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mbenzz's review
5.0
My #1 favorite book in the whole world is 'The Giver'. This book received many comparisons to that story, so I was eager to give it a try. I really enjoyed it! It's fast-paced and Maggie is a likable heroine who overcomes so many of her own fears and insecurities that have been instilled in her since she was born.
One thing I appreciated about 'The Middler' was the defined beginning, middle, and end. 'The Giver' really leaves you hanging there at the end, and when I first read it back in 9th Grade English in 1995 or 1996, the sequels, ('Gathering Blue', 'Messenger' and 'Son') were still many years away.
Here, we see Maggie and the town of Fennis Wick through to the conclusion. While I would have loved to have been given a little more background as to how the town (and the world?) got to this point, it's not the main focus of the story. This is a story about change, and how one little girl opens the eyes of her entire town by being brave and doing what she been told her whole life is wrong but feels like the right thing to do.
A wonderful story that I'm so glad I read. I flew through it in a day. I would absolutely recommend this to middle-grade kids. I look forward to more from this author.
One thing I appreciated about 'The Middler' was the defined beginning, middle, and end. 'The Giver' really leaves you hanging there at the end, and when I first read it back in 9th Grade English in 1995 or 1996, the sequels, ('Gathering Blue', 'Messenger' and 'Son') were still many years away.
Here, we see Maggie and the town of Fennis Wick through to the conclusion. While I would have loved to have been given a little more background as to how the town (and the world?) got to this point, it's not the main focus of the story. This is a story about change, and how one little girl opens the eyes of her entire town by being brave and doing what she been told her whole life is wrong but feels like the right thing to do.
A wonderful story that I'm so glad I read. I flew through it in a day. I would absolutely recommend this to middle-grade kids. I look forward to more from this author.
dfbballinger's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
alongreader's review against another edition
4.0
Maggie is determined to prove that middle children can be useful as well. But her determination may lead to betraying the only friend she has and challenging her town's oldest law.
I went into this without reading the blurb properly, and I expected a fluffy piece about being the middle child and how hard it is. It's not that type of story. It's a proper dystopian, simplified for children to read.
I really enjoyed it. It is a simpler story, necessary for its age group, but it's not painfully young or over simple. Maggie grapples with some serious problems over the course of the book.
The only complaint I have is that I'm not sure where the epilogue comes. Is it after the last chapter? If so, what's the outcome of that chapter? Is it before that chapter? Then why isn't it specified?
Otherwise, this is a great adventure story and I highly recommend it.
I went into this without reading the blurb properly, and I expected a fluffy piece about being the middle child and how hard it is. It's not that type of story. It's a proper dystopian, simplified for children to read.
I really enjoyed it. It is a simpler story, necessary for its age group, but it's not painfully young or over simple. Maggie grapples with some serious problems over the course of the book.
The only complaint I have is that I'm not sure where the epilogue comes. Is it after the last chapter? If so, what's the outcome of that chapter? Is it before that chapter? Then why isn't it specified?
Otherwise, this is a great adventure story and I highly recommend it.
kirstylaren89's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The ending felt a little rushed. I was a bit like woah. What's going on. How did we get from here to here. I love its unpredictability though.
booksandlemonsquash's review
4.0
This really was not what I expected at all! This is a fantastic story which really plays on the expectations we have of each other and how the weight of them can sit.
Maggie is a middler, not an eldest, not a youngest. And no one takes her seriously. She’s jealous of her siblings, but especially eldests. She decides to capture a wanderer, but ends up forming a forbidden friendship and wondering what the right thing to do is.
And while we know all this from the gist of the blurb, we don’t get to see all the twists and turns this story takes. I was expecting Maggie to have some revelations and find a way to prove herself. I wasn’t expecting everything else. It utterly blew me away.
It’s impossible to discuss without spoiling but I highly recommend this fantastic middle grade book. 4.5 stars
Maggie is a middler, not an eldest, not a youngest. And no one takes her seriously. She’s jealous of her siblings, but especially eldests. She decides to capture a wanderer, but ends up forming a forbidden friendship and wondering what the right thing to do is.
And while we know all this from the gist of the blurb, we don’t get to see all the twists and turns this story takes. I was expecting Maggie to have some revelations and find a way to prove herself. I wasn’t expecting everything else. It utterly blew me away.
