powerless

powerless

By: Matthew Cody

Alfred A. Knopf

Copyright 2009

pp. 277

powerless

2012 Rebecca Caudill Award Nominee

    powerless is an amazing book; I could not put it down! In my opinion, this book has it all: adventure, mystery and fantasy. This young adult novel has many universal themes that would appeal to a wide variety of readers such as friendship, belonging, bullying, and scholarship. powerless follows the story of Daniel, a new kid in the town of Noble Green and the group of children he meets there who just happen to have superhuman abilities. At times, Daniel has feelings of worthlessness because he does not have powers like his new friends, and he can not help his sick grandmother.  However, he soon discovers superhuman powers are not what make a person powerful. This book reminded me of the Harry Potter series because of the themes of friendship, loyalty, and good versus evil. Daniel and his new friends work together to overcome a mysterious, shadowy, evil villain who is out to steal the powers of the children for his own use. By banding together and using their own unique abilities, Daniel and his friends are dynamic forces in their battle for justice.  Matthew Cody has left the ending open to many future storylines, which I hope he will continue to write.