Book: The Knife of Never Letting Go
Author: Patrick Ness
Pages: 496
Age Range: 14 and up
Background: I picked up The Knife of Never Letting Go at ALA last summer, because it was a young adult novel about a dystopian world, and I can rarely resist those. I tried to start it a couple of times, but found the first few pages offputting. And I was a bit scared off by Laini Taylor, who called the ending a punch in the stomach. But I kept seeing positive reviews, too, and I finally decided this week to force myself through the first few pages, and see what happened. Sheila Ruth promised that I wouldn't be able to put it down once I got into it. Sheila was right. Once I got past the first chapter, I read this book compulsively, staying up late one night to finish. Now I'm struggling a bit with what to say. But I'll try.
Review: The Knife of Never Letting Go is the first book in the Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness. Todd is a month away from officially being recognized as a man in his small town. He is in some ways an ordinary adolescent male, railing against the adoptive parents (two men) who expect him to do too many chores, and annoyed because last year's birthday present, a dog named Manchee, wasn't what he really wanted.
But Todd's life is far from ordinary. His town, Prentisstown, is populated only by males. All of the women died shortly after Todd was born, and the town, completely isolated, is slowly dying off. Todd is, apparently, the last boy in the world. In Prentisstown, all of the men and animals can hear one another's thoughts. All of their thoughts. All the time. The constant barrage of thoughts is known as Noise. It turns out that the Noise, because there's so much of it, can hide secrets.
Todd's life changes forever when he meets a lost girl in the swamp near his house. Viola is living proof that not all of the women in the world are dead after all. And, even more disquieting, Todd can't hear her thoughts. Before he quite knows what's happening, Todd finds himself on the road with his dog and Viola, desperately fleeing the only people he's ever known.
The Knife of Never Letting Go is not an easy read and it's not a pleasant read. Todd suffers immensely throughout the book. Many of the people around him around him are downright evil, and Todd is hated, apparently without cause. Many of the scenes are bleak and depressing. A few are a bit gruesome. Todd's narration, filled with the contractions and spelling errors and lack of punctuation that stem from having little education, is difficult to get used to. Still, there are many things that I admired about this book.
The Knife of Never Letting Go is utterly compelling. The plot is suspenseful, as Todd strives to learn Prentisstown's secrets, and action-filled, as Todd, Viola, and Manchee fight for survival. Todd is a complex character. You can see how he's evolved from his largely toxic upbringing, kept humane only by the kindness of the two men who raised him. The interplay between Todd and Viola, the boy who broadcasts his every thought and the girl who doesn't, is fascinating. There is a scene, late in the book, as Todd comes to term with their difference, that I loved. I also found the whole concept of what Noise would do to someone's perceptions fascinating. And there's occasional humor in the noise of the animals (e.g., "birds all thinking their worrisome little birdie thoughts. Where's my food? Where's home? Where's my safety?").
Overall, though, I have to say that even I, someone who is addicted to dark, dystopian stories, found this one a bit too dark for my taste. I've tried to put my finger on why that is, and I think that it's a combination of the immediacy of Todd's voice and the terrible things that happen. Throughout the book, I experienced Todd's inner monologue close up. When bad things happened, I felt like I was the one who got stabbed or punched. There was one scene in particular that I found almost unbearable. (If you've read the book, it's the scene getting onto the boat.) A book that could make me feel that way is clearly brilliant. But that doesn't mean that I enjoyed it, exactly.
Here are a couple of examples of Todd's voice. He is, despite his lack of education, a little bit of a poet:
"He smiles down at me, thru that beard of his, smiles down at me in the grass.
A smiling fist." (Chapter 1, ARC)
and a little bit of a philosopher:
"So the thing to remember, that thing that's most important of all that I might say in this here telling of things is that Noise ain't truth, Noise is what men want to be true, and there's a difference twixt those two things so big that it could ruddy well kill you if you don't watch out." (Chapter 2, ARC)
Some of the things that Todd ponders made me stop and wonder, too:
"We stand arm's length apart cuz her silence still bothers me. I chew down on a piece of dried fruit and I wonder what it must be like to have no Noise, to come from a place with no Noise. What does it mean? What kind of place is it? Is it wonderful? Is it terrible?" (Chapter 10, ARC)
If those examples intrigue you, or if you're a fan of dystopian or what-if sorts of stories, and you have a high tolerance for bleak, you should certainly check out The Knife of Never Letting Go. As I said, it's brilliant. Just make sure you pick it up when you have some free time, because once you get past the first couple of chapters, you won't want to let it go until you've finished. I would even suggest waiting to read it until book 2 comes out, since The Knife of Letting Go ends on a serious cliff-hanger, one that I know some other readers have found frustrating. As for me, I'm curious about what will happen next, but not sure if I'll be able to bring myself to read the second book. I welcome your feedback.
Publisher: Candlewick
Publication Date: September 9, 2008
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher. Quotes are from the ARC, and should be checked against the final book
Other Blog Reviews: Librarilly Blonde, Wands and Worlds, Reading Rants!, Becky's Book Reviews, Kids Lit, Presenting Lenore, Ready Set Read Reviews, Bookends, and others. See also Lisa Chellman's specific comments on Todd's parents, Ben and Cillian.
Author Interviews: Post-Weird Thoughts, Readspace, Fantasy Book Critic
© 2009 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.
I was looking forward to seeing what you thought of this! I think the fact that is so dark, makes it pretty different than most YA dystopias which (although I love them) sometimes sugarcoat things.