It’s impossible to discuss without spoiling but I highly recommend this fantastic middle grade book. 4.5 stars
lawbooks600's review
3.0
Trigger warnings: Xenophobia, physical injury, child soldiers
6/10, looking back at this it was an interesting concept to say the least and I haven't read from this British author who writes sci-fi/dystopia yet until I did and honestly I enjoyed this however the execution was kind of flawed at best and kind of underwhelming at worst since I couldn't connect to this novel in any way, where do I even begin. It starts with the main character Maggie whose last name I forgot and she was living her normal life in a town called Fennis Wick like every other book until I think one of her classmates fell off a tree and hurt themselves so they needed some care however that really wasn't that important to the story. I could feel some big event was coming up soon so I waited for it to come and that was when Maggie met this other character called Una and she was classified as a wanderer or something along those lines, basically she is an outcast but why, maybe she came from another town they didn't like which might be a reason behind the Quiet War, everything here is just not that explained well. Towards the latter half of the book, Maggie thinks of a plan to overthrow the dystopian government alongside some other forgettable characters and in the last few pages she executes that plan ending this on a high note. I didn't find Maggie to be worth connecting to mainly because she's a Mary Sue and the mayor really likes exotic things and child soldiers or something like that. Wow. That's horrible. The cover's beautiful though so there's that.
6/10, looking back at this it was an interesting concept to say the least and I haven't read from this British author who writes sci-fi/dystopia yet until I did and honestly I enjoyed this however the execution was kind of flawed at best and kind of underwhelming at worst since I couldn't connect to this novel in any way, where do I even begin. It starts with the main character Maggie whose last name I forgot and she was living her normal life in a town called Fennis Wick like every other book until I think one of her classmates fell off a tree and hurt themselves so they needed some care however that really wasn't that important to the story. I could feel some big event was coming up soon so I waited for it to come and that was when Maggie met this other character called Una and she was classified as a wanderer or something along those lines, basically she is an outcast but why, maybe she came from another town they didn't like which might be a reason behind the Quiet War, everything here is just not that explained well. Towards the latter half of the book, Maggie thinks of a plan to overthrow the dystopian government alongside some other forgettable characters and in the last few pages she executes that plan ending this on a high note. I didn't find Maggie to be worth connecting to mainly because she's a Mary Sue and the mayor really likes exotic things and child soldiers or something like that. Wow. That's horrible. The cover's beautiful though so there's that.
pkll201's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It took me a few chapters to get into this book, and I wasn’t immediately taken by the main character Maggie. However she, and the book, grew on me as I kept reading! Would definitely like to hear about their adventures to find the missing elders!
daffodildyke's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
i wasn’t sure if i would like this, i didn’t read the description before loaning it online from the library, so all in all its quite impressive i enjoyed it as much as i did.
i empathised somewhat with maggie from early on, feeling her conflict of wanting to be someone, be noticed etc. and ending up developing a friendship with the person she shouldn’t. but i struggled with some of the pacing, the way she jumped from action to action.
my favourite part by far waswhen maggie is told that camp isn’t real, that the war is over, when all of the things in the world shift. when she sees for herself what is happening to the eldests, when she realised everything was a lie.
it gives me hunger games, going against the authority, breaking down the facade energy, and ultimately i am a sucker for that.
i feel like it would make a really good film in the hands of the right people.
i empathised somewhat with maggie from early on, feeling her conflict of wanting to be someone, be noticed etc. and ending up developing a friendship with the person she shouldn’t. but i struggled with some of the pacing, the way she jumped from action to action.
my favourite part by far was
it gives me hunger games, going against the authority, breaking down the facade energy, and ultimately i am a sucker for that.
i feel like it would make a really good film in the hands of the right people.
msseviereads's review
5.0
This was fantastic. Started on Sunday and woke up on Monday just knowing I had to finish it. My middle school students have been studying the hero's journey and reading The Giver and this book fit so perfectly with both of those things. I loved the writing and how there were little hints at things to come, but nothing was ever given away.
I really loved the character of Maggie and thought this was a fantastic read! Multiple copies on the shelf next year or maybe even a small book club.
I really loved the character of Maggie and thought this was a fantastic read! Multiple copies on the shelf next year or maybe even a small book club.