Divergent by Veronica Roth

Bookish Mardi: A Book Review of  Divergent by Veronica Roth


"We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another." - Veronica Roth

In my previous Bookish Mardi's book meandering on Nicholas Spark's The Longest Ride, I acquainted you to a student who's been closed to me,too. Janica Chee. The girl who made me able to witness the love of Sophia and Ira (from The Longest Ride) is also the same person who opened the doors for me to dwell in  Veronica Roth's mind of which I never regret even for a second thought. 

 20% of the books I own are actually given  by some significant others. Others who have known me well enough to realize that one among those which piques my interest is reading/collecting/hoarding books. Janica precisely is one among them. 

Considering those 20% as presents, it  doubles the importance and value of those books. So with Janica's presents in my shelf I'm beyond blissful and grateful. 

Book Review

If I will be asked a sentence about this novel, I ,with entire ardor and fervor in this profound story, will say "It is an intensified amalgamation of friendship, family, love, trust, principles, sacrifices, and decision-makings  perfectly interwoven into an intricate supremacy."

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To start with, Divergent is one among the countless books having dystopian society which can be found in all sort of library in PH. But what I think that makes it distinct among the other dystopian novels, in my own simple point of view, is the depth of the story literally and symbolically which Veronica did include in her writing. That even at some point, I lost track of following the characters' outlook of their current situation but instead diverted to how Veronica sees the things around us. While I was reading the trilogy, it's always as if I entered the characters' way of thinking through Veronica's but actually ended up with Veronica's own sapience.

Forsooth, I admire how Veronica drew me ( or the readers as I may say) in. Her ability to describe every  single detail, minute or grand, of the story allowed me to see through the minds not just of the antagonists but of the protagonists as well. This made me kept flipping the pages as I had genuinely felt the characters' various endeavors.

Nevertheless, another reason why I so much love the story is that how Veronica's diction (in choosing the words) is well-anticipated considering who her readers will be, young adult. Never had I read any unlikable curses in the book nor found the word "sex" in the entire trilogy though intimacy of both Tobias and Tris was obviously observed. And the way I see it, it's very well-commendable, especially if this book can be read by younger ones, too. Though a part of the story may appear violent, as per action of a member in Dauntless, words used were really fairly mild against its innuendos.

In addition, to those who are after lovestories, SPOILER ALERT!!! , the story showed no love triangle involving the main characters. It's another story of superior falling in love to an ordinary member, though Tris wasn't really an ordinary character.  Literary check, the last book I read with this kind of relationship was the Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James who got that superior by the name of Christian Grey who fell in love with an ordinary newly-grad Anastasia Steele. :)))

The story is also not solely focused on the characters alone. Not just their every single act of bravery, virtuousness and shenanigans. It is MORE than just the struggle of living in their world. It is more than just a mere teenager struggling over love  and acceptance but it is MORE OF doing what is right  and standing firm for the things you believe in of which every single person on Earth in the present time struggles to confront.

As a whole, I found the  entire story as indeed phenomenal! Which is why I can't thank Janica any less for paving my road to this brilliant author. To be honest, Divergent is another first in my shelf. Never had I read any dystopian novel before. However, just heard. As I recall, when I started the first book, expectations then popped right into my head but I must say as I finished it, all expectations were well-met and it never occured to me to unlike what the twists of the story were though some went inversely proportional to what I mentally expected.

Veronica had definitely become successful not only in thriving to make the readers love her work but instead of  making me ruminate the things my society has been into. I may never be fighting the same battle as Tris and I may not be living in a place divided by factions but I found myself able to relate to her, at least in some minute ways. Her struggle to be able to cope with the society's rapid changes, her struggle in staying alive for the sake of the ones she love, and her will power to sacrifice herself for the world she knows are things no longer alien in my lifelong journey. And being a living proof in this present chaotic sodality we are in, it's more likely that I need to have the guts and determination of Tris in confronting these challenging and life-changing scenarios.

As a reader, this  story does not only indulge me to some sort of stories but had made the sleeping version of me against our society awaken from its long sleep. It made me think that we have to start the first leap, though little may it seem, in fighting for our society's troubles for it to be able to survive and be preserved for our future children and children's children and so on.

