Tuesday, 8 December 2015

The Maze Runner Reviewed By Kaia Raina


“The Maze Runner” by, James Dashner is a science fiction novel that describes a dystopian society. Thomas arrives in a Glade in a box and the only thing he remembers is his name. Thomas soon meets the other boys in the Glade and realizes that they are all without memory. Thomas does not like any of the boys in the Glade except for Chuck. Thomas also makes friends with a girl named Teresa, who is strangely the only girl in the Glade. Through the many stories the boys have told him, Thomas figures out that they are in a giant maze. They are all afraid because they have no idea who put them in the maze and there are strange things happening outside of the walls of the Glade. Many of the boys tell stories of the strange monsters that lurk behind the high walls that keep them safe. Thomas will soon have to witness the terrors of the maze and make a daring escape.

The novel, The Maze Runner has a very solid theme. I think the theme is secrets, the reason I think this is the theme is because of the many different layers of secrets and stories that exist. Some of the unknowns were what was outside of the glade, and who put the Gladers in the maze. Thomas is a very curious person but the Gladers think his sense of curiosity will lead to their death. As well as Thomas’s curiosity he is also a very brave leader and he is not afraid to express his thoughts and take action. Thomas doesn’t listen to the others and he goes in to the maze to try and uncover the truth. He soon realizes that they are in a world of manufactured reality and someone is playing God. An unknown person is using them like they are merely small chess pieces that were built for playing. The Gladers must now find their way out of the maze or they will not live to see another day. The only thing they can count on is themselves.

The author, James Dashner did a really good job writing this book. He explains the problem clearly and emphasizes every single detail about the trap they are in. Also James Dashner shows one single problem and doesn’t drastically change it. The author creates suspense because no one knows what’s going to happen next. One of the ways he shows suspense is when Teresa first comes into the maze she knows who Thomas is but he doesn’t know her.
A great thing about this book is that there always remains some mystery. James Dashner does an exceptional job of describing Thomas’s internal and external traits very well. The author describes Thomas so well I can easily paint a mental picture of what he looks like. James Dashner did a good job on writing about the amazing science fiction world he created.

The novel “The Maze Runner,” was a book that made me think about Earth’s future. The book made me think that an event such as a corrupt leader controlling society could potentially happen in the future. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel and I highly recommend it.


11 comments:

  1. Dear Kaia,
    Both the book you read, and your review were amazing. I was just wondering if you elaborate in the setting more. Also, you mentioned about monsters behind the high walls. Could you tell us about those?

    Thanks,
    Arnav

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Kaia,

    At the beginning of the review you said that The Maze Runner describes a dystopian society. Can you give some examples on how this is evident in either the setting of the novel or the relationships between the characters in the novel?

    Sincerely,
    Adam Shaaban

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dear Kaia,
    Well done in you review, it really caught my attention. In your review you mentioned that Teresa is the only girl, do you think that being the only girl has affected the way she gets treated?

    Sincerely,
    Simran Singh

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dear Kaia,

    I would have to say after reading this novel it was definitely not one of my favourites. Your task is to provide 3 strong adjectives along with an example for each that would help promote this novel in a more positive light.

    Sincerely,

    Mr. King

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Kaia,

    There are a number of very interesting characters in this novel. I particularly like Tersa. Who was your favourite character? Why?

    Thank you

    Mr. King

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dear Kaia,

    The Maze Runner sounds like an awesome book! I just have one question for you. Why is Thomas's curiosity so bad, and what can it lead to?

    Thanks,
    Elena

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dear Arnav,

    Thank you for commenting on my book review. here is a little bit more about the setting and the monsters in the maze. the Gladers live in the centre of the maze where they raise livestock, cooked food, and make weapons. But beyond those thick walls of safety lies the terrors of the maze… The Grievers. The Grievers are huge slimy robotic spiders programed to sting all the gladers. Luckily the Grievers can't get into the walls of the glade. Or can they.

    Thank you, Kaia

    ReplyDelete
  8. Dear Adam,

    Thank you for your question. I think the setting describes the dystopian society very well. The Author clearly says in the book that there was no sun in the sky and there was always the fear of being killed by the monsters in the maze. Also there was many fights between people within the society and not just with the people that put them in the maze. Thank you for commenting on my review.

    Thank you, Kaia

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear Elena,

    Thank you for your intuitive question. The boys said thomas’s curiosity would get him killed because he wanted to know what was in the maze and they were afraid he was going to find out on his own. The boys thought that Thomas could get them all killed because weird things began to happen when he came up from the box.

    Thank you, Kaia

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thank you for your question. My favourite character in this book was Thomas. The reason i like Thomas is because he is a very persevering and curious person who wants to escape the maze. Another reason i like Thomas is because he saves some of the Gladers while he escapes the maze.

    Thank you, Kaia

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dear Simran,

    Thank you for your question. Teresa was treated weirdly by some of the boys. The reason she was treated weirdly was because she had a note in her hand when she came up saying “the end is here”. This made some of the boys think that she was a threat to the Gladers. Also because she was the only girl in the Glade.


    Thank you, Kaia

    ReplyDelete