Book Review: Dangerous by Shannon Hale

Summary: When Maisie Danger Brown wins a cereal sweepstakes and goes to astronaut camp, she doesn't expect to gain superpowers. After her teenage team handles alien technology, it unexpectedly injects Nanorobot technology that changes their bodies molecular composition. But before they can feel too cool about it, the team is fragmented and hunted for their abilities. Maisie struggles to figure out who she can trust and gather the powers so they can fulfill their original purpose: saving the world.

Personal notes: Shannon Hale is one of my favorite authors. I discovered her in college when I picked up Goose Girl, and immediately knew she was something special. This book had me laughing out loud at unexpected moments with her delightful wit. Short story, I stayed up till 2 AM on a weeknight to finish this book. I had a special interest in this particular book because of a lecture I attended by Shannon Hale where she talked about her research process on this story. She actually sat down with big time scientists and asked if all the technology and science in her book was probable. She said it was such an engaging lunch, because the scientists were excited about the technology she had imagined and dove into explaining the possibilities it could offer. It was fun to recognize the moments she had pinpointed and to learn real science while I was reading.

Why this book is important: 

Strong Protagonist: This book featured a smart, strong female protagonist. Maisie was intelligent and reasonable and awesome. I like the whole "smart is the new pretty" craze going on. This definitely fit that theme.

Disabilities: Maisie only has one hand, so there is some bullying and self evaluation that goes on because of it, however, it wasn't discussed as in depth as I've seen in other books. She finds a way around her disability, but it didn't exactly become a strength to her. She builds a robot hand, using her other strengths to ease the disability, but I would have loved to see a moment when her disability became a critical part of her success.

Romance: I discuss this more in the "Content" section, but Maisie stands up for abstinence in a particular scene. At the end of the book, she discusses a little bit about infatuation vs. love. So, while her relationship with the romantic interest is unhealthy in a few ways, I feel like Hale does a good job at making you recognize that and think about it. Instead of letting the romance run wild emotionally, she really does make you wonder "Is this a good relationship for Maisie?" because Maisie is very thoughtful about it herself.

Content: 

Language: Maisie is a sweet, innocent character, who bleeps out others expletives in her own mind, so you'll get the gist when someone is swearing without actually hearing what they say. It was funny and well justified, so I found it entertaining rather than distracting.

Sex: There is a romantic interest and plenty of kissing in the book, but it led to a moment that I think is important to see in YA these days. When things got a little hot and heavy, and her boy hinted at taking things all the way, Maisie has a moment of clarity and stands up for herself and her virtue. She lays out a great model for youth to follow. She shows Maisie making a firm decision early on to support abstinence, and then how that decision makes it easier for her to reason through the moment, and stay true to herself. I think it's important for teens to read this scene because it's not one that is commonly represented in YA literature or entertainment.

Supplementary material: 

Shannon Hale has a long list of books that I would gladly recommend. She writes for children, young adults and adults. She writes fantasy, science fiction, romantic comedy and graphic novels. She is extremely talented and makes me laugh in all her work. Some books to check out if you like this one are:

Childrens:

The Princess in Black Series

Rapunzel's Revenge
Calamity Jack

Ever After High Series

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl


Young Adult:

The Books of Bayern Series:
Goose Girl
Enna Burning
River Secrets
Forest Born

Princess Academy Series:
Princess Academy (Newberry Honor)
Palace of Stone
The Forgotten Sisters

Book of a Thousand Days


Adult:

Austenland Series:
Austenland
Midnight in Austenland

The Actor and the Housewife