Book Review #10

Book: I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
Ages: 16 and up
Rating: 7 out of 10

This book was good, the concept behind it, the "moral" if you will, was great.  There were a few things that bothered me, the profanity in the story being one of them.

Here's the story Ed Kennedy is a 19-year-old cabbie with no future.  (This was another thing that bothered me, is age.  He acts more like a 30-year-old.)  Then one day, after he stopped a bank robber, a playing card shows up at his house with three addresses on it.  He has to go to each of the places and help the people who live there.  This happens with three more playing cards.

The journey he has is amazing, but the ending felt like a total cop-out when you find out whose behind the cards, etc.  It felt like he tried too hard to give it a "pay it forward" type of ending.  It felt forced rather than organic.  Although it does help you realize that if you look close enough to anyone around you there's a way you can make their life better.

Instead of reading this book, go do a good deed for a stranger, or harder yet, someone you know.