The Maze Runner (Science Fiction)

A slow start, but I really liked this book. Once the author got going I wanted to know what was going to happen next. I was attempting to piece events and ideas together along with the characters.

This is book 1 of the series. Fortunately, it's not a cliffhanger; the book ends with the characters accomplishing their goal and contemplating their future. 

The epilogue has a sense of intrigue that makes you want to read the other books in the series (which I already have and will be doing soon).

*Spoiler alert*

If I had to play devils advocate I could ask why they had to go through so much trouble just to determine if the characters were strong willed and/or up to the challenge. These were extreme lengths, although, the answer to that may be found in remaining books.

Movie vs. Book

I liked the movie and I felt that it was close enough to the book to pass. It was small differences that irked me though. Examples include:

§  The serum, which was already with the gladers in the book. In the movie, the girl brought the serum down. The movie has the gladers going crazy because of the bites/stings from the grievers, whereas, the book has them responding to memories from the serum.

§  I pictured their dwellings differently then the movie portrayed them. 

§  The maps were a focus and the key to codes needed to exit the maze in the book, not so in the movie, which only used the sequence of the maze as the only code needed.

§  In the movie they did not explain why Alby, who was not a runner, broke his own rule and left the maze. In the book, Minho found a dead griever and Alby was going with him to check it out. He was bitten because the griever was only playing dead.

§  In the book, Thomas didn't defeat the griever by squishing in it between the walls, but by making it jump off the cliff. 

My favorite characters in the book were Minho and Newt. Dashner did a good job with character development, but the movie didn't quite get the characters right in my opinion. Examples include:

 §  Alby, whom was portrayed as a no-nonsense kind of guy with a hidden soft side. While the movie hinted at this eventually, the book showed it from Alby's introduction. In the book, Thomas talked about how Alby was had a chip on his shoulder and about how unapproachable he was. It Was Newt that greeted, showed around and addressed Thomas' questions and/or concerns. In the movie Alby was the welcoming committee. 

§  Then there's Gally. He already had the serum before Thomas came and didn't like him from the door. He remembered Thomas' face from his serum induced memories.

§  The boy who attacked Thomas wasn't coming in from the maze with a bite, but was already bitten and going through the serum induced change when Thomas arrived.

I just listed a few difference….I didn’t want to give everything away. If you don’t mind spoilers, I would   suggest watching the movie first – reading the book first kind of ruins it for you. Then definitely read the book. The book is always better than the movie.

Book description and picture taken from: http://jamesdashner.com/books/maze-runner-series/

Book Description

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift. Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.