JANUARY 2011 - AudioFile
The narration of this stunning dystopian tale by Nick Podehl and Angela Dawe can only be described as outstanding. The second installment of Ness’s trilogy finds 13-year-old New World colonist Todd Hewitt and his friend, settler Viola Eade, at the mercy of self-proclaimed and manipulative President Prentiss. Together they must fight for their freedom and the preservation of the New World, but to do this, they need to find each other and then attempt to contact Viola’s fellow settlers. Nick Podehl gives a pitch-perfect portrayal of the confused and fierce Todd; Angela Dawe portrays the frightened but determined Viola. Together, their performances create a stellar listening experience. K.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
This grim and beautifully written sequel to Ness's The Knife of Never Letting Go picks up where its predecessor left off and will have readers racing to its painful conclusion. Having escaped from the dystopian, all-male Prentisstown, teenagers Todd and Viola have fled to the city of Haven, only to discover that Prentisstown's mayor, a powerful and charismatic sociopath, has gotten there first, intent on controlling the entire planet. Separated, the friends are caught up on opposite sides of a horrific, morally ambiguous civil war, with Todd coming close to madness. (Viola later reminds Todd, who has undertaken some shocking and cruel responsibilities while working with the mayor, “We all fall but that's not what matters. What matters is picking yourself up again.”) This superb novel, which ends with a gripping cliffhanger that sets up the third Chaos Walking book, uses a brilliant cast of well-developed characters and its singular setting and premise to present a provocative examination of the nature of evil and humanity. This is among the best YA science fiction novels of the year. Ages 14–up. (Sept.)
School Library Journal
Gr 9 Up—Todd Hewitt, 13, is locked in a tower in New Prentisstown, a space colony, and separated from Viola, after the dramatic cliff-hanger in The Knife of Never Letting Go (Candlewick, 2008). Tracked down by the manipulative mayor of the all-male community he escaped, he is unaware that Viola is also under guard and recouping nearby. The noise that clatters through men's minds makes it difficult for Todd to keep any secrets about his intentions to find Viola and accompany her on a mission to contact her people, who are on their way to colonize this unsettled and fractured new world. The previous war, which killed most of the women and made slaves of the aboriginal alien Spackles, has pitted the survivors against one another. The "Answer," comprised of women and a few men who lost daughters and mothers in the war, come to blows with the "Ask," the mayor's group of fundamentalist men and their Spackle slaves. The story breaks into alternating narratives, in different fonts, as Todd is forcefully commissioned into the "Ask" and Viola into the "Answer." Their quest to reunite will keep readers focused on their relationship and moral motivation in this graphically violent and dystopian world. Lacking in this episode are lighter moments shared by Todd and his dog, who has been replaced by a less personable horse. Science fiction lovers will be looking for the next installment in this fast-paced and imaginative series.—Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY
Kirkus Reviews
Ness delivers a leaner, meaner narrative in the highly anticipated sequel to The Knife of Never Letting Go (2008). At the end of Book One, Todd and Viola found themselves at the mercy of Mayor Prentiss, with Viola near death. Now Todd is forced to join the Mayor's oppressive regime, while Viola is saved and then tutored by the female Healers, led by powerful Mistress Coyle. When the Mayor makes clear his distrust of women, who are impervious to the planet's Noise germ, Mistress Coyle resurrects The Answer, a former terrorist group, which attempts to bomb the Mayor's ruthless Askers into submission. Meanwhile, Todd and Viola are being turned against each other, as each leader tries to persuade the teens that his/her cause is just. Provocative questions about gender bias, racism, the meaning of war and the price of peace are thoughtfully threaded throughout a breathless, often violent plot peopled with heartbreakingly real characters. Newbies will need the first volume to understand this one, and fans are given only a momentary respite as the author continues his tradition of cliffhanger endings. (Science fiction. 14 & up)
JANUARY 2011 - AudioFile
The narration of this stunning dystopian tale by Nick Podehl and Angela Dawe can only be described as outstanding. The second installment of Ness’s trilogy finds 13-year-old New World colonist Todd Hewitt and his friend, settler Viola Eade, at the mercy of self-proclaimed and manipulative President Prentiss. Together they must fight for their freedom and the preservation of the New World, but to do this, they need to find each other and then attempt to contact Viola’s fellow settlers. Nick Podehl gives a pitch-perfect portrayal of the confused and fierce Todd; Angela Dawe portrays the frightened but determined Viola. Together, their performances create a stellar listening experience. K.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
