Patrick Ness is the author of The Knife of Never Letting Go, Book One of the Chaos Walking trilogy, which won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and the Bootrust Teenage Prize. He has written two other books for adults and is a literary critic for the Guardian. He lives in London.
"* "Ness is a young writer of exciting quality and unpredictability." The Times"
"* "Ness is a young writer of exciting quality and unpredictability." The Times"
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 Lacking in this episode are lighter moments shared by Todd and his dog, who has been replaced by a less personable horse.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 Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.
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