Divergent by Veronica Roth

'Tis the season of dystopian YA fiction--chasing the success of The Hunger Games trilogy--just as volumes upon volumes of vampire romance bled off Twilight (thank god that trend has peaked). Divergent tries to follow in the footsteps of THG, with a strictly divided society and lots of teen violence, but unfortunately, it gets lost.

Like all 16 year-olds in her society who must choose their future faction or community in a public ceremony (echoes of The Giver here), Beatrice must decide whether to stay with her family's self-effacing Amish-like group, or leave her family behind and choose one of the other four factions. Adding pressure to her decision is that no faction feels totally right for her. When she chooses Dauntless (the brave, the warriors), she signs up for a surprisingly brutal initiation period tempered by thrilling exploits that test her courage and determination to succeed.

Unfortunately, that's pretty much all there is to this book--fights, brutality, some thrills, and a very "Twilighty" romantic subplot. Add to that a dull heroine, one-dimensional supporting cast members, and a schizo love interest and what do you have? Third tier YA fiction. By the time the climax approaches, the thrill is gone, and the author's overly-contrived machinations toward some sort of real crisis are quite frankly beyond belief.

If you loved The Hunger Games trilogy, follow it up with The Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness. Ness creates a more creative and engaging world for his young characters, and  develops believable, likeable protagonists and three dimensional bad guys. Or read Little Brother by Cory Doctorow or the Unwind trilogy by Neal Shusterman--all three are great authors worth following. Unfortunately, I can't recommend Divergent.

 I look forward to "divergent" viewpoints on this book. Your comments are welcome.


Anne Shirako, Reference Librarian, Ukiah Library