Group Read Feb 2013: Maze Runner

[Mekerei]

Hello, I’m Mekerei and I will be moderating The Maze Runner by James Dashner. This is my first time moderating and I’m excited that we’re reading this dystopian tale about a group of teenage boys stuck together in a Maze. There are 62 chapters and one appendix, here is the schedule for the month

Week 1: 1st – 7th February Chapters 1 – 16
Week 1: 8th – 14th February Chapters 17 – 32
Week 1: 15th – 21st February Chapters 33 – 49
Week 1: 22nd – 28th February Chapters 50 – 62 + Appendix

I’m looking forward to this challenge and your comments. I hope you enjoy the book as much as I am (I can hardly put it down). I will put questions up at the end for each week. If you have any questions please post them here.

Mekerei

[lisa, Questioner]

I haven't started the book yet but I am planning to join in on discussions.

[Mekerei]

Hi Lisa welcome to Challenge: 50 Books discussion. I hope that you manage to join our discussion. This story has me intrigued and I'm finding it hard to put down.

[Cheryl]

I'm enjoying it too so far.

[Lizzie]

I have a hold placed on this book at the library. I'll try to catch up when I get it and join the discussion.

[Joseph]

Okay, baseless and wild speculation time! Obviously the point of the book is everything is a big mystery. What is the Maze? Why were they sent there? What are the grievers? And so on, and obviously at this early juncture they are not going to give us any answers. Yet still my mind is working trying to figure out what the answers may be. So here are some of the guesses I’ve come up with, some of which contradict each other.

Grievers are people, or at least they used to be. Likely the bodies of boys lost in the maze that they never find are turned into grievers. Further Speculation the “dead” griever they found was Ben in the final stages of the change.

All the gladers volunteered to go to the maze. What ever they are doing there is vitally important to the human race, but the process of sending to the maze wipes their memories.

No more people will be sent because there ARE no more people, or at least not enough people that they can afford to send any more.

The trip to the maze is deathly dangerous to anyone over a certain age, and the entire female gender. The same process that wiped the mind of the teen boys is likely to kill anyone else.

These aren't actually people at all, the maze doesn't exist, there are no grievers. This is all an abstract personification of some sort of everyday system or process.

[Kate]

Sitting here in Massachusetts watching the snow fall --just picked up my son's copy of Maze Runner and off I go!!

[Mekerei]

I hope that some of you managed to read to Chapter 16. I had trouble putting it down, too many questions (some of Joseph's and some others).

Below are a couple of other questions that I've been mulling over.

1. "Order," Newt continued. "Order. You say that word over and over in your shuck head.

These are teenage boys with no adult supervision. Why are they so responsible?

2. The boys have developed their own language. What impact does this have on the story?

If you have any other questions that you want to discuss please post them.

[Cheryl]

Joseph, I've been listening to this in the car and my 7 year old sometimes hears it too. He and I discussed the Grievers and wondered about them once being human or at least connected to the boys somehow (like maybe a pet).

Kate, how much did you end up with? I hear Attleboro got 31.5!

I think the boys are able to be responsible just because that (at least in theory) is what happens. I'm more curious why this hasn't turned into Lord ofthe Flies (maybe it will?) yet. As for their own language, my oldest is autistic and when he was younger, had his own language that really, when you thought about the reasons he had certain names for things, made much more sense. I figure it is along those lines with the boys.

[Mekerei]

Sorry about the late posting; we were out of town at my niece's wedding. It was a beautiful day, she looked gorgeous and so did the rest of the bridal party.

Here's hoping that you have read Chapters 17 to 34. Another couple of things I've been thinking about are:

3. Why are there Grievers? What is their roll in the Maze?

4. Are the memories during the change true? If so why?

Looking forward to what you think.

[Cheryl]

Think I'll wait until everyone is done before I comment more for fear of giving anything away.

[Lizzie]

I just started reading this yesterday and I'm already on Chapter 24. I am finding this really hard to put down. The way the chapters are constructed leaves you wanting to read just a little more so you can find out what happens.

Joseph, I really like your idea that the Grievers were once people. I never even thought of that.