The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "The funny thing about facing imminent death is that it really snaps everything else into perspective..." (more)
Key Phrases: dog crate, New York, Central Park, Lake Mead (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Themes from Patterson's popular adult titles When the Wind Blows and The Lake House waft through this YA thriller, the author's first in the genre. Wood stars as Maximum Ride, 14-year-old leader of a band of kids who have escaped the lab where they were bred as 98% human and 2% bird (wings being a key component) and developed a variety of other-worldly talents. In Patterson's unusual universe, Max and her young cohorts are soon forced to rescue one of their own—a girl named Angel—from a pack of mutant wolf-humans called Erasers. Wood nails Patterson's often adult-beyond-their-years dialogue with a jaded tone. But the result of this pairing makes Max sound more off-putting than cool or intriguing. The listening experience is stalled in the starting gate, keeping the action-adventure earthbound rather than high-flying. Ages 12-up. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up–A group of genetically enhanced kids who can fly and have other unique talents are on the run from part-human, part-wolf predators called Erasers in this exciting SF thriller that's not wholly original but is still a compelling read. Max, 14, and her adopted family–Fang and Iggy, both 13, Nudge, 11, Gazzy, 8, and Angel, 6–were all created as experiments in a lab called the School. Jeb, a sympathetic scientist, helped them escape and, since then, they've been living on their own. The Erasers have orders to kill them so the world will never find out they exist. Max's old childhood friend, Ari, now an Eraser leader, tracks them down, kidnaps Angel, and transports her back to the School to live like a lab rat again. The youngsters are forced to use their special talents to rescue her as they attempt to learn about their pasts and their destinies. The novel ends with the promise that this journey will continue in the sequel. As with Patterson's adult mystery thrillers, in-depth characterization is secondary to the fast-moving plot. The narrative alternates between Max's first-person point-of-view and that of the others in the third person, but readers don't get to know Max very well. The only major flaw is that the children sound like adults most of the time. This novel is reminiscent of David Lubar's Hidden Talents (Tor, 1999) and Ann Halam's Dr. Franklin's Island (Random, 2002).–Sharon Rawlins, Piscataway Public Library, NJ
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (April 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316067954
• ISBN-13: 978-0316067959
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (319 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #833 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #22 in	Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Adventure & Thrillers
  #28 in	Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction
  #37 in	Books > Teens > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

• This is item 1 in The Maximum Ride Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

92 of 95 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great adventure from James Patterson, October 16, 2006

By	Eddie Lancekick "A Regulator" (Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Surprised at all the negative reviews, but then again its all just opinion, so here is mine: James Patterson isn't Ernest Hemingway!

Maximum ride is a fast read. Its a fast read because it is fun, imaginative, and adventurous. It centers on a group of various children who all have certain genetic enhancements. One of these enhancements is the ability to fly. The children are from a place called "The Institute" and soon they leave this place only to find themselves lost in an unfamiliar world...OURS. Despite the odds, the crew sticks together, until the ERASERS find them. Erasers are other mutant type children from the same secret facility; only they all seem to turn into werewolves with superhuman strength!

From the beginning, the book is a fun read. It's told from the viewpoint of Max, the oldest of the children. In her early teens, it is her who must protect the others while somehow raising them, keeping them together, and keeping everyone as a unit. The Erasers are sent out to capture them, kill them, or do whatever it is they have orders to do. Patterson mixes a modern day world with a little pop-culture thrown in here and there for reminders with fantasy. The Erasers run the streets as humans but at any time can be descending upon the kids by Hummer or Helicopter, armed with bare claws or assault rifles. The action scenes that consist of everything from car chases and helicoptor scouting to hand to hand combat is very well detailed. The most menacing of the ERASERS is Ari, who taunts Max and the others, partly because he has a connected past with them, which is further revealed later in the story.

The scenes at the Institute were nothing less than scary as we feel the horror, apprehension, and dismay the children in the cages feels. That's another prop I have to give Patterson, is that he really makes you CARE for these kids. When you care about the characters you read about, that's better than just reading, it's feeling as well. Not to get to emotional, I just really liked the way Patterson was able to describe the emotions that come with being an adolescent mutant government experiment whose only real quest in life is to be normal, and have your parents back. Patterson also enhances this world that Maximum Ride and her companions are in by adding Max's "Blog" on the final pages, along with some sketches and photographs. If only window dressing, it still adds to the future that is to be Maximum Ride's universe.

