Maria Grazia's Reviews > Divergent

Just finished reading Divergent by Veronica Roth and now I'm ready to see the movie coming out on April 3 (here in Italy). What is it with these YA novels? I know I’m definitely not the intended demographic but… 1. They are fun 2. They are well written 3. I like them.
With Divergent, I don't know what it was exactly, but I couldn't stop. The book is rather well written though predictable once you've read other YA - dystopian or not - novels. It combines the toughness of living in a dystopian society with the need to remain human, has a thrilling plot, relatable characters and I liked it for several different reasons.

Remarkable ancestors: Orwell, Huxley, Bradbury
It was impossibile not to think of Aldous Huxley, George Orwell or Ray Bradbury while reading Divergent: Urban decay after an apocaliptic war, the dangerous wish to create a perfect society in order to avoid a new catastrophe, the sacrifice of freedom on the altar of order and stability, the possibility of total control on human minds, the dangers coming from an unscrupolous application of scientific research.

Tris: the fighter
After Katniss in The Hunger Games or Clary in The Mortal Instruments sagas, it is clear. The new hero of popular literature is the brave, strong-willed, resourceful young woman. Quite a cliche now, a new stereotype, but one I like. This is due to the fact that the majority of teen readers are girls and also to the female authorship. So Beatrice Prior, Tris, has so much to share with Katniss and Clary – see her independent temper, her physical and mental strength, her not being defined by the relationship with a love interest - but she is also different from them. She is divergent, not easily categorized, not easily manipulated or controlled, hence a danger to the system of the five factions.

Four: strong and fragile at the same time
With Four, Veronica Roth has created a male hero which blends strength and fragility. The new teen heroes are often broken souls who hide their vulnerability behind a mask of self-confidence, toughness, if not aggressiveness. Four doesn’t hide his own flaws nor his fears from Tris, once he understands they share quite a lot. He doesn’t want to be just one thing: he wants to be brave, selfless , intelligent, honest and kind. If he achieved all those qualities, he would be a dream man, but … well, he must still work on kindness. Four, like Tris, is divergent, that is a danger to the system. However, he can beat Tris only for his greater physical strength and his experience. Though an initiate, Tris is already as strong as he is at conquering her own fears, or even stronger. Are you even human?, he asks her.

Romance and adventure
I love when a thrilling, gripping story is based on adventure but doesn’t neglect romance. This is indispensable to a desperate romantic soul like mine. Tris meets Four and is immediately stirred by his charming looks though her sexual attraction to him will soon become one of the fears she has to control and conquer. It will be part of her “fear landscape”. This is due to the fact that Beatrice is from Abnegation and her education has been quite reprimanding and chastising, she is inexperienced and doesn’t know how to cope with all those new emotions Four's only presence provokes in her. Anyhow, this is not an extraordinary problem, any ordinary teenager can relate to Tris as for that.

Read my complete review and my post up on my blog http://flyhigh-by-learnonline.blogspo...