Comments on: I Think There Is No Contender

By: Mark Flowers

Mark Flowers — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 22:31:53 +0000

@Hannahlily – “a wee bit pretentious” you say! surely you jest

By: Hannahlily

Hannahlily — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:30:20 +0000

I have nothing to add, just wanted to say one more person who didn’t see the appeal in this book. Flat, unlikable characters, unorignial plot, unexamined themes, and, dare I say, a wee bit pretentious?

By: Sophie Brookover

Sophie Brookover — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 23:23:47 +0000

Not to pile on, but I agree with all of y’all. This was a DNF for me back in February. I wanted so badly to find some reason to keep on reading, but there was just no THERE there. If it DOES receive a nod, I’ll be very keen to hear what RealCommittee members have to say about its merits and winning ways. Til then, I will echo Josiah Bartlet by asking: What’s next?

By: TeenReader

TeenReader — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 23:48:17 +0000

Couldn’t finish this one. The world building was very poor, and the whole thing seemed self-consciously clever instead of geniunely funny and surprising. I will be disappointed if this gets a Printz nod. (And I’m surprised that no commenters have been positive. There is a clear reader to reviewer gap.)

By: Staci

Staci — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 19:57:42 +0000

Agreed. I just listened to it and I think what kept me hanging on was hoping for something more and Eck. I can’t help it but I loved Eck but that was it…an interesting premise that fell flat to me.

By: Emily H.

Emily H. — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 18:39:14 +0000

Wow, I thought I was the only one!

And actually, I found it reasonably entertaining up until the end, when I got some sense of the Douglas Adams-y feel that almost made it come together — the sense of trying to find meaning, or create meaning, in a universe that can feel absurd and cruel. If that had been totally successful then I might be arguing for it as a contender. As it is… I’m not.

By: Cecilia

Cecilia — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 16:23:25 +0000

I wasn’t thrilled with it either. The beginning was amusing enough to make me hold onto a library copy that I had intended to return. But after getting the idea of where it was going, I’ll admit, I just skipped ahead to read the ending and be done. I didn’t are about any of the characters enough, and none of them have really stuck with me.

By: Thu

Thu — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 16:01:06 +0000

I feel the EXACT same way. I love Meg Rosoff. I taught HILN to my high school students. I’ve read and enjoyed her other books. But this one? A real headscratcher. I just don’t get it. I can buy into a lot of things–weird and far fetched can be awesome–but I’ve got to love the characters if I’m skeptical about plot and premise. I made myself try to finish this book soapy times, but eventually I began to wonder if it wasn’t making me feel bad about Rosoff’s other books. How unfair! Anyhow, if someone else can explain to me why I should like the book, I’m all ears.

By: LeAnn

LeAnn — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 15:28:17 +0000

I didn’t like it either. I thought it was really imaginative, but the characters were so flat and boring. The only interesting character is Mr. B, and he’s not in it enough for me. I blogged about my disappointment with it, too: http://www.minnesotareads.com/2012/05/there-is-no-dog/.

By: Eric

Eric — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 14:29:36 +0000

One of the very few books that I started and did not finish this year.