The story takes places in various locales as we follow the kids on a journey, first to save one of their own, then to find their parents, and yet again to save others. Patterson also does a good job of unraveling some mystery along the way, which helps explain why some things are the way they are, without giving away anything from the suspense and shock that got you there in the first place. Will the kids ever go home again? What will become of the institute? Will the chip be removed? Who is the kid in the tunnel? Patterson's novel is part fantasy, part cyber punk, and all Adventure at every turn. I look forward to reading the next Maximum Ride Adventure (Schools out forever) and yes, despite all the reviews you may read, they were jumping to conclusions, there is a second part in this series!

65 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Promising, but incomplete., May 29, 2005

By	K. St Clair "feathin" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1) (Audio CD)

First of all, I've never read any other James Patterson books. I understand from the reviews that this is an advantage-- people who read "When the Wind Blows" and "The Lake House" seem to feel particularly cheated, because this book is a re-worked version of the story in those books but does not match up them. Without the hindrance of these preconceived notions, I quite enjoyed the story. Were it not for the huge flaw of the incomplete ending, I would happily give it 5 stars.

I listened to it in audio format, narrated by Evan Rachel Wood. I thought her narration was excellent and well-matched to the story. The story is marketed as a book for teens. I am an adult-- I chose it partially for my own benefit, as a science fiction fan, and partially to preview it for the possibility of handing it down to my own children.

As a parent, I found the content well-suited for a wide age range. Were it not for the problem of the ending, I would feel comfortable giving it to my 8-year-old daughter to listen to, and it wouldn't bother me if my 5-year-old son listened as well (though I don't think it would hold his interest). I particularly like the strong female protagonist. There IS violence-- the mutant bird-children protagonists are hunted by mutant dog-people and have several bloody fights. Most of it is fist-fight kind of stuff, but there is some gunplay as well. However, I did not find it gratuitous or unduly gory. There is death as well, but the death comes to "bad guys" and it too is not "gratuitous"-- it is treated somberly and with appropriate angst. Probably the most disturbing elements are those of the inhumane treatment of the children at the hands of the scientists who have genetically engineered them and raised them as experimental animals rather than as people. Most of this though happens off camera and is alluded to indirectly.

The big problem with the book is the fact that it doesn't really end. Well, it ENDS, but it doesn't FINISH. I am a long-time sci-fi and fantasy fan well-accustomed to double-digit series, but this is unfinished even by that standard. There is no satisfactory closure and no real answers to the dozens of mysteries raised in the story. I sincerely hope that the sequel resolves some of these mysteries and lives up to the wonderful promise of this part of this story-- I will certainly be buying the sequel as soon as it is available! However, for those of you not yet involved, I think I would recommend that you not start this one until there IS a sequel, and reviews telling you that there is some element of completion to the story!

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Only One Word-AMAZING, January 30, 2006

By	D. Reaghan - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1) (Hardcover)

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment is truly an amazing book. I picked up at noon and couldn't put it down (literally) until 2:00 am when I finished it. I was so worked up i didn't sleep all night. I actually reread some parts of the book. This book is, in a sense, based on When the Wind Blows and The Lake House. Max, the main character is 98% human and 2% avian (bird)is in all three books, but the other characters are changed up a little bit.

The book starts off with this warning, "If you dare to read this story, you become part of the Experiment. I know that sounds a little mysterious-but it's all I can say right now-Max" As soon as I read this, I knew this was going to be a good book. The main characters in this book are Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel. The book starts off right in the first few chapters. Angel gets captured by the Erasers, part human, part wolf, and taken back to the horride School (which they escaped in When the Wind Blows). The flock then has to go rescue her and along the way, many things happen. Max gets shot when she helps a little girl named Ella, the Gasman and Iggy set off the Big Boy, a bomb, and kills many Erasers, and Fang and Nudge gind the "hawk" in them.

When the flock finally gets Angel out, Max learns that she has a chip in her arm and the Voice in her head. Amazingly painful headaches announce the presence of the Voice. Painful enough to knock her out cold and fall dangerously from the sky at about a mile high. Lickily Fang catches her (one of my favorite parts). The flock eventually goes to this Institue in NYC and finds horrilbe experiments being done. "Gruesome," was what one of the flock had said. The flock helps the kids get out and in the process, Max kills an Eraser named Ari.

This, so far, is my all time favorite book. I love Max's character, not to mention her wings. Her spunk and her confidence in herself always amazed me. One reason why I think I liked this book so much was something that James Patterson said, "I think people like this book (When the Wind Blows-close enough) because everybody has, at one time or another, dreamt of flying. And these books bring you into lives of people who can fly." I truly believe this is true, what J. Patterson said.

This is an great book!!!:)