Book Title: Banded
Author: Logan Byrne
Series Name: Banded
Book No.: Book 1
Genre: Dystopian, Teen & Young Adult
Published: Febuary 2014
Publisher: Logan Byrne

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Welcome to Berg's Book Club! As some of you know, I am doing the pop sugar challenge, one of the prompts is a Favourite prompt from the 2015-2017 challenges by PopSugar

I chose the prompt:

A book with a bad review

After reading Lizzie's book review on Banded by Logan Byrne, I decided this book would be perfect!

It is a dystopian book, trying to imitate popular contemporary dystopian like the Hunger Games, Divergent and Delirium.... only .... it forgets it's supposed to be telling a story. 

Synopsis

A society has lived in a tyranical reign for the last three generations, wearing unmovable bands that mark their obedience. Once the band marks the wearer as a poor citizen and marks them as "0", the wearer dies. 

Kaleen turns sixteen, and must get sorted to a zone that chooses her job before she is given one of these bands. Then she goes through training at HQ for three months.  

A longer synopsis can be found on Goodreads.

There are several problems with this book. The writing, the character development, the plot, and the sexist point of view that is throughout this novel.

Exposition

At the beginning of the book, Kaleen is celebrating her sixteenth birthday with her sister and mother. Her mother is wearing a band, which reminds me of one of those house-arrest straps. There explanation of the sorting, which ok, it is the beginning of the book, you expect a bit of exposition, but... there is a lot of exposition in the book. Some would be expected at the start, to fill in the reader. However, there are different ways to execute exposition so it doesn't feel like the reader is being told it rather than being immersed in the book. This is the issue here. There just isn't anything to immerse me. Bryne also seemes to think that the author has memory loss, and the characters are being told about the world that they have grown up in.

Readers with short term memory

At the bottom of a page (iPad Kindle), Kal states that only mothers and the sortee can go to the sorting, so her sister cannot go. On the next kindle page, halfway down, Kal's sister asks if she can go to the sorting. Now Kal's sister, Tria, has lived in this society for the whole of her life... She would know she cannot go to the sorting. But let's pretend Tria is a dumb 10-year-old kid for the minute, her mom tells her she cannot go and explains why.

"Only parents of the kids being sorted are allowed to attend,” my mother said, trying to not make her feel as though she’d done something wrong.

There could have been a better way to show this, the dialogue reads as if Logan is telling the author, not the kid. Something like, "sorry sweetie, you know the rules", the sister could then respond with: "only mothers and sortees" with a curt nod. It would also make Kal's statement redundant and get rid of things being repeated. While the exposition is still there, it's hidden in action and character understanding.

Lack of world-building

If you live in a world, you know how it works to some degree, especially as a sixteen-year-old. People in the UK, for example will know sixteen-year-olds will be taking their GCSEs and preparing for college or sixth-form. It doesn't have to be explained to them as they sit in a giant assembly. Bryne seems to think it does as Kal sits in a hall with many others her age to be told how the society she was born in works which means that the reader is spoon-fed all the information rather than discovering it. Her new friend, Ivan is sorted into Astute (Ravenclaw/Erudite) and has no arc. His sole task is to explain everything. Literally. Everything.

Honestly, if Kal had fallen in a rabbit-hole, you'd understand her needing to be told but... she was born there! Additionally, Ivan is able to solve any mystery within the next chapter using his skills to extract information from old tech... so anything that seems interesting is quickly solved. At least it took know-it-all Hermione half the book, or nearly killing herself to solve a mystery!

The exposition is so bad that the foreshadowing stands out a mile.

"My name is Justine. I guess we’re roommates,” she said, a very faint accent coming out as she spoke.

First of all, the characters have never left the zone they were born in and so would not be familiar with what accent belongs to what zone. And secondly, it's not that subtle that this character is up to something if she is the only one with an accent... I mean, seriously, it shouldn't have taken them half the book to discover she is the spy.

However, Bryne does try and add visuals ... of how a shower stops when you turn it off. Because not everyone knows it drips for a while afterwards, right?

Dialogue

Everyone but the guards, the president and the warden at HQ are sixteen-year-olds, yet apart from when Kal loses her point on her band for disobeying a teacher, the kids all sound like they are in their 30s. They all have wise things to say, and yes you can get mature sixteen-year-olds but not every character that has a talking part.

