i have 2,410 friends on goodreads.com. 
 199 of them have this book on their shelves. 
 of that number, only 28 have read it. 
 to the other 171 of you, i say - "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR???" and you can see i am serious about this, because i have done math in order to convince you.** 
 and i know, i know. there are a lot of books in the world, most of us are mortal, who has the time, etc. i myself had all three of the books in this trilogy just smooshed in the middle of piles of other books at my place, thinking, "i will read those when i get around to it." and you may be feeling the same way. so allow me: 
 now you have no more excuses. 
 (LAFFTER!) 
 but seriously, folks. i don't even know where to start with this book. 
 i really thought it was going to be a low-impact tale of a boy's adventure's through a damaged land with some sort of eventual self-discovery and that it would have good action sequences and some obvious metaphors and blah-di-blah and people said it was sad, so i figured someone would die at some point. 
 well. 
 understatement in all of the above. 
 this was much richer and deeper and so very dark. ness touches upon the problems of colonization and group mentality and dehumanization and helplessness and loyalty with a skill for storytelling and characterization, and always skirting that fine line between emotion and sentimentality. 
 it has been awhile since i have been immersed in a book. this world - these characters - it consumed me. it is so hard to talk about books that do this to me. it is easy to pick apart books that are "good" or "okay" or "the worst", but the ones that i fall into - the ones that i hate having to put down for anything as mundane as sleep or work, those are incredibly difficult to put into words. but "mmmmmm" comes close. 
 i think todd is a very solid character. there are times when he makes unfortunate decisions, but they always seem consistent in terms of his character, and the background from which he is coming. there is such an opportunity for growth in him, but you know, despite anything that may happen, he is trying to do the right thing, as he sees it; as he is learning what "the right thing" even is. i mean, he's twelve-thirteen, right? and he is a lot more resourceful and insightful than i was at that age, and i didn't have to go around hearing everyone's thoughts all the time. oh, did i forget to talk about the plot again? quickly - everyone can hear everyone's thoughts. all the time. even the most mundane, subconscious, or embarrassing ones. even thoughts of animals. but not, however, the thoughts of women. we are still mysterious. todd grows up in an all-male town, but soon will leave and discover... well, he will discover a lot. better you read it than i tell it. 
 aaron is a little...unrealistic,sure, but after a while, you gotta sort of do that horrified slow-clap at his stubbornness and persistence, right? it is impressive, if nothing else. 
 viola. great here. even better in the second book. mmmmmmmmm 
 talking animals. yeah, i usually don't like it either. however, these animals talk exactly how animals should talk. they don't have conversations; they have a limited vocabulary that seems appropriate, and can be so heartbreaking in certain situations, oh my god. manchee is the best dog in literature. his voice is exactly right. very reminiscent of the dog in up, and although he has a small range of words at his disposal,his emotions come across loud and clear.it is a wonderful relationship, despite todd not wanting a dog and resenting him at the beginning of the book, the two of them, through their adventures, become the best "boy and his dog" team i can think of. 
 definitely have the second book on hand to pick up immediately after finishing the first one. you are going to need it. i can't imagine how people reading this when it was new had to suffer - to have to wait for the next book to be published. this is the mother of all cliffhangers. or, at least, it was until i finished the second book yesterday. 
 it is even worse. 
 in terms of agonizingly wonderful cliffhangers. 
 ** although i am looking closer now, and i am realizing that my math is all wrong (i thought those numbers seemed low)- but that this time it is not my fault. when did goodreads.com change things up so that all the reviews are together at the bottom, regardless of whether or not the are reviews by your friends. isn't the whole point of having "friends" that you have created this trusted community of readers whose values you respect? now i have to scroll through the three or four people on this site who aren't my friends to see the reviews of people whose opinions matter to me? this is insane! and it isn't even arranged by number of votes or anything - it is just - here are a ton of reviews - have fun finding the useful ones (like this one, surely!) in a sea of stranger danger. i hope this is just a temporary thing that is happening because it is taking one of the strengths specific to goodreads and pooing ("poo, todd!") all over it.