Overall, this book is worth-reading for it truly got everything intricately woven into perfection. I salute the author for her wit and precisely for every little thing she did to come up with such brilliant masterpieces. I recommend you this book guys, so why wait for the next day, grab the book now! :))

Book Summary

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue - Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is - she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are  -  and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves. . . or it might destroy her.



Remarkable Lines from the Book

"The reason for the simplicity isn't disdain for uniqueness." - Beatrice Prior

"If we have little, and want for little, and we are all equal, we envy no one." - Tris

"Valuing knowledge above all else results in a lust for power, and that leads men into dark and empty places. We shoul be thankful that we know better." Andrew Prior

"We should think of our family. But. But we must also think of ourselves." - Caleb Prior

"The test don't have to change our choices." - Caleb Prior

"Faction before blood."

"Decades a ago, our ancestors realised that it is not political ideology, religious belief, race or nationalism that is to blame for a warring world. Rather that it was the fault of human personality, of humankind's inclination towad evil. In whatever form that is. They divided into factions that sought to eradicate those qualities they believed responsible for the world's dissaray." - Marcus Eaton

"Those who blamed aggression formed AMITY."

"Those who blamed ignorance became ERUDITE."

"Those who blamed duplicity created CANDOR."

"Those who blamed selfishness made ABNEGATION."

"Those who blamed cowardice were the DAUNTLESS."

"Faction before blood."- Beatrice

"We do dangerous things and people die. People die, and we move on to the next dangerous thing." - Beatrice

"It must require bravery to be honest all the time." - Beatrice

". . . there is a fine line between bravery and idiocy." - Four

"Extravagance is considered self-indulgent and unnecessary." - Tris

". . .give power to those who do not want it." - Andrew

". . . preparation eradicates cowardice, which we define as the failure to act in the midst of fear."

"Those who seek peace above all else will always deceive to keep the water calm." - Amity

"A brave man acknowledges the strength of others." - Four

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"Human reasons can excuse any evil; that is why it's so important that we don't rely on it." - Andrew

"You're not coward just because you don't want to hurt people." - Tris

"Maybe there is some Abnegation in everyone, even if they don't know it."  - Tris

"The goal in my life isn't just . . . to be happy."

"If my entire life is like this, loud laughter and bold action and the kind of exhaustion you feel after a hard but satisfying day, I will be content." - Tris

". . . sometimes, the best way to help someone is just to be near them." - Andrew

"Sometimes crying or laughing are the only options left." - Tris

"We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another."  - Will

"The first time is always the hardest." - Four

"Cowardice is how you decide to be inreal life." - Tris

"Learning how to think in the midst of fear is a lesson that everyone needs to learn." - Four

". . . beoming fearless is not the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear and how to be free from it, that's the point." - Four

". . . people do evil things and that desperation leads them to darker places than they ever imagined." - Tris

"Why do people want to pretend that death is sleep. It isn't. It isn't."  - Tris

"Fear doesn't shut you down; it wakes you up. I've seen it. It's fascinating." - Four

"Maybe there's more we all could have done but we just have to let the guilt remind us to do better next time." - Four

"It's easy to be brave when they're not my fears." - Tris

". . .selflessness and bravery aren't all that different." - Four

"I scream again - not for help, because no one will help me, but because that's what you do when you're about to die and you can't stop it." - Tris

"Knowledge leads to prosperity." - Jeanine

"Lies require commitment." - Tris

"Will we ever sleep soundly again, with the memories of our fears n our heads?' - Tris

"No ones perfect." - Tris

"We believe in bravery. We believe in taking action. We believe in freedom from fear and in acquiring the skills to force the bad out of our world so that the good can prosper and thrive." - Eric

". . . sometimes it isn't fighting that's brave, it's facing the death you know is coming." - Tris

". . . choosing death is like exploring an unknown, uncertain place." - Tris

"Sometimes pain is for the greater good." - Marcus

". . . there is power in self-sacrifice." - Andrew

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Thanks for visiting and keep updated for the Divergent's sequel, Insrugent. *_*

- Cee Brensan