 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Maximum Ride, Book 1: The Angel Experiment
- By James Patterson
- Genre: Science Fiction
Common Sense Media says
OK series launch about flock of mutants. Tweens.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that there is a lot of violence here, some of it quite brutal, including serious injuries. There are broken noses and bones, knocked-out teeth, and some deaths, guns, explosions, and car chases. The marketing for this book is also pretty intense, including Blogspot and MySpace pages and a contest to put together a tie-in music CD.
What's the story?
Max and five other kids, "the flock," were created by evil scientists at a place called the School, by combining human and avian DNA. They can fly, are unusually strong, and have a variety of other talents, some just emerging. Before the book begins they have escaped from the School, where the scientists were keeping them in cages and torturing them with experiments, and have been living on their own.
The youngest of the flock, Angel, is recaptured, and the rest fly back to the school to rescue her. Now they are being hunted by Erasers, human/wolf mutants also created at the School, while they travel across the country, trying to discover the secrets of their origins and purposes.
Is it any good?
Author James Patterson, best known for adult suspense novels, makes a foray into the young adult market with this book about a group of human/bird hybrids. For teens who just want action and excitement and who don't much care about the niceties -- such as logic, character development, consistent voice, or plot -- this will be plenty of fun. There's lots of gritty violence, but no sex, drugs, or language problems to worry parents (at least those who don't worry about gritty violence). And there's the fantasy of winged flight, which is always a kid-pleaser.
The entire book amounts to little more than a prologue to the series: Despite more than 400 pages of chases, fights, break-ins, and almost non-stop action, practically nothing actually happens. The main characters are captured, they escape, they are cornered, they escape, they are wounded, they recover, they try to hide, they are found, over and over again. In truth, very little of it makes any kind of sense, though there are plenty of hints that it will eventually -- just not in this book.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the idea of human and animal experimentation and whether or not it's ethical.
In the book, the scientists are clearly the bad guys, but are these
types of experiments ever justified?You can also discuss the book's
marketing. Why the tie-in CD and Web sites?Are there different
standards for book and movie marketing?Could this kind of aggressive,
movie-style marketing of a book actually be a good thing, or is it just
manipulative?
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- Teens & kids
AGE
Maximum Ride, a fitting title for an epic series
This will forever be my favorite book series. When I first bought the books, I read them in one day each. The first three, however, were by far the best.
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AGE
Worse than Twilight
I cannot believe that anybody would actually think this is a good book. It is an easy read (poorly written). It is a shallow book with no profound or original messages. The plot is all violence, and the violence is repetitive and gets the plot nowhere, so the book is a bore once you get past the blood and grime. The characters have little personality and are unoriginal. The romance is a joke. The plot does not fit together well. The whole storyline is lame. I mean, they are being chased by a band of genetically modified werewolves that shoot laser beams out of their eyes! The role models are horrible and reckless. If you want to read a book with a masterful plot and unforgettable characters, read Harry Potter, Artemis Fowl, or the Underland Chronicles. Maximum Ride is not the way to go.
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AGE
an awsome thrilling book that you would want to read over and over again
This book is amazing,the best book i ever read and i won't mind reading all 6 books that are out.
i would recomened this book for people who love fiction, comide, drama, and action
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AGE
This book is so cool!
This book is like the best book ever!!! Me and my friends love it
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AGE
An action packed book with lots of kick butt mutants!
Mediocre? OK, first common sense dosent have my favorite book series on it and now it calls this a dull, mediocre book? are you kidding me?! For thoses of you who havent read it, it is a page turning heart pumping adventure story about a flock of 6 mutant kids. But not your normal mutants. These kids have wings and can fly. Only bad thing about it is that they are orphans, were raised in cages, and now have huge wolf mutant freaks after them. Read this book if it kills you!!
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AGE
Amazing
An amazing book. I love it. There is a lot of violence and some bad language such as "Hell" and "crap" and things like that. Max, the main character says she curses a lot. Not the best message with the violence and stuff, but it is a good message at the same time. The kids are independent and it talks about the true meaning of family.
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AGE
Perfect for teenagers,not for younger kids.
I thought Maximum Ride Book:1 was an excellent,thought-provoking, at times histrionic book! It was at times brutally violent but im sure the intended audience should not mind. I must say the book *-is not perfect-*.
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AGE
AWESOME!!!
I love this series! There is a lot of violence, but this book is very exciting and funny.
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AGE
the best book ever by james.P
I think maxium ride is the best book ever!!!My friend got me into it and i love it..its funney and interesting and it explainls how everything 1st started.
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AGE
LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!
I LOVE THIS BOOK. DON'T listen to what the people on this website say, except me- of course! This is the best series I have ever read!!!!! This is a fiction book, does it matter if they stole a car? Most kids don't even know how to steal a car, and remember, they are doing this for survival. Do you want to say you died because you didn't steal a car? Oh wait, you couldn't, because you would be DEAD!!!!!
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| Author: | James Patterson |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Science Fiction |
| Publisher: | Little, Brown and Company |
| Publication date: | May 21, 2006 |
| Number of pages: | 426 |
| Hardcover price: | $16.99 |
| Paperback price: | $6.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 12 - 17 |
| Read aloud: | 11 |
| Read alone: | 12 |
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