The Bookends discussion

Please, oh please, tell me you loved this book! I need someone to gush to about it!
Or, tell me you hated it. Either way, I hope some of you had a chance to read it and have an opinion to share.

ooooooooo!!!!! I finally got this from the library and literally devoured it (when given the opportunity from family, that is). I really had resisted reading it, but when it came up on the Bookends shelf I decided to put my name on the list at the library and read it.

It was good! Once you get over that first few chapters of weirdness, it really grabs hold of you.

What did you think? I have some ideas on this too, so tell me your opinions!

I was so thrilled by how good this book was! LOVED IT!! But now, I'm waiting for Insurgent, and I have this feeling of dread that it will never live up to the first book. I'll let you know.

From what I've gleaned from others, it's not a let down.
What was your favorite idea of the book? I liked the absolute black and white of making a choice that you have to live for the rest of your life, no turning back, no regrets, no whatever. A horrible thing in and of itself!!

Yeah, I don't see that as working long term. I have a hard time believing that there aren't MORE divergent members in their society. How can it be so simple to define everyone?
I loved that Tris chooses to be Dauntless. She's the kind of brave that I wish I could be, but know I never will be. Living vicariously through a character is the best way to fall into a book!

I totally agree about living vicariously through the characters - can't imagine being in a simulation to overcome my fears though. Spiders gross me beyond out.

I never thought about there being 'more' divergent than what was indicated in the novel - truthfully that never even crossed my mind, so that's an interesting thought. Perhaps there was more that will come forth in the 2nd book. It could be that since they were pretty good at hiding it and they have qualities from more than one faction, they could blend in pretty successfully into other factions. It will be interesting to see if she brings that out. Perhaps amity is the one faction that is all divergent, since they were essentially not mentioned at all in the book and it was hinted that that was the location they were all going to go to as a meeting point.

I was struck by the thought of how she (the author) came up with the idea of a society that has fallen into dividing itself to 'survive' and that it is soooo isolated from the rest of the world (even though it has sophisticated technology). Curious, don't you think? Or at least I wonder what she based her ideas on. I have a few thoughts on it. Did it strike you as interesting?

I would be curious about what kind of simulations I would have to go through. Definitely wasps, and maybe skydiving. The majority of my fears, though, would have to do with my kids. You couldn't pay me enough to go through that simulation!

I think that the author is showing that segregation causes more rifts between us, instead of creating a form of peace. They each discriminate against each other, with perhaps only amity as being the exception. But you're right that they didn't touch much on that faction, so I'm terribly curious to see what it will be like. Are they actually kind? Or are they just one more faction fighting for power?