Posted by: Lenore | January 14, 2009 at 03:32 AM
Great review. You make some really interesting points that hadn't occurred to me. I think you're right that it's the immediacy of Todd's voice that makes the terrible things that happen almost unendurable. It's almost like we are hearing Todd's noise. It's brilliant and terrible at the same time. And I agree about the scene getting into the boat. I wanted to throw the book across the room at that point.
Posted by: Sheila Ruth | January 14, 2009 at 07:55 AM
This one definitely didn't sugarcoat things, Lenore. I have to say that your review, and Laini's, and Sheila's, made it easier for me to tolerate the ending. I'd been warned, and so I was actually expecting something that would be even worse than what happened. But it's definitely a difficult book to assess.
Sheila, I wanted to throw the book across the room at that point, too. But what you said about hearing Todd's noise is exactly right. That's why it's so difficult. And, I guess, that adds to the whole brilliance of the concept, of how much actually hearing people's noise (or not hearing it) would affect people.
Anyway, I'm glad that I read the book, so that I understand what everyone's been talking about. It's certainly one that will stay with me. Whether I'll have the nerve for book 2 or not, though... I don't know.
Posted by: Jen Robinson | January 14, 2009 at 09:31 AM
One thing I haven't seen mentioned in reviews of this book, and maybe it's because I was reading into things too much and/or missed an important detail, is the relationship of the two men who raise Todd. It's left ambiguous, isn't it? As I recall, they weren't blood relatives, were bachelors, etc. I'm wondering, did anyone else think readers were to assume the men were a couple?
Posted by: Lisa Chellman | January 14, 2009 at 11:02 AM
Lisa, I certainly assumed that they were a couple. They lived together even before the women died, they were chosen by Todd's mother to raise her baby together, and they clearly loved each other (at least, we clearly get a view of Ben's love for Cillian - we don't see as much of Cillian's perspective, but I think it's a safe assumption that he loved Ben, too).
I noticed it, but perhaps it's a mark of my personal acceptance of gay relationships that I didn't think it required comment in the review. I mentioned in the plot summary that the adoptive parents were two men, mainly because otherwise the notion that Todd has parents in a world with no women would be confusing.
Posted by: Jen Robinson | January 14, 2009 at 11:20 AM
Oh, I didn't mean to suggest that you *should* have mentioned it, Jen -- just that no one has either! I think the fact that it never gets mentioned *does* suggest acceptance, but on the other hand, it also leaves the relationship invisible to people who might actively be looking for positive, not-an-issue portrayals of gay couples in fiction. Anyway, thanks -- I'm glad to know I wasn't misreading. :-D
Posted by: Lisa Chellman | January 14, 2009 at 01:31 PM
No problem, Lisa. I don't think that you were misreading, but you're right. I haven't seen this written about one way or the other anywhere else.
Posted by: Jen Robinson | January 14, 2009 at 02:39 PM
Hi Jen! You really express well the same kind of mixed emotions I had after this book. On the one hand, it was one of the most powerful and compelling books I read all year, maybe THE most. Until the boat scene you mention, I couldn't imagine I wasn't going to rave about it and tell everyone they must read it immediately. But then that happened, and then other stuff happened, and more. . . and by the end I felt so bruised and depressed and icked out, I didn't want to be responsible for making anyone else feel that way! Weird.
All that said, I will definitely be reading book 2!
Posted by: Laini Taylor | January 14, 2009 at 07:50 PM
Hi Jen! You really express well the same kind of mixed emotions I had after this book. On the one hand, it was one of the most powerful and compelling books I read all year, maybe THE most. Until the boat scene you mention, I couldn't imagine I wasn't going to rave about it and tell everyone they must read it immediately. But then that happened, and then other stuff happened, and more. . . and by the end I felt so bruised and depressed and icked out, I didn't want to be responsible for making anyone else feel that way! Weird.
Posted by: Laini Taylor | January 15, 2009 at 10:25 PM
I feel the same way, Laini. I'm not eager to recommend this book to people, even though I do think that some people will like it. Your review helped me a lot, in preparing for the book. So, thanks!
Posted by: Jen Robinson | January 15, 2009 at 10:26 PM
I've had the book on hold at the library, and just picked it up yesterday. I just came here to read the review, and whether to give it to my 14 year old to read first or keep it for myself, and now I'm really leery about either one of us reading it. Though I'm really drawn in. I'm definitely taking it out of the box of library books that are for the kids.
"bruised and depressed and icked out"
Not sure I want to go there.
Posted by: rebel | January 25, 2009 at 02:32 PM
Of course everyone is different in their responses to individual books, Rebel. I described the book to an adult friend, said "not sure if you'd want to read it because it's so dark," and his response was along the lines of "but it sounds so interesting! I'll give it a try." I guess I'd say try it yourself first, before giving it to your kids, though, especially since you do read YA books yourself, too.
Posted by: Jen Robinson | January 25, 2009 at 08:27 PM
things being what they are, he (the 14 yo) read it before me. his take? "it's ok, pretty good." I asked if he found it disturbing or depressing. he said no.
so now I'm reading it to see if I should take my son to a therapist because he DIDN'T find anything bothersome.
:-)
Posted by: rebel | February 08, 2009 at 02:08 PM
Well, Rebel, maybe he's the one who's normal, and all of the adults are overly sensitive. I'll be interested to hear what you think. I'm glad that he thought it was ok.
Posted by: Jen Robinson | February 08, 2009 at 02:28 PM
good book. what a way to end. and yes, very dark, very bleak, very compelling. what a place to leave us! when did you say the sequel is supposed to be released?
Posted by: rebel | February 10, 2009 at 07:20 PM
I'm so glad you liked it, Rebel. Amazon says September 8 for Book 2. Definitely compelling stuff!
Posted by: Jen Robinson | February 10, 2009 at 09:50 PM