Divergent by Veronica Roth

May 28, 2011 by Peeptastic

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—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. 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.

* * * * *

Warning: Nnote that I am one of the few people that didn’t like the book. You should read it if you get the chance, don’t even think about skipping it!

When I was finished this book I could only think of three things: Ewe Boll, Asylum Films, and the Sy-fy Channel. Yes, to me, it was that bad. It has everything that they like: Cold leader who excels at everything, even when she doesn’t try. Violence and gore at every turn. Oppressive society. Tattoos. Injuries that come and go as they please. Etc, etc, etc.

Hmmm, where to start?? To start? To start? Haha, ring a bell? It does. It does. It does. I am brave! I am Dauntless!

Ok, I’ll get serious now. Simply put, I did not like this book. I tried to like it. I wanted to give up but kept on reading and really I don’t think it was worth it. I see from the ratings that a lot of people liked it but I didn’t. The beginning of the book starts off like Matched. It is slow, we are presented with a brother and sister the day before some type of choosing ceremony.

I did not get the whole Dauntless thing. What was the point of them? Seems like the only thing they did were stunts and have fun. There were no wars, so why all the fighting? We meet some people guarding a fence (that I am still clueless about), but apparently said guard duty is a job that is kind of like punishment. So what did they do?

There was so much senseless violence! And I am not usually one to complain about it but golly (ha, I said golly), at least in the other book it is very necessary for survival. In this one it is just there because I don’t know why.

The Faction world is kind of clear. We don’t know a lot of details of the world outside of Chicago. What happened to everything? I still don’t have a clear mental picture of that dang Dauntless compound! And like Tris, I too wondered where that train was coming from and going to!

I didn’t like Tris in the beginning. I wanted to. I tried to. But she really sounded like a robot! I felt like I was listening to the thoughts of a robot. All she did was tell me her observations in sentence structured like no real human would talk like. I did like the part where she was complimented. And the part where she wasn’t sure if she should be jealous or not. I thought her reactions were sweet and it made me grin. She grew on me as the book went on but I did not see us as friends.

Tris was good at everything she did. It got to the point that her being the best just wasn’t even surprising. I mean, I didn’t even need details anymore since she always came out on top.

The romance between her and that boy with the horrible real name (for the book) was unbelievable and forced. It made me feel awkward. Like I’d overstayed my welcome. Like I was too nice to say goodbye and they’d forgotten I was there. That awkward. Personally, I think the relationship needs to be nixed as slapping and cutting each other is not healthy. And not cool, not cool at all!

There is some good though. There isn’t really a boring moment in the book. The action is nonstop. Anywho, you should still read it because everyone else liked it and we can compare notes when you’re done!

A few observations:

1. Tattoos heal really fast and don’t bother you (unless it’s convenient).
2. Repeating things three times is better than saying it once. That way we can get it
3. <Right  click and highlight to read spoilers>Being shot in the arm won’t bother you. You can do pretty much anything because the bullet wound only makes you slightly dizzy. You only grimace when you remember. In paranormal books the hot alpha shifter gets shot and cut then wipes off the blood and laughs. Guess what? In this book the human girl gets shot and goes with the flow. I was beginning to think that the author was lying to me. Is reacting considered selfishness in Abnegation? Was she even a human? Or, was she the robot that I suspected??
4. Gunshots don’t hurt you but it sure as hecky hurts your enemy. Also, it’s ridiculous to expect said enemy to walk when he’s been shot.
5. For people that have been raised around nothing but selflessness, seeing someone getting a bullet removed from their shoulder, with a knife, is not as bad as you think. It’s apparently the same as watching fresh bread being pulled out of the oven. Exactly!
6. Having your mom AND dad being murdered in front of you is no biggie. That’s what being Dauntless is about. It’s like having your souffle fall. It kind of sucks, but whatevs! Not to mention it’s totally unnecessary!
7. It’s totally fine to (in the same conversation) to mention to someone that, “woah, your parents have been murdered” and in the next few sentences say, “this might be a bad time, but I am in love with you”. (she didn’t think it was a bad time because she loved him in return – See? it all works out.).
8. You can murder your friend without a thought, but only slightly disable those you hate because – I don’t know why. What in the world????<end of spoilers!>
9. Knife throwing can be mastered in 3 easy steps (I watched Top Shot, it is not that easy!!)
10. Attempted murder is no biggie! It does kind of suck though.
11. Oh, and murder statistics are counted (0 in the last 16 years) and attempted murders aren’t (it’s kind of an everyday thing).
12. The mean kids really need to work on the insults! (“There goes your pretty face… Oh, wait. You don’t have one!” – I assure you they are not in 1st grade!)
13. They are serving the best muscle gain food you can buy. You can grow out of your pants in about a week.
14. You can recognize the bad person by their nudge and stretch marks, because they revolt you *grumble*
15. There are 5 leaders, but only one calls the shots. The others aren’t important or they don’t care what is going on with their initiates (aka the future of their faction).
16. I am brave!
17. Divergent means that you’re really just better than everyone else! Don’t be jealous of the truth!
18. The fear landscape – argh!
19. The “finale” – argh!

Favorite line:

“He” would probably through a party if I stopped breathing.”

“Well,” he says, “I would only go if there was cake”