Sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior, originally of the Abnegation clan, resides in a world divided into different sections, or factions, known as Candor, Erudite, Dauntless, Abnegation, and Amity. She is shown as a unique girl, unlike the others in Abnegation. When the time arrives via the Aptitude Tests and Choosing Ceremony, she is given the result of “Divergent,” meaning no explicit faction was chosen for her is dangerous and cannot be uttered. She shares this with her brother, Caleb, who is around the same age but does not with her mother and father. On the day of the Choosing Ceremony, her mother suspects this, so she smiles and tells her she’ll always love her, while her father is completely sure she will not betray him. Before her, Caleb is up, and he surprises everyone by going to Erudite, as he was as Abnegation as they come. Beatrice was contemplating staying with her parents, as they had already lost Caleb, but at the last moment, she put her blood on the “Dauntless” bowl, surprising everyone too. As her first test, She is required to jump off a moving train, and if she fails, she will either die or become one of the factionless, which is much worse, Beatrice passes it with the help of her first friend at Dauntless, a transfer from Candor named Christina. They then move on to the second initiative test, where Beatrice is the first to volunteer to fall off a cliff and hope there is a net of some sort, which they were. They then go to the Dauntless hideout and meet Four, a Dauntless mentor who guides them through a tour and sits down with them during the first meeting, where they meet Eric who tells them that only the best 10 initiatives will become members. That night, as she was going to sleep, the last thing she heard were the cries of the transfers, especially a boy named Al. Their first major test is a spar test, and Christina goes against Molly, a bully transfer, and is forced to give up before she is killed. Beatrice is allowed to skip the first day because there was an uneven number, but that joy is quickly replaced with fear as she is up against Peter the next day, one of the most likely candidates to become a member, one of Molly’s bully friends, and a foot taller than Beatrice. Beatrice is beaten up and blacks out, but luckily, someone yells to stop, and she lives and wakes up the next day. Divergent is one of those books that even when you’ve been reading for hours, you can’t stop because there is always an interesting part that you can’t just put on hold. It’s so memorable and constantly exciting. I agree with mainly all of what Roth says, as she appeals very much to the readers and is careful not to touch on offensive topics. This book does not have direct effects on me, and my opinions have stayed the same, but definitely has helped me boost my appreciation for confidence and determination. This novel was very memorable, and ties in many important topics, like femininity, identity, dreams, hopes, and plans. To future readers, enjoy the book and make sure to really read between the lines to find important information that you wouldn’t notice if read on the surface.
Apoorv P.
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