The Rest Of Us Just Live Here
by Patrick Ness
Publisher – Walker UK Books
Release Date – August 27th 2015
Buy – Amazon | Book DepositoryWhat if you aren’t the Chosen One?
The one who’s supposed to fight the zombies, or the soul-eating ghosts, or whatever the heck this new thing is, with the blue lights and the death?
What if you’re like Mikey? Who just wants to graduate and go to prom and maybe finally work up the courage to ask Henna out before someone goes and blows up the high school. Again.
Because sometimes there are problems bigger than this week’s end of the world, and sometimes you just have to find the extraordinary in your ordinary life.
Even if your best friend is worshipped by mountain lions.
Award-winning writer Patrick Ness’s bold and irreverent novel powerfully reminds us that there are many different types of remarkable.
I first came across this novel when I was at a Walker Event in the summer. Patrick Ness read out an excerpt from it in a video and I was instantly hooked. Goosebumps just from him reading it and I knew I had to buy this book. I’d like to mention that this is my first (yes you heard right), first book of Patrick Ness. I guess you could say I’m a little sexist to my reasons, a) because I very rarely read anything by male writers and I find I can’t quite connect with them as much as female ones & b) they would usually write from a males perspective and I don’t usually read many from that POV only if it’s dual POV. I hope I’m not the only one and I’d like to apologise that I’m a little sexist, but what I will say is that I’ve been proven wrong about my preferences I guess. Patrick Ness is one of a kind for sure.
Mikey just wants to graduate it’s that simple and maybe confess his love to friend, Hanna. He’s really not asking for a lot. But Mikey isn’t just some kid in a small village, he has a best friend as the son of the demi-god and he’s also being hunted and surrounded by zombie deers and big mean police officers with blue eyes. Why him though? Mikey who lives in just some ordinary, small town like any other. There really isn’t a lot to say another than a lot of weird stuff happen. Throw in some vampires, oh and the time when there was some soul-eating demons of some kind, and you have yourself a Patrick Ness novel. Weird and wonderful mixed into one novel. You can’t say you’ve read many of those in your day, have you.
Mikey considers himself to be the outsider of the group. He thinks that everyone in his group thinks of him the last. But that isn’t quite the case. Mikey suffers from OCD, he part of this loop whether its washing his hands properly or counting the street lights as he’s in the car. These certain traits are triggered by his mum and her blatant act of not really caring and focusing on her campaign to be state senator. His father isn’t any better when he’s drunk, very rarely is he sober. His sister nearly died from a eating disorder and his Nan has Alzheimer. His life doesn’t seem all the great really. But a person that always helps him and is there for him, is his best friend Jared, who by some miracle is a demi-god. Yes you heard right. and he’s gay, but he’s open about that which I loved. What I felt that every single moment he was fighting to be himself, or some resemblance of who he was before the loops.
I’d like to first point out in my defense that I thought Mikey was a girl. Your probably thinking how could you think that. Well when all I read is from a female perspective unless occasionally written in dual POV. But that was entirely my fault and not to the disadvantage of Ness’s writing. I grant you that it took a while to get accustomed to a different writer and one such as Patrick Ness. What I loved is that he didn’t shy away from the being both honest and realistic mixed in with the wacky world of the Immortals either. With realistic elements like the background, Mikey’s OCD, young love, family troubles. Some of the story was rather predictable but I think that was part of what Ness was trying to create. It was made to look like that Mikey was going to get to graduation with something happening to him. It was inevitable. He certainly made me laugh, even now as I’m writing this, it’s making me chuckle at the ludarisy of the world he makes but in such a good way. In a way he writes it’s completely faultless.
Another point was that at each chapter, Ness did this mini story… it would usually go:
“Chapter the Fourth, in which Satchel and Dylan sit in a coffee house with understated live music….”
which usually follows the story of the Indie kids one named Flynn and one named Satchel, (not the bag, a name) and for some bizarre reason I couldn’t quite get it and even another reader said but I went with it and in the end it proved to have a point in the end. It was tied nice and neatly.
I’ll like to reiterate that I will no longer things as black and white when it comes to female and male authors or characters for that matter. I think it’s what I’ve enjoyed in the end and I guess the majority falls to the female side. But Patrick Ness has opened my eyes and I think I’d like to give some of his other books a go too. Maybe A Monster Calls I hear is good. The Rest of Us Just Live Here in 3 words being in W = Weird, Wackey and Wonderful.
Rating – 5
Wonderful review! I can tell how much you really loved this. 😀
Yes I really really did! Thanks. 🙂
Another amazing review for this book, you really are convincing me to read this one, Emma! I, like you, read mostly women written fiction so this one should be some welcome variety because it comes highly recommended!
It really does come highly recommended. 🙂 Hope you give this one a try! 🙂
I haven't read anything by Patrick Ness either Emma! I tend to gravitate toward female authors as well, though I think that's more because of my genre preferences rather than conscious choice (or maybe not, I've never really paid attention!), and I can see why it would take you a little while to settle in to his writing. So glad you loved this one overall!
I think that was my thing as female writers tended to gravitate to what I love. Thanks Jenny! 🙂
I'm not sure I read him – woe is me! But I'll check out his books for sure. Wonderful review, Emma 🙂
Thanks Ramona. I think you check his work out. Completely stunned me with his writing. 🙂
That's great to hear that you had such a great experience that opened you up to male authors. I never even pay attention. lol. I mostly read male authors growing up … John Saul, Dean Koontz, Stephen King … yeah, I read a lot of horror when I was a little girl. LOL. I haven't read anything by Ness, but this is for sure my kind of read.
Oh that's great. I don't think I noticed what I read until now and I can't really recall if I did read any male authors. But I'm glad I have now. 🙂
I haven't had much luck with Ness in the past but I'm curious to try some his recent works so I should definitely check this one out, especially if it's as unique as you say. Fantastic review, Emma!
I think it is unique, but I haven't read anything else by him either so I could be very wrong too. lol. Thanks Keertana! 🙂
I've heard so many good things about this book. And I mean GOOD THINGS! And I have no doubt about that because this author is a living legend to me, especially his A MONSTER CALLS book which pretty much made me cry buckets and buckets of tears. I can't wait to try this out!!!
Faye at The Social Potato
I haven't read AMC but I know when I ask some people what other books from this author, they all say that one. So I think I will gravitate to that novel next of his. 🙂
I just received this book in a subscription box this month and I am so excited about starting it because Ness is one of my all time fav authors! So great to hear that you loved this too, Emma!
Lovely review <33
Oh I just saw your post about that. Cracking book to have as your subscription can't wait to see what you think. Thanks Mel! 🙂
I'm so glad you liked this one! I looooove Patrick Ness, but I wasn't sure what to think when I read the description for THE REST OF US JUST LIVE HERE. All of his books are so different, but that's part of what makes him an amazing author. This is on my TBR pile, and I'll definitely be reading it soon. Great review!
Eli @ The Silver Words