The Message of the Messenger

I recently finished 'I Am the Messenger' by Markus Zusak and since Martha blogged about The Book Thief, it is only fitting I write about this one.

Ed & his Aces

Ed Kennedy is a nineteen-year-old taxi driver. He has no goals or accomplishments to speak of. He lives in a run down apartment with his elderly dog, plays card games few nights a week with his pals, and loves a girl desperately who doesn't want to love him back. He concludes his life is pretty meaningless and he's only going through the motion of living.

One day, he foils a bank robbery and gets his fifteen minutes of fame. As he settles back into his old routine, he receives an old Ace of Diamond playing card in the mail. Three pairs of address and time are written on it. At first hesitant and confused, he checks them out one by one. He discovers that he has to help someone in each of these houses. A woman being abused by her husband almost every night, a lonely old woman, and a girl who has no self-confidence. Just as he thought he's done, another playing card with another set of tasks, is given to him.

Although the genre and style are different, I experienced the same feeling with this book as with The Five People You Meet in Heaven. I felt inspired and lectured on without appearing so. Zusak successfully blurred the lines between reality and sublime, metaphorical events. He drives his message directly through the reader's hearts. I found myself urging Ed to finish his tasks every time a card arrives at his doorstep.


-Faye