Everybody Sees the Ants

Book review by Michael Berry, Common Sense Media
Everybody Sees the Ants Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 15+

Powerful, challenging tale of outsider fighting back.

A.S. King Coming of Age 2011
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Parents say

age 15+

Based on 2 reviews

Kids say

age 12+

Based on 1 review

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this book.

Stands out for and .

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Everybody Seems the Ants possesses strong language, frank discussions of sex, and complex thematic content. It touches upon hot-button issues such as bullying, teen suicide, adultery, and addiction. The main character is physically and verbally abused by the high school bully, and one of his friends is punched in the eye by her mother. There are also violent dream images from the Vietnam War. However, the novel is a moving and well-constructed tale of learning to stand up for oneself, told with insight and humor. It will captivate young readers mature enough to grapple with the issues it raises.

Community Reviews

parento3
parento3 Adult
September 30, 2021
age 18+

Must note gang rape scene and ideas of suicide

Book goes over varying ways to commit suicide, while also including a detailed gang rape by bullies. Unsure how this isn't highlighted in the review.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
reubli
reubli Adult
August 12, 2014
age 12+

Excellent, Thought Provoking, and Enjoyable

As a mom reading this, I had to keep reminding myself that the uncomfortable and challenging issues here aren't atypical. As a reader, though, I loved this book, as did my son. To call Lucky, the narrator, just a "bullied boy" misses how wonderful funny, smart, and observant he is. There is a good dose of dark humor in this book and some wonderful magic realism as Lucky repeatedly dreams of visiting his missing grandfather in Vietnam and wakes up with actual momentos from his visits. Disturbing at parts, but ultimately, an engaging book with a subtly, wonderful transformation at the end. So glad I read this and kudos to A.S. King for such a creative work.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS, Lucky Linderman's teachers think he might be suicidal, his parents are focused on their own problems, and the high school bully has it in for him. After he is physically assaulted at the local swimming pool, Lucky's mother takes him to stay in Arizona with her brother and sister-in-law. But even there, there's no escape there, as Lucky becomes friends with a troubled older girl and continues to dream of his long-lost grandfather stuck in the jungles of Vietnam.

Is It Any Good?

Written with emotional insight and cynical, surrealistic humor, this is a compelling and unique portrait of a victim who learns to stand up for himself and take control of his own destiny. There are no easy answers, though. Although she drops elements of fantasy into the narrative, A.S. King is careful to keep the psychological underpinnings of Lucky's hard-won transformation plausible -- and ultimately tremendously moving.

Everybody Sees the Ants made the 2102 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults list compiled by the the Young Adult Library Services Association (a division of the American Library Association).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how to deal with violent bullying. Whose responsibility is it to deal with high school students who verbally abuse and physically assault their classmates? What role should parents play?

  • Why do you think the school administrators react the way they do when Lucky distributes a questionnaire about suicide. What are some effective methods of dealing with the problem of teen suicide?

  • What has it meant to Lucky's family to have his grandfather still missing in action from the Vietnam War? How do you think families of POWs and MIAs from any war deal with their sadness or feelings of uncertainty?

  • During the Vietnam War, soliders were drafted through a lottery based on their birthdate. Today, we have an all-volunteer military. What are the advantages and disadvantages of these two systems?

Book Details

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