In the future, there are five factions: Candor (honesty), Abnegation (selflessness), Dauntless (bravery), Amity (peacefulness), and Erudite (intelligence). Each 16 year old must make a choice: stay with the faction you were raised in, or choose another. Prior to this choice, aptitude tests are administered to guide the initiates into their most appropriate faction. Some people cannot be categorized as one faction. These people are "Divergent".
Beatrice has lived her entire life devoted to the selfless principles of Abnegation. As the day of the Choosing Ceremony grows closer, her certainty waivers. Her aptitude test has only made her feel even more at odds: she is Divergent, a fact she cannot share even with those closest to her, for fear of retribution. Those who fall into this category tend to disappear.
Faced with the decision to follow her heart, or remain with her family, she is torn. However, when she walks up to make her choice, her courage wins out. Beatrice becomes Tris of the Dauntless. A rigorous initiation follows, and those who fail will be labeled as Factionless - homeless, adrift, and without resources. Their first task? Jump onto a moving train...
As Tris begins to accept her new self, she is blacklisted at first for being from Abnegation. Soon, however, she befriends other initiates. They begin to develop their strength as well as their skill. She gets a tattoo, a common signpost of the Dauntless. She even starts crushing on their instructor, Four. She can't help it, he's gorgeous! And smart, and brave, and strong. Some of the other initiates are not quite as nice. They are used to getting their way, and will stop at nothing to get what they want.
Initiation is nearing the final stage: a 3D visualization of your individual fears. Each initiate must face their fears, and move past them to become one of the Dauntless. Can Tris face up to all the insecurities she holds?
Great for fans of The Hunger Games, Roth does a superb job of painting a bleak future. The main characters are well developed for the most part, and the action is fast paced. Recommended for high schoolers.
“Every faction conditions its members to think and act a certain way. And most people do it. For most people, it's not hard to learn, to find a pattern of thought that works and stay that way. But our minds move in a dozen different directions. We can't be confined to one way of thinking, and that terrifies our leaders. It means we can't be controlled. And it means that no matter what they do, we will always cause trouble for them," (Roth, 2011).
*Library Link*
If you liked this, check out:
Roth, Veronica. (2011). Divergent. New York: Katherine Tegen Books.
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