Text Review

Do you know what it feels like to be stuck in a completely unknown world with know idea how you got there? The Maze Runner by James Dashner explores this topic.  Written in 2009, a time where fiction seemed to be fixated on a futuristic world, The Maze Runner really follows suit in that regard.  The time period of the writing of this book was greatly shown by the creativity and the unique descriptions of the scene.  The style of James Dashner, with great imagery, blends perfectly with the futuristic style to grip all readers into the story.

The story of The Maze Runner is a very unique and creative one.  James Dashner has said that this story was highly influenced by movies, such as The Shining, and books such as The Lord of the Flies.  The story begins with the main character, Thomas, waking up in an elevator with no idea of how he got there.  He gets out and there are other kids just like him in the foreign place that he just arrived.  Characters such as Alby, Newt, Ben, Mino, Gally, Chuck, Minho, and Teresa, the only girl, are standing above him as he gets up from the elevator.  All of these characters look to find a way out of this foreign world with walls all around, and the only escape is to solve the trap lined paths of the maze that lays behind them.

The great thing about this book is how well described the scenes and characters are.  The way it can grab the reader makes the story much more interesting.  Even though some of the imagery is very in detail about some strange things, it really grabs the reader.  A great description of this is shown by “Eyes opened or not, he could swear he kept hearing the moist thunk of the arrow slamming into Ben’s cheek” (Dashner).  This is a great example because it not only shows the imagery of the action but also shows the mental toll that the setting is taking on the characters.  The great imagery grabs the reader and keeps them hooked on the book.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read it.  It is a fascinating and very unique story line and is very well written.  The great language and descriptions set the scenes so well that it makes the reader feel there and that they are doing everything with the characters.  If you enjoy a little futuristic almost sci-fi story then this book will be as good as it gets.

4 of 5 Stars

Dashner, James. The Maze Runner. New York: Random House Children’s, 2009. Print.

“The Men in the Storm” Response

I have not encountered homelessness very much in my life.  The only times I can remember are one time I went and helped give out supplies and talk to some of them on a service trip.  Also, sometimes leaving a Braves game and having someone that might be homeless ask for money.  I really cannot relate very well to this story other than it just seems like homeless people are very grateful for the help that they receive and that is a great feeling.

The Devil and Tom Walker Response

The Devil and Tom Walker is full of strange ideas and interesting characters.  There are many examples throughout the story of this.  One of these characters is the Devil.  His very demon-like, intimidating description would be horrifying to me if I ran into him in the woods.  There is clearly nothing to feel not scared about.  From his unearthly appearance, to the fact that he’s in the middle of nowhere with an axe, there is nothing comforting about him.  Tom Walker is another one of these strange characters.  He lives an interesting life with very interesting relationships, especially with his wife.  I would consider him more than likely a worse person if you compare him to most of the puritans.  There may have been some more evil people of the puritan community but compared to the average one he is a little worse.  An interesting idea is that of the swamp.  The place where the devil lives.  I believe it most likely symbolizes the sin and the greed of Tom Walker.  It is where he gave into all of his selfish wants and desires.  It seems that the narrator in this story recognizes all that is going on and sees what is wrong with it.  He seems to be against it but can not do anything.   I would say that the main purpose of this story is to show what may happen if you give in to your unhealthy and selfish desires.  It shows the corruption and the never ending, never satisfying, pursuit to get more.  This is best displayed through the quote “Such was the end of Tom Walker and his ill gotten wealth. Let all griping money brokers lay this story to heart” (Irving).  I think this story shows a good example of what can happen if you give into the things that you very selfishly want.  It builds this theme strongly through symbolism and displays it well.  I like this story as it is personification of these and gets the message across in a good story line.  There were some areas of the story that were slightly confusing or that I really did not pick up on what was happening.  For the most part, I do think I knew what was happening.  In the real world, this is transferable to not giving in to selfish desires, or be very careful of.  This shows a very strong example of this happening, but its sets a good example of how to be careful and be smart about your actions.