When I received Divergent for my birthday, I had no idea what to expect. The cover art was very powerful and enticing, with a circle of flames and big, bold letters declaring DIVERGENT. Though I had never read the book before, I was eager to start. When I had finally finished reading it about a week later, it became one of my most favorite books.

Divergent is about a dystopian city, separate from the rest of the world. In the city, there are five factions, or groups/towns with unique ideas on how to run their own society or culture. The factions are Abnegation (those who praise selflessness above all else), Amity (those who praise kindness above all else), Erudite (those who praise knowledge above all else), Candor (those who praise honesty above all else), and Dauntless (those who praise bravery above all else).

Every year, all the 16-year-olds from each faction take a test to see what faction they have the most aptitude for. The day after they receive their answer, they must go to the Choosing Ceremony. In the ceremony, the 16-year-olds will one-by-one cut their hand with a knife and sprinkle their blood in one of the bowls that symbolize their new or old faction, therefore permanently choosing it.

Tris Prior was one of those, but on her Choosing Day, both she and her brother (Caleb) choose to leave their faction. She chose Dauntless, and Caleb chose Erudite. Tris went on to begin initiation for her new faction, but since this is the most ruthless faction, nothing comes easy. She becomes friends with Christina, Al, and Will, all transfers, and develops a close relationship with her instructor, Four.

Tris then finds out that Erudite is planning to overthrow the factions. She works with her new friends from Dauntless to prevent their uprising, making hard and emotional sacrifices along the way.

I do not recommend this book to people who do not enjoy gory books and murder stories. But, many people will enjoy Divergent for its action-packed moments, unrelentless cliffhangers, and thrilling scenes. Even though I had never read anything like this before, I really enjoyed the experience. All in all, I am glad I decided to read this book. I recommend this book to teens who like gory stories and action-packed moments.

Lilly-Rose Madani ’27, Staff Writer

27lmadani@montroseschool.org