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The cover of this had the quote "Hunger Games meets Harry Potter." Hunger Games...not really. Harry Potter...a bit. In Quill, strength and logical intelligence is valued and creativity is scorned. When kids reach the age of thirteen, they are sorted into categories--either destined for greatness as a Wanted, kept around as a Necessary, or deemed a weak Unwanted, condemned to immediate elimination. Twins Aaron and Alex are forced to separate fates when rational Aaron is declared Wanted and artist
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The book cover promised this would blend Harry Potter and the Hunger Games and had a intriguing cover. How could I resist? In this interesting, but somewhat lacking story of dystopian sorting, 13 year olds are divided into three groups: Wanteds and Unwanteds and another group to do all the grunt work. We find out early on that Unwanteds are those children that show any creative inclination like singing, drawing, dancing, and acting. At 13 they are to be disposed of to keep the society strong. Wi
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Once they reach the age of thirteen, the children of Quill are sorted into groups: the Wanteds go on to become leaders and shapers of their society, and the Unwanteds are sent off to die. What makes this especially poignant is the case of twins. Alex and Aaron Stowe, for instance, are sorted into two different groups. But the fate that awaits Alex is not actually death. Instead, he and the other teens join others in a magical world kept hidden from the other portions of Quill by spells and guard
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Another book on the Golden Sower nominee list for middle grades, I was wary about this one. I do judge a book by its cover -- sorry -- and this one said "science-fiction fantasy", of which I am not a fan. My daughter started reading it on her own at first, but she missed reading to me and wanted to share the plot so badly. Fortunately, McMann does a pretty good job of making this genre palatable for even the wariest reader. In the fictional land of Quill, creativity and original thinking is outl
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Don't know . . . this really didn't work for me as a fantasy. Maybe because I read so many, but there just wasn't enough new stuff to really interest me in yet another dystopian style story where all creativity and rebellion is quashed. I just couldn't find a reason to care about the characters.
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As close to the happy place reading Harry Potter created in my brain! This book felt like reading The Giver meets Harry Potter meets Hunger Games which I think makes for a great readlike suggestion. The story follows 2 twins Alex and Aaaron Stowe. Every year 13 year olds are sorted into categories: Wanteds, Necessaries, and Unwanteds. Anyone who is caught being creative is labeled an Unwanted and is sent to face the Eliminators. Aaron is Wanted and Alex is Unwanted, but that is only the beginnin
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There are a lot of things to like about this book, but the pacing really bothered me. So much time for Alex to mope about not being accepted into magical training, and eventually so much happening at once. Many things were unique and thought-provoking, but I hoped that eventually the people of Quill would realize how pitiful their situation was, and that the war would not be fought. Mr. Today was such a great character, and so was Alex. The chilling relationships among family members seemed a bi
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I liked this book very much, but I did not love it. Somewhere around the middle, I got tired of Alex and Aaron. I kind of wish the story would have been about one of the girls instead. It's just me, I really do not read very much Middle Grade fiction, and I really do not enjoy warrior type books.
I do give it props for imagination and I never once felt the need to compare it to Harry Potter. It felt fresh and original, and I think I would have loved it had it been about 75 pages shorter. ...more
I do give it props for imagination and I never once felt the need to compare it to Harry Potter. It felt fresh and original, and I think I would have loved it had it been about 75 pages shorter. ...more
I found this to be a very interesting concept--a world where people were separated into wanted, necessary, or unwanted and since many people do believe that the arts are superfluous in education, it seems quite natural that creative people would be the unwanteds. McMann makes that transition to middle grade fantasy nicely. The book moves along quickly keeping the reader engaged with plenty of action and magic and great characters.
Great story! I wondered with the sentence "Harry Potter meets The Hunger Games" on the cover, but I thought this was very appropriate for middle grades (4-5)which is my target audience. It was magical, but not so violent as the Hunger Games. Loved it! Looking forward to the next volume!
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Simply written for the intended audience.
5th grade up.
Just a small amount of violence at end.
5th grade up.
Just a small amount of violence at end.
Great fantasy story with plenty of suspense.
The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann - Fantasy/Dystopian novel: Wow, I'd been looking forward to reading this book for quite a while. Enjoyed it immensely. I'll be recommending this to all my readers who love Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Hunger Games, and other fantasy books!
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Jun 14, 2011
Claire
added it
Dystopian middle grade fantasy.
Jun 03, 2011
Marianne
marked it as to-read
Jun 03, 2011
Malissa
marked it as to-read
Jul 05, 2011
Melissa
marked it as to-read
Nov 26, 2011
Teresa Garrett
marked it as to-read
Sep 17, 2012
Kathy
marked it as to-read
