I Am the Messenger: Markus Zusak

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This was noticeable in the end in particular. The ending in general seemed completely disconnected from the rest. It made zero sense to me, there was no good lead up or anything. And worst of all, it left me with the question: What was the point? That's not a question you want to ask yourself after finishing a book. I didn't even feel satisfied or happy that I was finally at the end. I felt angry that I kept holding on to hope that the story might get better. And afterwards, I fell into a horrible reading slump for over a month. So thanks for that!

I have a love-hate relationship with the ending. It makes sense, but I was disappointed in how it all wrapped up. Honestly, when I finished the book, I threw it down onto my bed, and left the room. At the beginning, I thought that I was reading just an ordinary book, with ordinary characters and their ordinary lives. But now, that I've finished it, I can say that this book is anything but ordinary. It made me laugh, it made me tear up, it made me angry, and at the ending it left me feeling emotionally drained, but also really happy (if that makes any sense). It really touched me, and made me think about things that I (and a lot of us) just take for granted. I can't count the times when I've read a quote from this book that made me stop reading and just think about it for a few seconds. This book is one I will highly recommend to everyone. I know I didn't rate it a perfect 5, because of some reasons. Like there were times that I got bored, that I got upset with some of Ed's thoughts... and a bunch of other stuff... but those are very minor things. Not even worth mentioning really. I know it's silly but, I can't rate a book a perfect 5 if there were some things I didn't like about it. So there. Hence, the 4 stars. You are the epitome of ordinariness, Ed.” He looks at me seriously. “And if a guy like you can stand up and do what you did for all those people, well, maybe everyone can. Maybe everyone can live beyond what they’re capable of.” He becomes intense now. Emotional. This is everything. “Maybe even I can.” I'm no good storyteller or even possess a modicum of empathetic writing skills but in some way, I'm just commenting on the writing style, I write like that. A bit.

In that respect, I am the Messenger is utterly different from The Book Thief - it won't make you curl up in bed and cry your eyes out. But that doesn't mean it's any less magnificent a book. The Messenger, released in the United States as I Am the Messenger, is a 2002 novel by Markus Zusak, and winner of the 2003 Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Award. The story is written from the perspective of the protagonist, taxi driver Ed Kennedy, [1] whose journey begins after he stops a robbery and receives a playing card in the mail. Ed receives a summons to court to testify against the bank robber. The judge criticizes Ed’s casual appearance with distaste. When Ed gives vehement witness testimony vilifying the bank robber as an “ugly bastard,” the judge puts him in his place as not being one to talk. As the police lead off the gunman to jail, the gunman says Ed’s a dead man and tells him to remember that fact every day when he looks in the mirror. Ed initially takes it as a threat, but when he gets in his cab and looks in the rearview mirror, he recognizes the metaphor for his dead-end life. Analysis of A♦, 2♦, 3♦, 4♦

with an expert balance of humour, sentimentality, and hopefulness, this story is a work of art (side note: the first chapter of this book is the most spectacular chapter ever written in the history of chapters. i have probably read it over 100 times. its utter perfection). this story also has one of the most beautiful messages - how kindness can be life changing and how being kind can give a life purpose. the high quality writing lovingly explores this message through the heartwarming and heartbreaking life of ed kennedy, showing that sometimes people are not just the messenger but the message itself. Ed was not your typical hero. He wasn't the brooding or panty-dropping type that are mostly on YA and NA books. He was plain. He was ordinary. And he knows that. He hasn't done anything remarkable in his life... until now. I’m trying and failing and trying and failing to put into words the sheer breathtaking beauty of Markus Zusak’s prose. Reading Markus Zusak, my breath flees; lungs starve; hands worry; fingers dance. Eyelids clap in the drizzle of my eyes; eyes cleave open hearts; hearts shout; thunder. And here I sit, speechless; useless. With broken words; inadequate; shattered. The dots scattered; gone. Ed’s greatest desire is to have the passionate romance with Audrey he’s longed for most of his life. But Audrey sets a boundary there, keeping it at friendship. Paradoxically, Audrey accepts intimacy only with those she doesn’t care about. Ed understands why she prefers sex to commitment. Growing up together, Ed watched people take advantage of her. Ed struggles to accept their platonic relationship but is afraid to make the first move. He considers himself inept at sex, as confirmed by the opinions of two girlfriends who critiqued his maneuvers as clumsy and laughable. Ed’s self-deprecating humor and keen empathy for others make him a loyal friend to Marv, Ritchie, and Audrey. They appreciate Ed as a steady if passive support.

I think Mr. Zusak's characterization of Ed was brilliant. You see him grow throughout the book. You see him struggle. You see him start to see the world with new eyes. It was beautiful. I see why he chose a character like Ed to portray the main role. He wanted to show his readers that you don't have to be somebody to make a difference. You don't have to be rich, you don't have to be a successful person, you don't have to be popular - you just have to be the person who wants to make a difference. And as the story unfolds itself, you will see that difference with Ed and to those people whose life he touched.

This odd little story is touted as a Young Adult book. Um, I mean, I guess it could be, but it doesn't really feel like one. All of the main characters are adults and the story doesn't stand out to me as something that would specifically appeal to young readers. But, hey, I am a grown up so what do I know!?😁

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One last remark that I want to mention is the question of righteousness. In the story, Ed does various things to deliver the messages that will in the end up bettering peoples’ lives, bettering humanity. My issue does not concern the “positive” acts but the once in which he employs violence. Whenever something like this happens in a story, I just find myself questioning what is right and wrong. Because who are we to decide what message needs delivering? Who are we to decide how someone else should live? Who are we to pass judgment? Of course the results in the novel are purely positive, but I couldn’t help but wonder if what Ed was doing really was the best course of action. Yes, the story was told from the perspective of a teenager, but that doesn't justify the crude writing. Tons of books have been written in this perspective, without making me want to go crazy. This book consisted mainly of short sentences, sometimes ending right in the middle. What is this?? If that's a special artistic way of teenagers expressing themselves, then I'm sorry - I just don't get it. The Book Thief is one of my favorite books ever (if not my favorite book ever), then how is it possible that I loved I Am the Messenger even more? I know, I know, they're far from carbon copies of each other's but I cannot help but think that I would have enjoyed I Am the Messenger more if I wasn't a huge fan of Amélie Poulain and her missions. What can I say, the story was more fun in Montmartre...