Title: The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking Trilogy #1)
by Patrick NessPublishing Info: May 5, 2008 by Candlewick
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Find it on the web: Buy from Amazon // GoodreadsDate Completed: September 8, 2012
Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming, never-ending stream of Noise. Just a month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd and his dog, Manchee -- whose thoughts Todd can hear too, whether he wants to or not -- stumble upon an area of complete silence. They find that in a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden -- a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.
But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought?
Wow, this book was incredibly intriguing. Definitely had me hooked and I really didn’t want to put it down! In the very beginning, I had so many questions about Prentisstown. What happened to all the women? Why is their year thirteen months? Why can everyone hear everyone else’s thoughts? What happens to Todd when he becomes a man at 13 and why is it so secretive? I think I was more captivated in the very beginning when I was left completely in the dark, but my attention was absolutely held the whole book.
The narration is in the first person from Todd’s POV (it only makes sense considering his thoughts and narration are one in the same) so we get all of his gritty jargon and language with lots of intentional misspellings and slang. I actually really liked it. I really got a feel for the language and it kind of pulled me into the story that much more.
The mysteries that Todd uncovers throughout the story are really something — I could guess part of them but not all and even the things that I guessed were still just as shocking once they were revealed!
I really liked the world building in the book too. It’s quite similar to regular life as we know it now but just with some extreme factors that in essence completely change it — Like the Noise, some of the animals, the way the towns are built, and of course the location of the towns (I really don’t want to say more because if you haven’t read it, it’s more exciting the less I say).
Todd: I loved how Todd really grew up over the course of the book. He went through a lot of learning extremely quickly and it totally turned his world upside down. He really became a man by other standards than by what Prentisstown dictates.
Viola: I really compared Viola a lot to Aria from UNDER THE NEVER SKY a lot…… But ugh, I don’t want to say more without giving things away. If you’ve read both, HOPEFULLY you get my comparison and her relationship with Todd vs Aria & Perry?
Manchee: Manchee! It was so funny to hear a dog’s thoughts throughout the book and Manchee was so cute. He reminded me of Doug from the movie Up! He was a great sidekick and I think it was great for the story (and of course for Todd) because we get Todd’s best friend while still keeping it simple and Todd in the spotlight. Also, since Manchee’s a dog, his thoughts are even less controllable than any of the boys/men around so Manchee helps and creates problems for Todd all throughout the book.
Read it!
This book was definitely interesting and very unique! I really loved what Patrick Ness did with the narration and the little mysteries of the book kept me hooked.
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15 thoughts on “The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking Trilogy #1) – Patrick Ness”
I absolutely loved this series and I’m glad you enjoyed the first book. I personally liked the second book best, The Ask and the Answer, but the trilogy is a phenomenal one and I always love to see new people discover it!
I’m really looking forward to the second one!!! I’ve heard from a few people that the second is their favorite so I can’t wait to get to it.
This is a series I want to squeeze in.
Oh I am looking forward to getting my hands on this trilogy! Great review.
Yay! You liked it too! 🙂 Wow, I never realised until now that Manchee is like Doug in Up! I can totally see the resemblance though! Haha. I can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel.
Me too!! It was so good 🙂
Wow, this book seems really intense. I can tell it is not a book for me, but it seems amazing! Okay, do there is a dog. Have you ever heard of the book No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman? That is something I would be terribly worried about! But maybe it is okay? I don’t know if that makes any sense. I haven’t a clue what happens in this book. I’ve never read it. But books with dogs always make me nervous.
I haven’t heard of it……… but I see his point……… without saying there’s a spoiler or anything….
I started this book the other day but couldn’t get into it. Whether it was just because of the fact that I wasn’t in the right frame of mind for this kind of book or what, I was really disappointed it didn’t capture my attention as much a I thought it would. Your review does make me want to give it another go, though, so I might go back to it in a few weeks. I’m glad you enjoyed it, though!
It’s a tricky one to get into if you’re not in the right frame of mind for it! It’s really different and I think especially the language might throw you off. Luckily I knew about it beforehand and I’m surprised I was able to get myself get wrapped up in it instead of getting angry with it like I expected.
Hope you enjoy it if you give it another shot!
Oh, this series… I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. I had a super hard time with this one, getting into it and taking forever to finish it, but when I got to the end I didn’t want it to end! LUCKILY I had all 3 so I could move right into the second book. Which I REALLY couldn’t put down. I hope… okay, no, I INSIST you finish this series. It’s so excellent and well-done. Also proud of you for reviewing it; I’ve decided that I really can’t bring myself to review it because nothing I say will do it justice!
Oh I’ll absolutely finish it!! I’m excited to read the next book 🙂
Glad you liked it! This is definitely one of my favorite of the YA sci-fi/dystopias. Are you planning on reading the rest of the trilogy?
Absolutely!!! It was super interesting and I think once I’m done with my current library stack, I’m gonna try to finish some of the series I started before picking up new ones 🙂 🙂
This book sounds so interesting!! Adding to TBR now…