The Maze Runner Book Review

Book Title: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Year of Publication: 2009
Number of Pages: 374

I. Plot Summary-A bunch of kids ages 10-17 are in a maze. They have no idea how they got there or how to get out. They started a civilization there called the Glade. Their memories are faint about their lives before now. Thomas shows up there and people start wondering what is going on. After Thomas shows up, a girl shows up as well. She is the first girl ever to show up in the Glade, and tells them she triggered the ending. They have no idea what this means, but hope that they can figure it out. Once everything in the maze starts to change, they all realize that the only thing they can do, is go into the maze and find a way out.
II. Literary Elements
A. Narrator-Third Person, "My name is Thomas, he thought."p.1
B. Protagonist- Thomas- He is the person in the Glade that feels like he knows why he's there and then is the one to figure out how to get out. "And yet he didn't know where he came from, or how he'd gotten inside the dark lift, or who his parents were." p.2
C. Antagonist-The Creators, The Grievers- The Creators are the people who created the maze and put the kids in there. The Grieves are the monsters that try and keep the Gladers from escaping. "Just like the little lizardlike machines that spy on us for the Creators-the people who sent us here." p.237 "Well he has been through the Changing-Griever stung him in the middle of the day just outside the West Door."p.226
D. Setting- Usually in the Glade, it is sunny and always perfect weather. Once the "ending" starts though, the whole maze just turns gray. "Looks like a big gray ceiling-close enough you could almost touch it."p. 298
E. Conflict- Man vs. Nature- Gladers vs Grievers and Gladers vs Creators. "The Griever came to life, spikes popping out its skin; it rolled forward, ready to collide head-on with its foe." p. 134 "The Creators Minho said; then he spat on the floor. Im gonna break your faces!" p. 352
F. Theme- Don't ever give up. No matter what happens, things can always get better. "Over two years and so few dead. Amazing." p. 353
III. Reflection- I liked this book very much because it was very interesting and not a type of book that their are a lot of. It somewhat reminded me of the Enclave and Outpost because of the people being in their own societies when the world all goes to crap. It would make a great movie because it has a great story for a movie. They actually are making it into a movie. I believe its supposed to come out in 2014. I would recommend the book to anybody who likes the Enclave series or Hunger Game series. It did, in a way, end the way i expected it to. I don't wish it would have ended differently because their are sequels to it.