Sex Appeal, Go Away

I have to rant.

I HAVE to.

James Dashner (one of my ALL-TIME favorite authors) just posted a gorgeously delicious tidbit about the movie adaptation for his Maze Runner series.

The article was "Will Poulter Offered Leading Roll in 'The Maze Runner' Adaptation." I clicked on it immediately because 1. I couldn't remember who Will Poulter was and 2. I MUST KNOW!!!

Now, the article doesn't say which part was offered, but seeing as the leading character is Thomas, everyone's coming to that conclusion.

Here's the actor:

You may recognize his face from "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader." Not overly handsome, but not a great picture, either.

People vocalized their disappointment in the comment thread to Mr. Dashner's fb post. "He's not pretty enough," "Thomas should be pretty," "Please, James, nooo! He does not appeal to us."

For one, authors rarely get a say in who plays their characters, so let's just stop with that plea on those grounds alone. And for another, Thomas was NEVER described as pretty. At best, he was plain and at worst, his friends made fun of him for how ugly he was.

Please, please, please stop expecting gorgeous main characters! I am SO tired of this. Let's get back to loving books and loving characters for who and what they are. I don't want to hear about these immediate judgments because the main guy or gal isn't good-looking enough. 

I love Thomas. Scores of people love Thomas. He's not pretty. Never was and never will be. Stop looking for eye candy and start appreciating real, exciting, deep characters.*

*I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but you never know when a visitor might stop by who actually needs to hear this.

Book Review--The Maze Runner, by James Dashner and a Movie!

Back of the book blurb:

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.

Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers.

Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.

What I liked:

Pretty much everything!  Thomas was a sympathetic character the whole way through and the plot moved along at a steady (and sometimes heart wrenching) pace.  In fact, that warm and fuzzy feeling you tend to get when reading books because you know the main list of characters might get hurt really bad but they certainly won't die is in as much danger of being squashed and consumed as the characters in this book.

Few authors have made me dread as much as need to turn the page as James Dashner.  In THE MAZE RUNNER, you just never know what's going to happen, but you're pretty sure it's going to be bad.  

What I didn't like:

I wouldn't say this is something I didn't like, but it's definitely a warning.  This book is intense and should be read with caution by the younger members of the YA crowd. There were parts that made me, a 28 year old U.S. Army veteran, a tad squeamish.  

So, what kind of rating would I give THE MAZE RUNNER??

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5 stars! 

(as in, what are you still doing reading this post?!  Go out and buy this NOW!)

Yeah, THE MAZE RUNNER just is that good, and it's a wonderful start to what I foresee as one of the best YA trilogies out there.

For your purchasing convenience, I provide you now with this link.

And now, because my kids seem to want to keep me perpetually sick (or at least sick 90% of the time), I missed yesterday's post and had to combine it with today's.  So...

Enjoy this movie!!