You’re her baby boy, and I know she stays awake at night thinking about you and how you’re doing. Leaving her again will be hard, I’m sure of it, but isn’t it better to go and see her once than to never see her again?”

No sixteen year old would describe another sixteen-year-old as someone's baby boy. And the response:

Thank you for consoling me today. It means a lot. You’re a great girl.

Consoling? What 16-year-old says thanks for consoling? More like thanks for being here or just thanks.

Not only this, but they are at HQ for three months and this first book (Yep - it's the dystopian trilogy thing) takes place in the first three weeks of the three months that they are there. Kal is there for two weeks when Hector/Jericho says to an angry Kal:

This isn't you...

It has been two weeks, how does he know how she acts when she is angry? Honestly, I just wasn't feeling the dialogue at all. It's too robotic.

The World Building

There is no world-building in this book at all. We do not see what the world looks like outside the HQ and Kaleen's house. The only attempt at the world-building is the explanation in the history class that tells you about the failed revolution and how other countries followed the band system once they saw that it worked for Manhatten, New York.

Zones

We are told about the six zones, each zone has a number, a colour and 'traits':

1. Stalwart: symbolised by the colour red,  are the zone that would be Gryffindor or Dauntless. You know, the houses or zones in Harry Potter and Divergent. They are the ones that become the bodyguards or work in the army.
2. Astute is represented by blue and are the Ravenclaw (Harry Potter) or Eruditesque (Divergent) zones, taking the scientists and teaching jobs.  (noticing a pattern?)
3. Collusive - (green) they are the leaders, the politicians and business owners. So basically, Slytherin and Erudite again. Loving the matching colours to the Harry Potter books, I must say
4. Radiant  - they are the yellow zone, beautiful entertainers and modules. Nothing relating to loyalty so it has finally broken the Harry Potter scheme! Yay! ... but wait, are there no Hufflepuffs or Abnegation sectors?
5. Quixotic - they are purple, they are the labourers and factory owners. This is the original zone that Kaleen comes from. You know, like the miners from the Hunger Games come from zone 12?
6. Altruistic - they are represented by white and are the doctors and nurses (The zone Kaleen ends up in even though the 'sorting' said she had the Quixotic dreamy nature)... hmmm.

How does it work?

The problem here is a tyranny government would make Collusive the first zone. Doctors and Nurses would rank around two or three, and Radiant (which I assume include artists) would be at the bottom because art is freedom of speech and that's bad! It's the caste system in Selection all over again!

And how are they sorted?

By how they look and their psychology, of course. All Stalwarts are naturally bulky, and all Radiants are 'beautiful'. Quixotics are dreamy, and Astutes love books.

Aside from this, there is no world-building at all. You just know that the people in this system are forced to wear a band that chooses whether they live or die.

I mean, they are sorted into their zones but we learn absolutely nothing about any of the zones except what kinds of jobs they end up getting! They go to class to learn to fight, but not to learn about their new zones?

And why would a tyranny government give the oppressed citizens weapons and fighting power? That's asking to be overthrown!

At least with Matched the citizens had to take the Matrix-like pills if something like a revolution looked like it was going to happen. Honestly, I have no idea how this dictatorship works. Can someone fill me in?

The Plot

This story has a romance, a spy and a tournament but everything is coincidental. Not to mention, only one of these storylines happen at a time. They don't intertwine or clash with each other.

Storyline 1: Spy

When Kal and the others arrive at HQ, they are assigned roommates and after the first week, it is announced that there is a spy somewhere with dark hair, a foreign accent, a female and in one of three zones: Altruistic, Stalwart and Astute.

Remember the roommate?

My name is Justine. I guess we’re roommates,” she said, a very faint accent coming out as she spoke.

So... how does this spy get caught?

Well, Kaleen gets drugged and dreams about her father's disappearance but her test showed as inconclusive. She is questioned about the inconclusive test, her family is threatened and she goes to bed angry and forgets her bag in the morning. So Kaleen returns to her room and retrieve it. Justine is snooping in her drawers as Kaleen walks in. Then a group of guards walks in and arrests Justine. That's it. Around 10% has progressed in the book since the spy was announced and the spy is caught. That many pages.

Storyline 2: Tournament.

So, the next bit of the plot, because this book can't have more than one storyline at a time, is the tournament.

