Charlie Wu

Charlie Wu
Fear
Michael Grant
Dystopian/Sci-Fi
Challenge
112


1. Fear is the fifth book in the Gone series, where a town called Perdido Beach and it's surrounding areas are surrounded by a 20 mile sphere, trapping everyone inside. Everyone older than 15 dissapeared, transported outside the sphere. Inside, the kids are trapped. The protagonist is Sam Temple, who lives at Perdido Beach. He becomes the leader of the kids in Perdido Beach. Then, another kid called Caine comes to town. He went to school at the Coates Academy  which is a school for kids who have problems. He is very persuasive, and he is the leader of the kids from the Coates Academy. Eventually, the reader finds out that Caine is actually really messed up, and power hungry. He becomes an antagonist in the series. The kids also discover that they have developed powers, which is apparently a survival function. This is similar to animals adapting to their surroundings. Eventually, a crisis occurs later in the book, and Sam asks Caine for help. Caine, seeing this as a weakness, agrees to help if he gets to rule Perdido Beach. Sam, finds a lake and tries to convince kids to come with him to live at the lake. However, because the crisis and Caine's persuasiveness and manipulative talents, a lot of kids stay with Caine and decides to live under his rule. Sam finds some missiles at an army base near the lake, and he decides that the missiles needed to be moved. However, if Caine finds out about the missiles, he would have enough power to start a war with Sam.

2. I really enjoy the book so far. I have read all of the books before, and loved them. Michael Grant is a great dystopian writer, and I have found myself addicted to the genre. I think the book is pretty challenging. Often, I have to reread a page or paragraph multiples times, and to understand it. The characters also find out more about themselves, and the characters develop. Sam, who before was kind of a nobody, became a very important person in the books.

3. I think a theme in this book is responsibility. All the main characters have at least some sort of responsibility. The protagonist, Sam, constantly wonders if he would be judged by those outside the sphere if
he ever gets out. He wonders if he will ever have to justify all his actions and doings. He wonders if he could have done anything differently, or done something better. Even the antagonists have responsibilities. Caine, who is an antagonist also leads his own group of kids.

4. My favorite character is Sam. I like him because he isn't evil, is really serious and responsible. He is smart has a good personality. He has good morals, and is a leader. He is put in charge of 100-200 kids, and people trust him even with no adults around. He is very mature, and is very selfless.

5. My least favorite character is Caine. I dislike him because he is smart, powerful, and in control, but does not use them for good. He has all the qualities of an ideal hero, but he chooses to be evil and cruel. He takes the kids that he doesn't trust and puts their hands in cement. He also has people who "work" for him. They take his orders, and do his bidding.  He also has a person working for him who has the power of creating illusions that seem real. The victim would feel the pain that the illusion is creating. Overall, I think that he is a sick person who has no morals and limits.

6. I have two predictions. I think that in this book, or the next book, the kids will finally get out of the sphere. In the book, some of it is also told from the perspective of the adults outside. They wonder if their kids will be safe. My second prediction is that the two "main powers" Sam and Caine will fight, and one of them will die.