The Knife of Never Letting Go

Ness, P. (2008). The knife of Never Letting Go. Boston, MA: Candlewick Press. Todd Hewitt is a fourteen year old boy that enters a new world where all males are men by age 13. Most people on the new world have been infected with a germ called Spackle and all remaining men could hear each other’s thoughts. This infliction is known as the Noise. There are no other females in the new world besides Viola. Her ship had crash landed on the new world. So she and Todd decide to travel together. During their journey, Viola hears Todd’s “noise” and it frightens her but they later find out that women are not affected by the disease. They set out to travel further in search of a cure for the disease. On their journey, they encounter a series of events that lead to Todd having to sacrifice his dog and even surrendering himself to save Viola. This book is intended for students 14 years and up. Students may enjoy finding “escapes” from the real world. This book allows students to use their imaginations but they would also be able to link some of the experiences to reality. I would suggest other books by Patrick Ness for further reading like Monsters and Men and The Asked and The Answered. This book meets the criteria discussed in the text on developing lifetime readers. Students are able to use their imaginations, find enjoyment in the text and they may be relate to the experiences.