Divergent

Title: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth

Year: 2011

Official Synopsis: In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself. 

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves… or it might destroy her.

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STEPH SAID

Rating:

Review:

*This review contains spoilers.*

What intrigued me the most about this story was the practical utopia at the beginning of the novel. The interesting organization of the society made sense. Especially the fact that the Abnegation were the political leaders. A society like that could have worked. Divergents could have adapted to life in a society as such, as they had done for a long time. At first, I didn't even notice the dystopian nature of the story. Some people's divergence felt forced; something had to happen to disrupt such a beautiful society, I thought. It wasn't until Tris mentioned that kids could choose from five predetermined options, that I started understanding the actual problem with the established order.

I also liked Tris' internal struggle to adapt to her new life. She may be Divergent enough to adapt to Dauntless life, yet, she was raised as an Abnegation. And, I was glad to see that traces of Tris' past life still lingered inside of her. Just because she made a choice doesn't mean that she's going to change her whole persona on a whim.

Tris' confusing relationship with Four had a weird appeal to me. Understanding it from the outside was easy enough. It was practically obvious what was going on in, say, the knives scene. However, I'm guessing that it must have been actually confusing for Tris. Still, if she would've given it some thought, maybe she would've understand Four a bit better, especially after he started letting her inside. The morning after their first kiss she was expecting him to be all love and marshmallows. She was expecting him to sit next to her and stop acting like the initiates leader. Tris' actions during that time left a bit to be desired.

Four was just wonderful. He's super smart, wise, talented and daring. He is not just a pretty face with a dark secret or past. He, alone, could be able to stand up to, or lead, the whole Dauntless compound. Yet he chose humility; he chose not to lead. Which makes him all the more interesting.  

I didn't enjoy the final moments, and more importantly, the ending. I didn't like that both of Tris' parents sacrificed themselves to save her daughter. It still doesn't make sense to me that both of them died. Also, when I reached the end, I realized that this story doesn't have a purpose or problem. The story revolves around Tris' initiation, which was resolved. However, the problem of the story was the leaders' silent threats against Divergents, and Erudite's plot to overthrow Abnegation, with the unwilling help of Dauntless. There was no closure to the latter. Dauntless dummies were left haywire, firing on each other. That is probably going to continue on to Insurgent, but it would've been better if the Dauntless' soldiers were able to go back to normal before the end of the book. That way the book would've had an ending, and the Erudite problem could be left for Insurgent.

This is the first Young Adults novel that I've read that has an actual reason behind all the elements of a YA novel. Most YA novels have (1) a beautiful girl with low self esteem that (2) is chosen to destroy the dystopian society in which she lives (3) with the help of a rugged and gorgeous guy that (4) inexplicably falls in love with her. In this case, all the elements are present, but, for the first time, they make sense. It is annoying to constantly read about beautiful girls that believe they are unworthy, or so below a guy's praise. In Divergent, Tris has some reason to feel this way. She is not pretty; moreover, she was raised believing she should not think about herself. Her confusing relationship with Four could be due to her lack of interaction with boys, or because of their student/ teacher relationship. Four's attraction toward Tris is also easily explained. And, she wasn't “chosen” to destroy her society; she was born different, like many more. Overall, the author did a great job taking all the elements of YA novels and making them her own.