions!	2	28	Oct 16, 2011 09:32pm
Ending	14	90	Aug 18, 2011 02:48pm

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About Markus Zusak

Markus Zusak is the author of five books, including the international bestseller, The Book Thief, which has topped bestseller lists ranging from the New York Times in America, the Sunday Times in the UK, as well as countries in Europe, South America and Asia.

His first three books, The Underdog, Fighting Ruben Wolfe and When Dogs Cry, released between 1999 and 2001, were all published i...more

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Quotes from I Am The Messenger

“Sometimes people are beautiful.
Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.” — 5,184 people liked it

“Maybe everyone can live beyond what they're capable of.” — 988 people liked it

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