I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak

Zusak, M. (2005). I am the messenger. New York: Knopf.
ISBN-10 0375836675
ISBN-13 978-0375836671
357 pgs
Format: Book
Genre: Mystery
Classification: Fiction
Age level: Young Adult

Reader's annotation
Ed Kennedy’s life is going nowhere in particular; he’s a nineteen-year-old cab driver who hangs out with a coffee-drinking dog and a group of card-playing friends. All that changes when he becomes a famous hero after he stops a bank robbery. Soon he is receiving mysterious messages written on playing cards with clues he must decipher in order to help people in trouble, and perhaps along the way, himself.

Summary
Ed Kennedy is a nineteen-year-old cab driver in New Zealand, and his life feels as aimless and his drives around the city. He lives in a small cabin with his coffee drinking dog, named The Doorman, and spends his time playing cards with a close-knit group of friends. He is still haunted by the recent death of his father from alcoholism. As the story begins, he inadvertently interrupts a frightening bank robbery and becomes a hero. After achieving a bit of fame in the media, he begins receiving playing cards with mysterious messages, sometimes an address or names of people he’s never met. Following the clues, he is led into the troubled lives of others and must decide whether and how to intervene to help them. The clues lead to more personal subjects, his mother and close friends. Through the cards, Ed gains more of a sense of himself and a purpose in life as he realizes he has influence for the better on other people’s lives. Still, he is left to wonder, who is sending the cards, and why?

Notes
This is a fun read with great characters and an engaging mystery about a time in life that can feel uncertain, with a sympathetic male character in Ed, and written by a very gifted author. Be aware that it contains some explicit violence and sexual scenes.

Awards and honors
Michael L. Printz Honor Book 2006
Winner of the 2003 Children’s Book Council Book of the Year Award in Australia

Also by Markus Zusak
The Book Thief