A tyrannical society is being taught to fight, and the winner gets to go home and see their family. You'd think this would tear the kids apart, right? Nope, all the kids are civil, in fact, most of them don't want to go home, eliminating half the competition. These include Kal's friends - who happen to be all male.

Storyline 3: Sexism... Sorry, I Meant Romance.

Gavin, Kaleen's first friend at HQ,  is the romantic interest, but there is no conflict at all.  The only issue is that he (and all the other guys) don't want to hit any of the girls in the spar ...  It'd be like doing a martial art and a kid deciding not to spar with the female girl. It's controlled, no one gets injured but they still won't do it.

Gavin shows no emotion, the only hint that he is the romantic interest, besides every character saying he is -  oh yes, he gives his tournament prize to her.

But flirting? Doesn't exist in this world.

Character Development and Sexism

There is no character development. At all. Kaleen just asks questions and then Byrne answers them on the next page.

Ivan just investigates anything that she asks, I have no idea what Hector/Jericho does besides being the Jacob guy of the group (Twilight). That makes Gavin the Edward of the group.

Nothing changes, there is no fight, no conflict except with the warden, but there are plenty of sexist comments.

Sexism

There is a scene where Kaleen almost beats the Radiant kid in the war room. This kid is unbeatable, which is stupid because he is radiant and so it should have been one of the stalwart kids. But when Kaleen fights him, she is moments away from winning until she gets distracted.

Since then, sexist comments are made.

I’m just a girl, and not a very strong one at that.

Kaleen

And...

I saw her against Trace, and no offense, but you’re weak

It just doesn't make sense...

I mean, a girl named Jasmine has been at the HQ longer than Kaleen and her friends. Jasmine is classed as the best fighter at the HQ and none of the guys wants to fight her because she is a girl!

He didn’t want to strike her, thinking she was fragile, but she went in on him and whacked him a good many times as he tried to block them.

What is the point of having a strong female no one will fight! I mean, Jericho picks up Jasmine, the strongest HQ fighter and carries her off the platform rather than fights her!

If she was the strongest fighter, she'd have flipped him!

No, no you do not have a strong female character be picked up and placed off the platform, if she was really that strong, physically, then she would not have been able to be picked up.

Bryne... watch Travellers on Netflix and pay attention to the characters Mercy and Carly. That's how you write strong women!

No one wants to fight Kaleen either. It gets boring.

Overall Thoughts

I like the concept of the bands... that's about it. The book has received one star because it is just really poorly written. There's no mystery. You know what's going to happen next because the foreshadowing is just dire-poor or solved within a few pages. Then you have these strong women that none of the lads want to fight... are you telling me that in this society, it has regressed back to the early 20th century?

I just don't see the lads, in a world that is built up to teach women and men to fight, wouldn't fight the girls... or if it was a societal thing, then they'd have their own classes. Then Kal's own thoughts of being 'just a girl'. Bryne needs to go and speak to actual women. Pretty sure he'll find many who can hold their own.

This semester, we are learning about responsibility as a writer, including the "Not Just" effect, the "I am not your mother" complex and political views within writing. Complexes that me and my friend Lizzie have coined. I've only taken one lecture so far but I think Logan could benefit from the class - a lot.

With this, I leave you with some quotes to this tyranny society that Kaleen lives in.

Thoughts on passages

They said that they apprehended the girl responsible and that all was well again at HQ. I had no clue that she was your roommate! -

Kal's mother

Because not knowing what happened in your daughter's room miles away is abnormal!

She placed the cylinder against my arm, the cool touch of the metal forming goose bumps against my skin, before I felt something quickly jab me in the arm. She pulled the cylinder away, my vision starting to get blurry...

Because I don't want to say needle even though I am in the zone that is marked for nurses!

I had been so consumed since this happened I forgot that I was the exact profile of the person they were searching for.

Yep, I am a dark haired girl in one of the zones that the spy was sorted into and I'm gonna forget that I fit the description of the spy. Wait... that wouldn't explain why I was drugged now, would it?

How could he just take away this many points for speaking out? Was there no freedom to say what you were thinking

Hey, Trump ... is there freedom of speech in a dictatorship?

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Thanks for Listening

If you enjoyed this, you will most likely enjoy my post on other dystopian books such as Matched by Ally Condie and The Selection by Kiera Cass. But not all dystopian books are bad! I loved Simon Mayo's book, Blame.