Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Wow, this book has a great concept. Nine children come to earth from a war ravaged planet, the last of their people, and they are seeking to hide amongst us until they come of age so they can come into their 'legacies' and kick some bad-guy fanny. The driving essence of the plot is that the kids are being hunted one-by-one by the bad guys who can only kill them in numeric order. And our hero, John, is #4 and #3 just got snuffed. The fact that there's already a movie shooting didn't hurt my expectations either. I was smiling cheerfully until I got four chapters into the book. Then it occurred to me that The Movie probably came first and that the book was just something thrown together by people who aren't all that familiar with how good YA (young adult) literature is these days. Good idea or not, "I am Number Four" has flat characters and utter predictability. There's also almost no descriptive writing -- like you'd find in a movie script. Not that you need much help to envision 'Mark' the smalltown, football star/bully who is jealous that John is now dating his beautiful ex-cheerleader girlfriend. (And yes, she's very blonde, smart, and has a beautiful eyes.) "I notice a girl taking pictures, moving easily from one group to the next. She's shockingly beautiful with straight blond hair past her shoulders, ivory skin, high cheekbones, and soft blue eyes. Everyone seems to know her and says hello to her, and no one objects to her taking their pictures. "She sees me, smiles and waves. I wonder why and turn to see if someone is behind me.... "'Don't be shy.' "'I'm not. Just trying to protect you lens. My face might break it." THE SKINNY::: I read a lot of YA, MG (Middle-grade) and kidlit, and this book doesn't compare well to "Hunger Games", Percy Jackson, or Mo Willems. Except for the plentiful scenes with kissing and the one (two?) moments when something interesting might have happened had-they-not-been-interrupted, this book would be perfect for Older Elementary aged kids[AR 4.0] and Middle-schoolers looking for a fun read. Personally, I think YA'ers would be better off reading "Split" or "Mockingjay" or re-reading something they loved. Middle-graders would better be directed to Gary Paulsen, "The Red Pyramid", or "Smells Like Dog". Something with adventure or humor or both if they are looking for a lighter read. Reading level - 4th Grade Pam T~ mom and blogger