The Angel Factory

by Terence Blacker

Have you ever imagined that you might be living in a dream reality? That your parents, your sister, your best friend, even your dog isn't who you think they are? Ever felt that while your friends gripe about their dysfunctional families and their grades, you can't really complain? Have you ever thought your life is just a little too good to be true?
If your answer is yes, than you can imagine how Thomas Wisdom feels. Once he starts digging for clues about his family's history and identity, he begins to uncover a truth and a responsibility that are almost too fantastic and tragic for one boy to bear....

Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Childrens, Angels, Dystopia

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Terence Blacker wanted to be a jockey when he grew and up. In fact, he could ride before he could walk, and his childhood hero was the great steeplechaser Mill House (a horse). He lives in Norfolk, England.

Reviews

[Denver · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked up this book during a library session at school, and decided to read it because i figured it would cover a category for my wide reading. I think it was one of the most boring books i've read. The blurb sounded good and the plot seemed to have so much potential, but the book just bored on and on.

This dystopian novel completes the category: a book with a male main character. I just realised that i normally look for books with female protagonists, probably because my favourite books all have female main characters. Maybe it's because i can relate to them more than male characters.

This book is about a seemingly perfect family, the Wisdoms. Thomas Wisdom has a perfect life, until he starts to suspect things about his parents. Later, he follows his parents to a factory, where he discovers his family are all angels. My favourite quote from this book was: "My whole life was a lie. Those people who were previously my parents were knocking." I was drawn to this quote because it revealed just how completely betrayed he felt, even though i think he completely overreacted.

Something i learned from this book is that everything is not as it seems. This is demonstrated through Thomas' whole life. I guess learning much from this book was unlikely, because it was so dull it took me much longer than usual to finish.

A character that was interesting to me was Thomas' best friend, Gip. He was interesting because he was a very strange person, with an unstable family life and a limp. Everyone at school ostracized him, except Thomas, even though Thomas was perfectly normal. It was a real surprise when Gip turned out to be an angel as well.

Overall, i would not recommend this book to anybody. Although the plot had so much potential, the book was poorly executed.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this book and found myself drawn to it. I couldn't put it down and there were parts that I kind of figured out, but the twist was different than what I expected. This story is about a young boy who thinks his family is too perfect. He mentions it to his friend Gip and his friend starts him on a journey to find out if his parents are secretly in the CIA. We come to find out that they are angels sent here to help earth save itself from destruction. The only problem is, is that there seems to be only one way to think or feel and choices are what the angels want to eliminate. The main character, the young boy, has to decide if he is with them or not. In the end, he wants his freedom to make those choices and eventually things work out. It is a book to cause some reflection on why we are here and what good we might achieve. It definitely kept my interest while reading it. I think children age 10 and older could read this book and enjoy it. Older children or adults reading it may have a nice discussion about freedom of choice and why it is so important to us. It might be a good choice for a middle school book club discussion.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story about freedom of choice in a world where a boy discovers that angels are really aliens.

[Meghan Delesky · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. It's not one of them where I'd jump to the chance to read again. But it was defintely an interesting read. I did like how it's something I've never read before.

[heyzil ☮ · Rating 5 out of 5]

after a few pages, I became extremely interested and after I finished the book I felt curious but at the same time very detached from the world considering that the book is all about a boy finding out that his whole life is basically a lie and that he's living in a simulation-like world.

I loved how he ended up reconnecting with his biological mother and realising that what she had done was for the best. the character made multiple important choices that would change his life forever and that's what I loved about it.

after a few days when I had already finished the book, I became so incredibly attached and re-read it. I definitely recommend it to anyone who needs something to think about at night because this book really changed my perspective of our world.

[Chris Haigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reread of a book I read at school - a great premise, okay execution, glad I rediscovered it.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good middle grade book to discuss the topic of choice.

[Lana Lazar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always an interesting read - I always come back to this one in the library

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty bizarre. The ending was the best.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that this book was amazing to read. It was very interesting and easy to understand. I liked reading it because it seemed to me that a boy was reading it. the pages were very large and the text was perfect size.

The main character in this book was Thomas wisdom. He was a very eager outgoing character that was trying to solve his families mystery. The family are angels sent or made to help protect the earth. There is a secret plan for the angels to help the people on earth and make sure they don't destroy it. there are many events in the story that twist everything around.

I do not connect to this book at all because angels aren't real. I have never had a friend who I killed. This book is not like me or my life.

[Sena Public · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story falls into the same general category as The Giver, if I remember correctly; it's a science-fiction base for social commentary. This one isn't as far a step from the way we currently live so it's a little less obvious, perhaps. Despite the unusual and fairly interesting concept, the story is just a little too easy, the characters a little too pale to be truly interesting to an adult reader; probably a young reader would enjoy it, although the deeper concepts would probably be lost on them. But what young reader needs to grapple with deep concepts in a good story? Honestly, I think the best part of this book is the cover.

