I Am Number Four

            In the book, I am Number Four, by Pittacus Lore, the main character, John (or at least that is his current name) is one of the nine remaining people of the planet Lorien. They are being hunted down by rival aliens, the Madagoriens. One by one, they are being found and killed by them, the only rule in this bloodthirsty hunt is that hey must be killed in order of their numbers. After numbers One, Two, and Three are killed, it is time for John to really start hiding. He is number four. You see, only nine people, or rather aliens, managed to escape from Lorien to Earth, along with their Cepans or mentors, when the planet was invaded and taken over by Madagoriens. Now these evil aliens plan to take over Earth as well, but in order to do so, they must destroy the remaining Lorien that live on Earth. Now that there are no longer any people in front of him in line, John has to be extra careful where he steps. Being found means certain death. So he moves to Ohio, changes his name to John Smith, the most common name he can think of, and tries to blend in like so many other times in his life.

            There were a lot of themes in this book, but the one I chose to focus on was self to character connection. One thing that I loved about this book was that it made me feel a lot of compassion for John, and all the other characters, because I could connect to the emotions they were feeling throughout the story. For example, I was genuinely scared when the Madagorians started hunting John down. I mean, imagine if you were number four in a line of people being murdered one by one, and the one link, the one thing that kept you from being next, was gone!!! Another point in the story when I felt very connected to him was when John and Henri, his Cepan, are leaving Florida where they were temporarily living. They have just gotten out of site of their old house and John thinks to himself:

“It’s not that I'm necessarily sad to leave Florida, but I'm tired of running. I’m tired of dreaming up a new name every six months. Tired of new houses, new schools. I wonder if it’ll ever be possible for us to stop.”

I really felt his struggle here. I know that I would not be happy if every few months I had to tie up my old life, throw it away, and leave, like it was nothing more than garbage. People and places that had served me well while I needed it, but then had to be left behind as I grew out of it. I think that John just wants to settle down, and make a friend or two. Of course, he has made friends before, but not ones that he knew were going to be with him for a while. Not ones that he didn’t have to worry about lying to or how close to get to when he knew he would be leaving soon. On every first day of school for John, Henri reminds him to be careful, stay inconspicuous, and not make many connections. And so far, that has been ok for John, until he fell in love. People from Lorien have been blessed (or cursed) with the ability to “love completely. Without jealousy or insecurity or fear. Without pettiness. Without anger.” When they fall in love, it is usually for life. I can’t imagine what it would be like to leave the love of my life without even explaining. Throughout the book, I was praying John wouldn’t have to leave, just for this reason.

            Over all, I couldn’t put this book down, for many reasons. The characters were really relatable, and the book was very interesting. Not just good, because I was addicted! I can’t wait to read the sequel! I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good adventure/ Sci-fi book with a good romantic twist.