I Am the Messenger

An interesting story ( )

I would rate it a 3.5 star . Readable? Yes. Enjoyed?Yes. Is it as good and thought provoking as The book theif? No. ( )

It took me a long time to read this book. I say this because generally I am a pretty quick reader. I had to read a lot of things for school in-between this book so it took up some of my time. Now though, I'm glad. This is a book that I am glad I spent almost a month with.

The books starts off with a 19 year old guy named Ed (just Ed, not short for anything) and his friends, Marv, Ritchie, and Audrey, on the floor in the middle of a bank robbery. Marv is quite pissed that the failed robber is trying to run off with his pile of shit car. Since his car is in fact a pile of shit he can't get away fast enough. Ed runs out and hits him and thus becomes the hero.

Ed, is not a hero type. He is an illegal (underage technically) cab driver. He is single (but in love with Audrey), his mother hates him and tells him frequently, his father died, he has a smelly dog named the Doorman.

But........

At the trial for the failure that was the robbery the robber tells Ed that every time he looks into the mirror, he will be looking at a dead man.

Then.....

A playing card, (the ace of diamonds) arrives with 3 addresses listed on it and his life is about to change.

Ed has to deliver messages, he will figure out what the message is when the time is right. He has no choice, two men named Daryl and Keith will beat him up if he doesn't. That and he feels like he has nothing else to do and is driven to finnish this task. Ed gets 3 addresses on the ace of diamonds, then he receives the ace of clubs, the ace of spades and the the ace of hearts. Each with 3 messages he must deliver.

I don't want to give away too much more, but this is one of the best books I have ever read. The way it is written is interesting, clever and it draws you in. Ed, while a bit of an ordinary schmuck is very likable and a good person. The overall message and how everything plays out in the end just blew me away. This is a book that will stick with me for a long time to come. ( )

When I purchased this I didn't realise it was marketed as (YA) Fiction. For me the tone was reminiscent of Mitch Albom books. I can see its purpose being to encourage young teens to set goals and reach for them. It was an okay read but not one to recommend. It had a predictable safe ending. ( )

I enjoyed this book. Picked it up in a little lending library. Very different and kept my interest. Got better as it went along. ( )