The Maze Runner

I’m about 3/4 through “The Maze Runner” I’ve really enjoyed it. It reminds me of many other novels I’ve read especially the classic “Lord of the Flies”. The characters are likable and easy to relate to. It is a very male centered novel even though a female is introduced about half way through. There are profound thematic issues to discuss like “survival of the fittest” “big brother voyeurism” and “genius children”. The novel is quite long and could easily be taught at the end of 6th grade or 8th grade. It could be fun to do an elaborate maze metaphor activity along with the reading. My only concern is the characters “dialect” of sorts. They have created their own language using words like “shuck” which feels like a pejorative for the “f” word. I hate pejoratives. I thought maybe the author was English and therefore the loose use of the pejorative. After some investigation I discovered he grew up in Georgia. Hmmmm. Plus it’s the first in a trilogy. Ohhhh gosh trilogies are hard to teach. I’ll need to see how the ending works.