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| Review Summary |
In King's book "Cell", the main character (a comic book illustrator who is unhappily estranged from his wife and misses his young son) has just signed a great deal and decides to celebrate by buying a few treats for himself and his son.
While stopping for an ice cream, he observes two teenage girls suddenly "lose it" and begin attacking each other and random passers-by. What begins as a confusing mess turns into a long, BORING plot of people being plagued by a "cell-phone virus" that causes them to essential turn into stereotypical zombies.
The story drags on and on with no real further plot development; the main character meets others, they travel towards a rendezvous point, they try to figure out the virus, etc. The plot is incredibly predictable.
The story's anticlimatic ending involves the reunion of the main character and his son--who, of course, has been affected by the virus. (You see this coming from another time zone.)
Linda Hahn, Resident Scholar
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All cellphones deliver a "pulse" that causes users to go mad and start
killing themselves and others in gruesome and bazarre ways. The "phonies" are reduced to primative animal zombie-like behavior. A group of people who were not infected try to stay alive while plotting to kill these beings who are starting to form a collective mind, with special abilities and advanced powers. The story is told mostly through the eyes of one man on a business trip to a city, who wonders and worries about his son, who recieved his first cellphone recently, and whether he is normal or a phonie
Deborah Stoops, Resident Scholar
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A mysterious electromagnetic event called the Pulse turns everyone using cell phones into a murderous zombie, killing off most of the normal human race. An artist and family man, Clay Riddell watches the terrifying transformation and escapes to try and find his family.
The cell-phone zombies quickly evolve into a group-mind which is telepathic and psychokinetic with a hive spokesman called the Raggedy Man. They steer the remaining defiant humans into a fairground/arena setting, prepared to dispose of them. Clay and his friends have very little time. Can they destroy the altered race or will they become its last victims?
C. L. Rossman, Resident Scholar
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The stock market is at 10,410, all planes were on time, and Clayton Riddell is literally jumping with joy. He has just made a comic book deal with a company, which will allow him to support his family by making art instead of teaching it. His happiness is so great that he even buys a gift for his wife as a surprise, as well as something for his son Johnny. All is going fine on this fine October day, until...
An organization wants to deliver a phenomenon to millions of people in the United States. The name of this phenomenon is "The Pulse" and the way to get it to people is cell phones. Everybody's cell phone! There are over 93 million cell phones in America, which means 93 million people are targeted by The Pulse. This phenomenon will deliver messages to people's cells and will cause them to turn into zombies. All of America quickly turns into dead people walking around, and terrorizing the city. Clay and a few other desperate survivors are in the midst of this. As The Pulse grows, lives are lost. Clay is fleeing wherever he can for his life, but can he survive? But for some reason, Clay has a gut feeling that he must return to his home town Maine. Accompanied by the survivors, the artist makes his way around America to get to his destination. Along the way, he realizes that his son Johnny has a cell phone also. What form will Clay's son be in when he gets back home?
Walid Khalid, Resident Scholar
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| Detailed literary breakdown of Cell |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 30%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 20%
Tone of book
- very upbeat
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- fantasy story on current Earth
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Horror story?
Yes
Horror plotlets
- the zombie chased me!
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- writer
- artist
Age:
- 20's-30's
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- an entire race
Has magical powers?
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Setting
Earth setting:
- current (early 21st century)
Takes place on Earth?
Yes
Style
Person?
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- explicit references to deaths
How much dialogue?
- significantly more dialog than descript
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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