MY FAVORITE BOOK OF 2011!!
(I originally read "Divergent" back in June but was telling a friend about it today & thought I'd re-post this.)
One of thee BEST books I've ever read. EVER. I can't wait until Insurgent comes out! I read this one in less than 24 hours...I could NOT put it down!
Tris was my hero & to say I loved Four is an understatement.
"One choice can transform you" "More than family, our factions are where we belong. In our factions, we find meaning, we find purpose, we find life." ~ Divergent
The world as we know it is gone and broken into five different factions, each one based on the belief that we "are" one way and when we live with a community of people who share those same beliefs we can find "life".
There are 5 factions and a snippet of their manifestos are:
Abnegation - The Selfless - "I will be my undoing if I become my obsession. I will forget the ones I love if I do not serve them."
Erudite - The Intelligent - "Intelligence is a gift, not a right. It must be wielded not as weapon but as a tool for the betterment of others."
Candor - The Honest - "Dishonesty is rampant. Dishonesty is temporary. Dishonesty makes evil possible."
Amity - The Peaceful - "Trust. Self-sufficieny. Forgiveness. Kindness. Involvement."
Dauntless - The Brave - "We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another."
Beatrice aka Tris, has grown up in Abnegation but struggles with the strict rules and not feeling selfless enough. (this reminded me of the Amish and my Catholic upbringing) She watches the Dauntless kids arriving each day at school (as they jump from moving trains!) always wondering what it would feel like to live life free from fear. Upon completing her aptitude test which doesn't go as smoothly as she expected, she chooses to join the Dauntless faction much to the chagrin of her overbearing father.
She's not the only new Dauntless to arrive and meets several interesting people, like Christina, Will, Uriah, and Four. Christina is from Candor (she's brutually honest at times and hilarious!), Will from Erudite (he's a little too "Mr. Smarty Pants but you can't help but love him), with Uriah being the only Dauntless born recruit. (Uriah's fearlessness scares me but in a good way.)
Four (ah...Four - read the book and you'll be sighing too.) is one of their instructors and while Tris probably should be intimidated by him, she's not. She's the smallest of the bunch physically speaking, and since it's pretty much "survival of the fittest" in the Dauntless faction, she'll have to do everything within her power to survive even if it means relying on the help of others. Four seems to be one of the few people who can help her overcome her weaknesses but he also has the ability to push her to her breaking point. He's brave, strong, has a good heart under that tough exterior and is not too hard on the eyes either. He's a guys guy but one you can also bring home to Mom.
Tris learns the hard lesson that while everyone has the capability of being incredibly brave, they also possess the ability to be a big fat coward. Not everyone is who they appear to be nor can they be trusted simply because they are part of your faction. She will also discover not everyone is defined by just one choice or one faction.
When a power struggle starts between several of the factions and threatens to destroy the status quo, everything Tris has ever believed to be true about herself, her family and the world she lives in will be questioned. She will have to rely on her newly acquired skills as well as her basic instincts in order to survive. Lives will be sacrificed, friendships will be betrayed, families will be torn apart and new love will put to the ultimate test.
Once you've read the book, head over and "like" The Divergent Facebook page, where you can take the Faction Quiz. This is a fun version of the aptitude test Tris takes in the book. I took it several times and came up "Dauntless" every time! Once you know what faction you represent, go to Cafepress and order your t-shirt. :)
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