So when I first heard about The Unidentified by Rae Mariz, I was excited for a different kind of dystopian.
When a group calling themselves The Unidentified simulates a suicide to protest the power structure of their school, Kid’s investigation into their pranks attracts unwanted attention from the sponsors. As Kid finds out she doesn’t have rights to her ideas, her privacy, or identity, she and her friends look for a way to revolt in a place where all acts of rebellion are just spun into the next new ad campaign.”
Kid is a really great character. She is just kind of there in the Game — she’s not obsessed with branding. She doesn’t wear the latest clothes. All she cares about is making her music, the one thing that defines her.
And, really, that’s kind of a good way to describe this book. There was *so* much that could have been done with this story. But instead, it’s just kind of there.
I guess I kind of set myself up to be disappointed.
There really wasn’t a whole lot of suspense. It wasn’t hard for Kid to figure out who the Unidentified are in the school. And when she did, she didn’t really do anything with the knowledge.
The Unidentified didn’t really do a whole lot. It wasn’t this revolutionary group that changed a whole lot of anything. In the end, their big “act of rebellion” was kind of anticlimactic.
And I didn’t really even get how the Game was plausible. I mean, it was supposed to be school, but they never went to classes. They got occasional text messages that asked questions and increased their rank, but how is that a replacement for education? Maybe I misunderstood the purpose of the game. I don’t know.
The book was permeated with references to products. It seemed a little forced. There were registered trademark symbols following each reference to a trademarked item.
It was an easy, fast read. I read it in a day. And it was interesting. But not earth-shattering.
Thanks for your honest review. Maybe I'll get this from the library sometime.
I absolutely agree with your review. I couldn't figure out what the purpose of the game was, and nothing really happened. Kid seemed very blah to me and I didn't really connect with her. Which is always a deal breaker for me.
I really enjoyed this book. In the beginning, I was not so sure of it. I felt like it would only appeal to tweens and maybe early teens. But after reading it for several chapters, I was enthralled by it.
I thought it was almost scary to think that this could actually be in our distant future. To do away with actual school to promote brands? Seriously that is so possible to do. So many people in this country forget our old fashioned values and rely so much on what is new and the best. Our kids today are so different then when I was a child (I am 37). Each generation has their own world basically. To think that this could be reality someday worries me sick. To see what Kid saw beyond everyone else was so insightful to me. This story screamed that one person can make a difference no matter what the circumstance. I really feel that you should give this book a try. Get past the first several chapters before you honestly form an opinion. You will be glad you did!
Thanks for the honest review.
Darn! I had high hopes for this one as well! I'm sorry to hear it was disappointing. I guess I'll move it to the bottom of my TBR pile. Thank you for the honest review!
I started this book, just couldn't get into it.