Challenger Deep
Neal Shusterman
Thank you Walker Books for this book in exchange for an honest review
Synopsis:
Caden Bosch is on a ship that’s headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench.
Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behaviour.
Caden Bosch is designated the ship’s artist in residence to document the journey with images.
Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head.
Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny.
Caden Bosch is torn
Review:
This was an odd book for me. It could have been that I read this while I the midst of a down spiral of life or it could be the work itself. But realistically – I’m not in a rush to read it again.
I think the overall aim of the Challenger Deep was brilliant and as a Shusterman fan I knew I had to read it. While made the first few chapters extremely painful to read. You meet Caden in one chapter as a pirate on a ship. And in the next chapter you meet Caden again but in his everyday life – attending school and seeing friends. Whilst this is a great way to introduce the real world vs the world out characters fantasise about, but it was delivered poorly and I found myself reading along muttering ‘w.t.f’ as I went.
By the time the two worlds explained itself as a mental illness, I already jumped off the train and was running away from the station, leaving my luggage behind. There are so many reviews of how it pulls at the heart strings and blah blah blah and that wasn’t the case for me. Reading the two worlds was great but nothing outstanding but I honestly have read better books that deliver the importance of mental health better.
Really disappointed that I didn’t like this. I love Shusterman’s work!
Rating: 2/5
Publisher: Walker Books
ISBN: 9788469833735