From: Steven Engelfried <sengelfried>
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 2005 09:32:22 -0700 (PDT)

I don't know if this quite fits with the "politics and purpose" theme, but I thought Markus Zusak's "I Am the Messenger" is a pretty powerful "message" book. A decent, but kind of aimless young adult (19 or 20?) receives cryptic messages that lead him to find and help a variety of people in his town who really need it: an abused wife, an overworked single mom, even a family that just needs a small extra lift. He also has to help some people he already knows. The overriding theme is that an ordinary person can make a huge difference, and it's carried off with humor, some strong emotional scenes, and a very engaging writing style. The unusual conclusion (which I won't give away) is a whole other discussion, but overall I was very pleased to see such a compelling novel that succeeds (unless you balk at the conclusion) in showing the power and importance of making connections with the people in your own community...
 
- Steven Engelfried, Beaverton City Library
  sengelfried at yahoo.com
  503R6%99

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Received on Sat 30 Apr 2005 11:32:22 AM CDT