Divergent by Veronica Roth

Brief 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 initiation 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, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Positive Content:

Tris Prior is a naive, innocent girl when the story begins.  She has to make a lot of choices along the way, causing her to grow up.  She doesn't always make the right choices, but it certainly seems as if she's trying.  She may be fiercer than she looks, but inside she's a truly selfless person.  She would never hesitate to step in and save a friend.

Possible Objectionable Content:

Initiation is hard and violent.  Initiates are taught how to shoot and throw knives, and forced to fight one another.  Characters are injured and killed, and there are mild descriptions of injuries and blood. A girl is briefly assaulted. Also, there are several usages of mild bad language, and characters kiss their significant others. 

Conclusion:

Divergent is an interesting book because of how it divides the people into factions based on character traits.  People can't just be sorted like that, and a lot of conflict ensues because of these divisions.  This is what separates Divergent from all the hundreds of others of Dystopian fiction novels out there.  It's not just another Hunger Games copy; it's a completely different world with different characters and a different story.  It's a story about choice and sacrifice.  There are lots of choices Tris is forced to make - and she doesn't always make the right ones - but she tries her best to make choices that benefit others, rather than herself.

Tris is a girl who doesn't know where she belongs - a character many teenagers can relate to.  She thought choosing a faction would define her life, but it's not that simple.  She just wants to fit in, and have a normal life, until she realizes how being special isn't always the worst thing.

It may be a simply written young adult book, but Divergent definitely has some good messages, as well as a heroine that is flawed, yet noble.

Rating: 9/10

Recommended age: 13+
Genre: Dystopian/Romance

Part of a series?: Divergent series, book one