The Ask and the Answer

Continuimg with Todd and Viola ( )

This second book in the Chaos Walking series picks up where The Knife of Never Letting Go left off. Todd is captured by the leader of Prentisstown, and doesn't know if Viola is still alive. Meanwhile, Mayor Prentiss uses Todd's devotion to Viola as a way to control Todd, because Todd will do just about anything to keep Viola safe.

The Ask and the Answer was every bit as exciting and riveting as The Knife of Never Letting Go. The story continually adds new twists and turns, and the reader is never really sure who is truly good or bad as alliances change and the main characters are pressured to participate in activities they find onerous, all in the name of preserving those they love.

The Ask and the Answer is one of those psychological tales where you are sure that you know who is evil at the beginning of the book. Then Mayor Prentiss starts to change the minds of the main characters, and blurs the lines between right and wrong in their minds. This, in turn, plays with the minds of the readers, leaving them to wonder who is really standing up for what is right. This issue of morality in war time is even further blurred by the passionate rebellion of the woman who is the leader of the healers. Is she really for the freedom of the people, or is she just as power-hungry as Mayor Prentiss?

The biggest thing that I came away with while reading this book was that it is an excellent depiction of how leaders (on any side of a war) can convince people to do heinous things, out of fear, and in the name of appeasement in order to save those they love. It really gives a realistic picture of how leaders can use fear to manipulate their people.

As I was reading this book I found myself making notes of things I wanted to say to the characters when they were rationalizing their actions, like:

* If you are living in fear, that is not freedom.
* If you only way to achieve freedom is via a morally questionable obedience, and then your 'reward' is only a fraction of the freedom you had before; that is not freedom.
* If you are imprisoned for your own safety and have to win back small privileges; that is not freedom.

In short, The Ask and the Answer made me think immediately of how the Nazis coerced the German people into action (imprisoning Jews) and inaction (looking the other way when horrible things happened) during World War II. If you've ever wondered how the Germans managed to be taken in by Hitler's leadership and let the Holocaust happen, you should read this book. Don't get me wrong, it doesn't contain a lot of gruesome and gory details (although there are some), but what it does is give a realistic outlay of how the balance of power shifts and evil acts creep into daily life.

I highly recommend The Ask and the Answer for its excellent fast-paced plot, and for the World War II parallels. Be sure to read The Knife of Never Letting Go first though, or you won't understand what's going on in the story.

If you like The Maze Runner, The Hunger Games, or dystopian fiction in general, then you should love reading the books from The Chaos Walking series. The third book in the series, Monsters of Men, is scheduled to be published in May of 2010. ( )

Pretty enjoyable, though I got tired of the protagonists always being so naive/gullible. Also, the mexican stand-off towards the nd wen o too long and was irritating. ( )

Alas I waited too long to write a review. For me it is best to write a review immediately after I've read a book before I start a new one. I don't know why but I forget so easily.

I enjoyed it. Interesting to see how the women reacted. How Todd changed again. Sorry that's all. ( )

I'm glad to hear Viola's voice as well as Todd's in this second volume. This one reminds me of Starhawk's Fifth Sacred Thing in some small part, maybe the exploration of masculinity and violence. I kind of can't believe this series exists. ( )