[Linnae · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thomas Wisdom's family has always been happy. His parents even hold hands in public. That's just not normal...is it? So why does he feel out of place sometimes? What kind of kid wants some chaos in his life? As Thomas confides in a friend, he begins to realize that it's not asking the questions that will add chaos, it's finding the answers to those questions. All is not what is seems in his tidy little world. Nor in ours. And it will be his choice whether to be a part of the problem or the solution--if he can just figure out which is which.

Different. The ending didn't seem to fit the logic of the story. I would be interested to see what others have to say about it.

[Jespera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thomas Wisdom has felt different from his family but when he conides in his friend, they find a coded file on his dad's computer. Thomas is unduly upsetthat his parents lied to him. Then he finds that they are "angels"/aliens. An alien prescence has come to earth to save humans from themselves, first by being angels among them, and then adopting human children. Thomas has a choice to make.
Good book, but the end was kind of abrupt. Things seemed more dramatic than they should and also falls short of really saying what was wrong with the plan.

[Jia · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a good book but I'm not really surprised.
Did you read the book the Wave? because, they're really alike.
Thomas Wisdom started to open his eyes and realized that his life were almost too perfect too be true. That was before when somebody finally explained to him about the project, and the fact that he's adopted. Then he was founded in a world of angels. And now he can't trust anyone, not his parents, sister, his best friend, not even his dog? Would the project take over the world?

[Camille Stanford · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was kind of weird. Especially the end. There were parts that made this book better, but they were tangled in with bizarre moments.
I was sitting on the fence of what I thought about this book until the last few chapters, which solidly placed it in the 'annoying and unsatisfying ending' category. Mostly, I just felt like the author was trying to manipulate my emotions at times, and it ended up just making me uncomfortable.

[Dotty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas Wisdom seems like an ordinary human boy until he and his buddy, Gip, find a secret on Tom’s dad’s computer. Tom was adopted but not by any ordinary parents. His parents are angels on a mission to save Earth.

I didn’t totally recognize or get immersed in the London environment until part way through the book. I would love to see this in a book discussion group

[Vidushi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This books is a Science Fiction book which has many twists on life and shows of a family that lives on Earth and they are angels. These ''angels'' come from another planet and have come to Earth to stop a major calamity. The answers are up to a normal boys to solve and to save the world. He has 2 options: (1) Leave the planet to it's own state or (2) Let Earth be ruled by a bunch of aliens...

[LeAnne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is well-written suspense although Thomas feels older than 12 to me. The angels feel like a cult although the words used are very close to Biblical, implying that the Christian worldview is something twisted. Goodness is suffocating. Religious experience is as manipulative as drugs. Salvation would destroy what is human in us. Very disturbing, but it could stimulate lots of discussion.

[Matt Mazenauer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Draws you pretty quickly into a thriller sense of a giant scifi conspiracy. Then it unravels into a completely implausible scenario. I really wanted it to be good but the ending especially made it impossible to believe, even for sci-fi.

[Rasha Drapleck · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was mostly weird. It was annoying hereing the charactors perspective because he was an ansty teen ager. he was more disterbed by the fact that his parents adobted him than that they were alines.

[Angie Golaski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and interesting, probably written as a Y.A. novel. It's about an alien invasion, but they're friendly and attempting to save humankind from itself. The question is whether mankind wants this sort of help.

[Frost_light · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not too bad, only a little boring because I had guessed the ending. Anyway, it expressed the world we are living now. Life is not perfect when everything's perfect. If I were Thomas, I would choose the same choice.^^

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't really like this one. I expected more from it somehow. The whole story wrapped up very suddenly and not entirely believably, in my opinion, in a very few pages at the end. Not too realitic feeling actions/etc toward the end either. Interesting premise though.

[Connie T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thomas Wisdom's troubles begin when he discovers he's adopted. What other lies have his parents told him? As he begins to uncover the truth, he realizes everything - and everyone - isn't what he believed. Who can he trust and what should he do?

[Martha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lame. I didn't buy it. I liked Dougal, in a luke-warm sort of way, because he reminded me of a reverse Skippy Jon Jones, but the story just wasn't believable.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. Typical dystopian novel. Literary Review is quoted as saying it "deserves to be ranked alongside Lois Lowry's The Giver" and that is only true if it is held up as an inferior book.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story intriguing, and I am not a fan of science fiction. If you have a son or daughter who enjoys that genre, I would certainly recommend this read.

[Angela Sellers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh me oh my! This book was so gosh darn good.

[Karie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I've read too many "boys with secret histories" books lately, but this one really fell flat for me--and the climax and the ending were too weak and too unbelievable in comparison to the set up.

[Pedro Reyes]

this book is very good but complicated too