Book Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent

by Veronica Roth
Series: Divergent #1
Published: May 3, 2011
Genres: Dystopian, Young Adult
Format: eBook (487 pages)
Source: Purchased

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

I’ve been putting off reading Divergent for a while now because it seemed too similar to the Hunger Games. They do have some things in common like a girl fighting a dystopian government, but the worlds are so different that they didn’t feel similar at all. Divergent felt similar to the Matrix more than anything. The writing style wasn’t my favorite. Veronica says “I” a lot and it was hard for me to visualize some of the scenes.

I really enjoyed the factions. The world is divided into these mini-societies that cultivate different virtues kind of like Hogwarts, but with a dystopian flare. It was very interesting and it made me think a lot about the fine line between a virtue becoming a vice if you’re not careful. Tris is an enjoyable main character. She doesn’t always make the right choices which makes her interesting and relatable. Divergent was an addicting read and I flew right through it.

Content Rating: Medium, for violence – some of which is kind of brutal.