BDCHS Advanced Reading discussion

The Maze Runner by James Dashner is AWESOME. I finished it in two days because I could not put it down. But... What is it about? Why do people like it? I hear it is a ripoff of the Hunger Games, is that true? Well, The Maze Runner is about a boy named Thomas. He awakes in this lift and is greeted by about 50 other teenage boys ranging from 13 to 17. They live in the "Glade", a place in the middle of the maze that offers food, water, protection, etc. Thomas is mainly greeted by Newt, the second in command; Alby, the leader of the Glade; and later in the book forms a friendship with the "keeper" (a type of group leader) of the runners, Minho. Obviously, they have to find their way out of the maze before they all die. Eventually (like a day later) a girl comes up the lift. Usually they get one kid a month and some supplies once a week. When she arrives, she has a note that says she is the last person. Ever. Eventually the sky disappears and they find a way out of the maze. They escape only to find a world plagued by "The Flare", a disease that was caused by a very powerful sun flare that vaporized millions and brought about this new disease. The book ends with their rescuers saving them from WICKED (World In Catastrophe: Killzone Experiment Department; also the creators of the maze) and the remaining kids being brought to safety.

Overall, it does have elements from The Hunger Games and the TV show Lost, but it also is different in the way it is told and how it is written. I give this book a 4 out of 5 becuase I could not put it down and it was very good, but it did leave a massive cliffhanger at the end of the book which kind of feels like the author is forcing you to buy the other books. The theme of the book is never give up despite how hopeless something seems. I recommend this book to anyone who likes the Hunger Games or anything similar to it.