#82- I Am The Messenger By Markus Zusak

#82- I Am The Messenger

Rating- 8/10

Sorry for the complete lack of posts this weekend, I was on vacation in Washington DC! I read this book on the plane/during my down time and really enjoyed it.

The plotline follows a kid named Ed, he is 19 years old, living in a small town, and spends his time driving and taxi and playing card games with his friends. He lives a rather un-spectaculor life until one day he is at the bank and not only witnesses a bank robbery, but thinks on his feet and stops the criminal.

He goes to court and the man whispers to him as his walks away after giving his testimony, "Everytime you look in the mirror remember you are looking at a dead man". 

The next day, he receives a playing card in the mail. An Ace of Diamonds. On this card is three addresses, along with three times. He first considers that the card is a joke from his friends, but when he comes to realize that none of them know about it he sets off to discover the meaning of the messages on it.

At his first address he encounters an abusive husband, at the second a lonely old woman, and at the third a teenage girl who needs a little help with her confidence. As he goes to each place he learns what he must give them, the message that they need help seeing. 

After visiting all of the people on the card he thinks that his adventure is over, until he recieves another Ace in the mail. From there his journey continues, one Ace and three people at a time. He teaches each one a lesson and along the way, learns some messages himself as well.

I really enjoyed this book, I have been having issues giving ratings to all of these books because lets face it, there is a reason it was voted top 100 and at this point i'm reading the books that sound the most interesting to me. This book was interesting and kept me curious about what would happen next. My only reasoning for the 8 was that even at the end I felt myself left with questions and I'm not the type of person who enjoys making up my own decision about endings. I like clear cut final words and for that reason I took a few points off. If you are the type that enjoys thinking of your own happily ever after for the characters then I think you would consider the book an even higher rating. Well deserved of the top 100 and a captivating read perfect for my vacation.

Hope everyone had a nice weekend! Thanks again for visiting this blog and please feel free to leave comments or questions. I have also added two different ways to follow on the right-hand toolbar so if you like it, please click the follow button and keep on coming back!

“It's impeccable how brutal the truth can be at times. You can only admire it. Usually, we walk around constantly believing ourselves. "I'm okay," we say. "I'm alright." But sometimes the truth arrives on you, and you can't get it off. That's when you realize that sometimes it even an answer - it's a question. Even now, I wonder how much of my life is convinced.”