Not in looks.
Not in what they say.
Just in what they are.
-I am the messenger
One of the greatest feelings ever, is going into a book not knowing what to expect, at all, and coming out of it, feeling that it was one of the best books you've ever read. That's how I felt, about "I Am The Messenger". This book, in a word, is just, amazing. And at some points, this book is beautiful.
Upon finishing the first act of this book, I instantly fell in love with Markus Zusak's writing style. He describes things in ways that just twist my imagination into seeing what he wants me to see. In this book he has a way of describing things through metaphors, personification and just raw emotion. The way he uses the English language is just outstanding. He makes even the smallest things matter, and there wasn't a moment in this book where I was bored, or didn't feel the urge to read on, which is a triumph in my eyes.
Another thing "I Am The Messenger" accomplished, well for me at least, is that it made me think and really re-evaluate my life after I read the final words of the book. Not many books can do that, and it takes an amazing author to really make the reader think about life in general, rather than just finishing the book and dismissing it as just another book. This book really had a profound impact on me, that I wasn't expecting at all.
But this book wouldn't be able to accomplish any of this, if it weren't for the books wonderful characters. Honestly, these have to some of best characters I've seen in young adult fiction for a while, I just love almost all of the characters in this book. Heck, I even fell in love with the dog in this book, and that hasn't happened since Manchee. The only character I recall not liking quite as much as everyone else was the guy from 39 Bell Street theater. And the only reason I didn't like him quite as much as everyone else was because we didn't get to spend nearly enough time with this character, and as a result of that, he just wasn't fleshed out enough.
At the beginning, Ed (the protagonist) and his circle of friends either come off as unlikable, or just uninteresting. I believe this was done on purpose, so that the reader really sees these characters grow into real people, who some readers may find themselves relating to a lot, and by the end of this book, all of the main character's arcs came to satisfying conclusions, and was incredibly well done.
I also love how this book can be very self referential at points, but I won't get into that too much, you just have to read it and see for yourself.
The only con that I can really think of for this book, is that some may find the ending disappointing. I on the other hand thought it was intelligent and well put together. After I thought about it a bit, and understood what the ending meant, I was certainly impressed that Zusak was bold enough to end the book like that.
"I Am The Messenger" is a brilliant book, that I could recommend to pretty much anyone. Well, anyone who can appreciate good story telling and inventive writing. I actively adore this book and am imploring you to read it. For a book that Markus wrote so early in his career, he did a damn good job. I am currently reading his most widely acclaimed and popular book, "The Book Thief", and I can only hope it touches me on the same level "I Am The Messenger" did.
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