| Book Review | Jennifer Hairfield |
Maximum
Ride:
School's Out Forever
by James Patterson
Welcome back to the continuation story of Maximum Ride and
her flock. This part starts where the last one stopped,
flying to D.C. to find their parents. If you're just joining
this story each of the kids have a special gift, besides
being able to fly. Max has the ability to fly at super-sonic
speeds, Fang is a great fighter, Gasman can mimic voices,
Nudge is post-cognitive, Angel can control minds and breathe
underwater, and Iggy is blind but is better with his hands
then most and is the explosive expert of the group. While at
the School they added a new member to the group, Total, a
Toto-like dog that can talk like a human.
In this story they meet up with a new version of the
Erasers, these can fly also but are clumsier then the kids.
The reader also finds out that Max and Ari are related in
some sort of way. But instead of finding a hiding place on
their own they are forced into taking shelter with a FBI
agent named Anne when Fang gets seriously hurt. The old
saying goes: Give a bird a gilded cage and it will sing for
you. Is Anne's house a gilded cage? Is she a good guy or a
bad guy? Are the Eraser's going to find them or is this just
one more test?
For once in the kids' lives they actually get to feel like
real human children, they are enrolled into school on Anne's
insistence. At first they are all scared but everything goes
well for awhile. Nothing good can ever last forever for this
group. On the run again they go to Florida, but is this
their choice or their destiny as part of saving the world
from Itex? Throughout the Eraser's wait a New Max has been
created to take the real Max's place. Is the real Max
killed? Can the kids tell them apart?
This story is just as, if not more, fast paced as the first
one. James Patterson has done a great job with this series
for it's a great read for a whole range of ages. The fight
scenes could be a little bit more varied and detailed but,
they are still action packed and kick-ass. The romance
between Max and Fang is to be expected but it's still a
little bit of a shocker when it does. Angel's mind-reading
ability is scary at times for she doesn't know what she's
doing but, it's still interesting to see it done. I would
defiantly say pick up the series and hold on tight for a
great ride. But keep your eyes open for a movie based on the
books. It will happen, just wait and see.