The Chaos Walking Trilogy

by Patrick Ness

Book 1: The Knife of Never Letting Go

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?

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This story is about a young boy named Todd, his dog and how his love became the loudest sound in a world that is never silent.

This story is so rich, deep and dark!  It touches on societal problems of colonization, group mentality, dehumanization, helplessness and loyalty with such skill.  I truly felt *there* within the story and experiencing it with the characters.  An adventure/survival story about a 13yo boy and his dog may not sound impressive or earth-shattering, but I assure you, this story is all of that and more.  It is dark and deep so take a breath before you dive in.

Favorite quotes from TKoNLG: “Knowledge is dangerous and men lie and the world changes, whether I want it to or not.”

“The Noise is a man unfiltered, and without a filter, a man is just chaos walking.”

“Men lie, and they lie to theirselves worst of all.”

“Here's what I think," I say and my voice is stronger and thoughts are coming, thoughts that trickle into my noise like whispers of truth. "I think maybe everybody falls," I say. "I think maybe we all do. And I don't think that's the asking."

I pull on her arms gently to make sure she's listening.

"I think the asking is whether we get back up again.”

Book 2: The Ask and the Answer

We were in the square, in the square where I'd run, holding her, carrying her, telling her to stay alive, stay alive till we got safe, till we got to Haven so I could save her - But there weren't no safety, no safety at all, there was just him and his men...

Fleeing before a relentless army, Todd has carried a desperately wounded Viola right into the hands of their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss. Immediately separated from Viola and imprisoned, Todd is forced to learn the ways of the Mayor's new order. But what secrets are hiding just outside of town? And where is Viola? Is she even still alive? And who are the mysterious Answer? And then, one day, the bombs begin to explode...

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The action of this 2nd book of the trilogy takes place after a colossal thing happens which separates main characters, Viola and Todd.  This book is a split-narrative between them as they are pursuing their individual paths through the story under extreme duress and uncertainty.  The scope of the story has widened.  The first book starts out as a sort of smalltown pastoral setting with creepy-dark religious/cultish overtones, while this one expands to re-emphasize the earlier themes of colonialism and clannishness but builds upon those themes with the politics of war and love and betrayal and sacrifice.

Favorite quotes from TAatA:

“Faith with proof is no faith at all.”

“If you ever see a war," she says, not looking up from her clipboard, "you'll learn that war only destroys. No one escapes from a war. No one. Not even the survivors.”

“We are the choices we make. And have to make. We aren’t anything else.”

Book 3: Monsters of Men

Three armies march on New Prentisstown, each one intent on destroying the others. Todd and Viola are caught in the middle, with no chance of escape. As the battles commence, how can they hope to stop the fighting? How can there ever be peace when they're so hopelessly outnumbered? And if war makes monsters of men, what terrible choices await?

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Because I read the trilogy one-after-the-other I didn’t have time to wonder if Ness could keep the momentum from the first two books going, I just wanted the story to continue.  I didn’t need to worry, even if I’d had time to wonder, he wrapped up this series just as masterfully as he’d written the first two books.  Todd remains a favorite character.  He is funny, honest and sweet and it was horrible to see him caught up in the horrors of war but also redemptive in the fact that his relationship with Viola, who is strong and determined and just as committed to Todd as he is to her.  Their faith in each other kept him from completely losing himself - and I felt that was the heart of their entire story.

Favorite quotes from MoM: “Worst is the one who knows better and does nothing.”

“Choices may be unbelievably hard but they’re never impossible. To say you have no choice is to release yourself from responsibility and that’s not how a person with integrity acts.”

--- discussing all three ---

Overall, I felt this series was simply amazing.  It pulled me in and I read all three books bam-Bam-BAM!  The world-building is believable, characters are so realistic and relatable and the plot is full of twists, drama and darkness that leaves you yearning for the light.

I feel this series is pivotal, reminding me of “Lord of the Flies” or “The Butterfly Revolution” in showing how in a society with no restraint, absolute power corrupts absolutely.  This series is shocking, a deeply moving trilogy of resistance under the most extreme pressure.  I found the books emotionally exhausting because the author made me care about the main characters and they were put through so much - I had feelings of dread and I would become tense all over with suspense.

This series is a fascinating exploration of human nature - every aspect of it:  How we make war when we want peace.  How violence destroys us.  How love heals us.  How we mature as children into adults.  How love influences the choices we make.  

Although this story is dark, disturbing and violent, at its’ core is the ultimate story of how love conquers all.

Heidi Y.