Divergent (Divergent, #1) in DC Public Library

May 10, 2011 Meg - A Bookish Affair rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi-speculative, young-adult, fiction

One genre that I really have found that I like is dystopian fiction. I can't get enough of it! Now with the popularity of dystopian fiction, especially in young adult books, I've come across some very good dystopian books and some very bad ones. Divergent, for me, was definitely one of the really good ones. After gulping down the entire Hunger Games trilogy in a week last year, I had been looking for a dystopian book that I liked just as much. I found it with Divergent. My only regret about read One genre that I really have found that I like is dystopian fiction. I can't get enough of it! Now with the popularity of dystopian fiction, especially in young adult books, I've come across some very good dystopian books and some very bad ones. Divergent, for me, was definitely one of the really good ones. After gulping down the entire Hunger Games trilogy in a week last year, I had been looking for a dystopian book that I liked just as much. I found it with Divergent. My only regret about reading Divergent now is that I have to wait so long until the other two books in the planned trilogy come out. At least with Hunger Games, the books had already been out for awhile before I read them. Drat!

Anyhow, Divergent is wonderful. The main character, Tris, is a really interesting character. She goes against the grain of everything that she knows and how she was raised to seek something new. I think that's pretty admirable. While I didn't really see the appeal of the Dauntless group that she chose to live her life with (I'm so not that fearless), I could see how she would choose to go with that group. Tris is a wonderfully written character. Roth did a great job with making us, the readers, feel what Tris was going through.

Another factor that I always look at in dystopian fiction is the world building. Settings are very important to me. The more vivid, the better. When an author can make me see what the characters in the books are seeing and feeling with regard to their surroundings, I'm thoroughly impressed. While I lived near Chicago when I was very young, I don't really remember the city so I loved how Roth included things that would be familiar to those who at least know a little about Chicago (the El, the Sears Tower, Millenium Park and the poor bean statue that I don't really know the real name for. Sorry, bean sculpture). It was almost eerie to read about things that were ultimately familiar but still different than our current state. I really liked that Roth selected a specific location for the story to take place. It really gave a sense of how things had changed from our current time to whenever Tris' story is taking place.

I ate through this book in about two days and it's a pretty big book. The detail is wonderful and I can't wait to see what happens in Insurgent (but seriously, what's with all the rhyming named books in these ya series????).

Bottom line: this made me remember how much I love dystopian fiction! ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Nov 27, 2012 Jeanine rated it really liked it

Shelves: romance, ya, dystopian

Loved it and could hardly put it down!! Took me back to my hunger games/maze runner/ uglies reading days which I definitely want more of! I have had this book on my to read list for awhile but did not realize there was much hype about it. i am getting the sequel to read ASAP!

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 10, 2012 Jennifer rated it really liked it

A fun, fact-paced dystopian thrilled that is the perfect companion piece to "Hunger Games" fans.

This book is easy to devour with interesting characters set in a post-apocalyptic Chicago. The city is divided into 5 factions that represent bravery, honesty and other beliefs. When Beatrice (AKA Tris) takes the test that determines her future, her results are inconclusive, which means she's "divergent." Being divergent is dangerous and could have her killed, so as long as she covers up her true natu ...more

Like · see review

Sep 16, 2011 Kelli rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, young-adult

It took me a while to actually get hooked into this story, but I really enjoyed this book. This dystopian society is divided into factions that control different societal roles in the community. Tris, a 16 year-old girl, is busy trying to figure out who she is and where she really belongs. She didn't fit in her old faction and her new choice is proving to be difficult. Can a person really just fit into one faction? Unfortunately, what was created to keep humans from fighting and killing each oth ...more

Like · see review

Sep 15, 2011 Christina rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: stayed-up-too-late, 2011, ya

Really interesting exploration of a dystopia where teenagers have to select one of five factions they want to belong to, and the conflicts within and between the various factions. I can't say too much without giving away major plot points, but the author does a good job of developing how good ideas taken to an extreme can be dangerous. I had a little trouble identifying with the protagonist because I would SO be in a different faction than the one she chose, but that's also why nobody is writing ...more

Like · see review

Dec 23, 2011 June rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sciencefiction, dystopia

A little slow starting for me, but I stayed up late one night while reading it. The ending seemed a little weak to me, but lots of times series seem that way to me since they want to leave readers wanting more. I found Tris a very sympathetic character, some of the ideas intriquing and some quite annoying.

Like · see review