The Knife of Never Letting Go: bk. 1 Chaos Walking: Amazon.co.uk: Patrick Ness: Books

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"* "Ness is a young writer of exciting quality and unpredictability." The Times * "One of the best first sentences I've ever read and a book that lives up to it!" Frank Cottrell-Boyce"

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An unflinching novel about the impossible choices of growing up, by an award-winning writer.

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Customer Reviews

49 Reviews

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
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4.4 out of 5 stars (49 customer reviews)

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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding piece of literature, 10 Jul 2008

By	Pyewacket "czarnowice" (UK) - See all my reviews

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This has to be one of the best books I have read in a long time even if it is billed as childrens literature.

What a concept..........settlers land on a new plant and become infected with a virus called Noise. Can you imagine being able to hear everyones thoughts and they yours and how do you cope with animals that also speak? However this 'Noise' does not affect the women folk so they die or at least this is what Todd who is our hero is told. The virus is blamed on the Spackles or aliens who are indigenous to the planet but it is not they who are contagious but of course they are blamed, hunted down and killed. Shades of Xenophobia here!
At the age of 13, Todd will become a man but before that happens he wanders into the swamp and suddenly hears nothing........no Noise.....what is happening? Viola is what is happening. She is also a settler whose ship crashed leaving her the sole survivor.

So when the army of Prentisstown start to hunt Todd his dog Manchee and Viola down we start to wonder why and why does the so called Preacher Aaron so want to kill Todd?

This story rips along keeping the reader enthralled at all times and I was very sad when it ended so abruptly. I can hardly wait for the sequel now.

To summise then, this is a story of mans inhumanity to man and other species, downright cruelty, madness, deep sadness and a boy and a girls sheer determination to try and do what is right.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough as an adult and I think older children will also find it enjoyable. Well done Mr. Ness.

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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!, 8 Jul 2008

By	E. Heckingbottom "elaineheck143" (U.K.) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

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Imagine living in a world surrounded by 'noise' - a world where you can hear everyone's private and secret thoughts - as well as their words. Imagine that, not only can you hear the people - you can also hear all the other creatures around you ... even your dog!

OK - so his speech is much more limited - but he talks! 'Pooh, Todd, Pooh!'. The crocs talk as they try to get you, and the squirrels talk as they encourage your dog to chase them.

Well, this is how the novel opens - gripping you as it does so.

Imagine that you are the only boy in the town. All the others have reached their 13th birthday and have become 'men'. Your turn is coming - but you don't know what it involves. there are no women - they have all died - and there are no girls, so there are no chances of any other children appearing. You are destined to be 'The last boy'.

Now imagine that you make an amazing discovery. You find a patch of silence. You don't know what it means or what it's about. Straight away, you return to tell your guardians - only to find yourself on the run - running away from everyone and everything that you have ever known. Your only comapnion is your talking dog until ...!

Well, I'll leave you to find that out for yourself!

Although a book for 12 year olds plus, I foresee that this will be a book read by adults as well as children - one with universal appeal. The cover is attractive and interesting.
My only frustration (or should that be 'frustrayshun') is with the spelling which is very colloquial at times. However, it fits with the idea of a 'new world'. Over the generations, other authors have greeted this idea in a range of ways - including whole new languages, so I suppose it's just the teacher in me that gets irritated by this sort of thing! My red pen is itching ...!

However, i have to say ... enjoy! This book should prove to be a great summer read for many people - from 11 to 111! It certainly has a lot to offer!

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21 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, 16 Jun 2008

By	SJSmith (UK) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This book is amazing and it was a big surprise for me as to how much I enjoyed it; it's a good cross-over children's book that will work with a range of audience ages. I want to start with the cover of the hardback book. The yellow colouring depicts what I expect the fields/forests in Prentisstown to be like, whilst the opaque dust jacket has lots of words written all over it, which within minutes of reading you discover is Noise. The concept of Noise is difficult to imagine. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts - any living creature experiences thoughts in a constant never-ending stream, including images. By creature, I mean exactly that; it isn't just humans. Now whilst I'd love to know what my cat makes of her day to day life I can't possibly imagine never having privacy or being able to keep a secret. Welcome to Todd Hewitt's world.

Todd is the last boy in Prentisstown, a town of men. When boys become men something powerful happens. Todd is just one month away from this event when he comes across something he has never experienced before - a spot of silence, a block of nothing. What has he come across and what will he do about it? The race is on and Todd has to run for his life. He doesn't really know what he's running from and at times the reader isn't entirely sure, there is no dramatic irony at all. With a made up vocabulary in places, the novel can be challenging but entertaining. The running did become a little too long and 50 pages could have been cut out to give it more of an impact but I was definitely there with Todd all the way. Some stunning narrative makes this a roller-coaster of a ride. There are a few heart-breaking moments and a thrilling ending, making Chaos Walking Book One a non-stop adventure that I would recommend.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A thrilling dystopian coming of age story
This novel for early teens+ was short-listed for the 2009 Carnegie Medal, and won the vote of the boys shadowing the award at the school where I work. Read more

Published 12 days ago by Annabel Gaskell

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible
This book had me hooked right away. From the first chapter i could hardly bare to put it down to eat or sleep. Todds story is amazin and Patrick Ness is an incredible writer. Read more

Published 14 days ago by Ms. S. Finn

3.0 out of 5 stars The Knife of Never Letting Go
I bought this book for my 12 year old son to read. He has now read about 1/3rd of the book but is struggling to carry on. Read more

Published 16 days ago by D. Harper

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Astounding, Astonishing and any other word for adoration you can think of.
I feel revealing anything in the plot of this book wouldn't be doing it justice, having freshly finished the read, having barely put it down once, secrecy is so much to this book... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Brian Beacom

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonder book!!!
This book is the greatest book ever written and the greatest book that ever will be written. Every sentence had me sitting bolt upright with the hairs on the back of my neck... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Dr. Hilary Kinsler

5.0 out of 5 stars Knife of Never Letting Go
The Knife of Never Letting Go is a brilliant concept, it's a breath-taking novel. The story just doesn't let up from beginning to end, teasing you with little snippets of... Read more

Published 2 months ago by Elrohir

4.0 out of 5 stars My daughter [14] liked the ideas and enjoyed this book
Got this book for my daughter [14]. Basic plotline: Todd Hewitt is 12 and the only boy in Prentisstown. Here all boys become men at the age of 13. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Keith Joseph

5.0 out of 5 stars Just read it ...
I hardly need to say how great this book is: so many people have already said so. I read a lot of books, for children and adults. Read more

Published 4 months ago by D. Court

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!!!!!!!
Absolutely love this book! read the whole thing in one and a half days ( one of those days was christmas day) i just couldn't put it down and the idea and the story is immense... Read more

Published 4 months ago by Wicked 4 Books n Elphaba

1.0 out of 5 stars Not nearly as good as it should be
Why do writers of children's books feel obliged to put 100 thoroughly dull pages in the middle of a perfectly adequate story? Read more

Published 4 months ago by bigdaddy

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	83% buy the item featured on this page: The Knife of Never Letting Go: bk. 1 (Chaos Walking) 4.4 out of 5 stars (49)
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The Knife of Never Letting Go: bk. 1 (Chaos Walking) (Hardcover)

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