Genius: The Game (Genius, 1)

Eh...I think aspects of this story were stretched and the ending was very rushed. Some aspects bordered on unbelievable even. I wonder if a sequel will help fill in some gaps (will there be a sequel)?Characterization through dialogue was pretty great-that makes me give it more than 2 stars. Show not tell was lacking in a lot of the book. The author used a lot of diagrams and bolded words to convey points rather than descriptors.It was unique though with three main protagonists. The ticking time bomb helped the flow but some of the characters were too predictable. I didn't understand a lot of the coding ideas presented but still easily followed the story line. I'm left with a lot of questions and thought several times "I don't know how that's possible."For parents-this book is pretty clean with only one minor language instance (d### word). It's about a rebellious teen but it's something I would let my kids read when they're within the audience age range which I would put at 14-21.

As a geek, first of all, let me assure you that every computer code related thing in this book is the purest of BS. Just laughably bad, like when "hackers" in movies type a couple green monospaced characters into a text editor and pages and pages of green nonsense text fly by and they then announce triumphantly "I'm in!" Very early in the book, for example, they are chatting about some technical problem and one character is like "oh something like this?" And what he types is the beginning of a for loop that would count to 2. And the other person is like oh, thanks, brilliant!Possibly as a result I was unable to suspend disbelief about any other aspect of the story. I kept reading anyway because it had that propulsive story force... and then it didn't really end. Cliffhanger. SO RUDE.

This is a fascinating story of how three young people take on the problems of the world in different ways. Although the story itself is great, the back story is even greater -- a critique of life in three different cultures: China, Africa, and the US. For fans of IT and those who love engineering riddles, it will keep you on your toes. But the finest aspect of the book is its encouragement of all young people -- and all people -- to live as deeply and honorably as possible, to explore one's dreams and ambitions, and to have the courage to make them true. Highly recommended.

It was an "okay" read for me. It was a slow book for me and there wasn't much that got me so excited that I wanted to read another page. There weren't many "Omg" moments in the book. I liked the main characters but I couldn't relate to any of them. I was bored more than halfway through the book and just skipped to the end.

its a page turner. Its nice to have three smart POC characters.Not a perfect book, but its a vey entertaining story. its a story that makes you think, and also you will enjoy the illustrations.Can't wait to see what happens next.

While I am traditionally a fan of YA novels and loved the diversity of the main characters, the writing was simplistic and the ending was lame

Good engaging read. Ending sets up sequel... disappointed but not overly surprised by it. Doesn't detract from my liking the book

Save your money for the paperback, if you are still interested. I bought 3 copies of this for me and two of my nieces. It's great storytelling, very much like a movie, where you forgive huge continuity errors because the premise is intriguing, the characters likable. It's very much a B movie though. My frustration is because it is not billed as the beginning of a series--and I would be hugely upset with a movie where it ends on a cliffhanger with nothing resolved, too. One does find out the winner of the Game, but none of the emotional hooks and dilemmas that made us care about the story are resolved. It gets 3 stars because despite this and to my shame, I would read a sequel if one gets published. But I hope it doesn't, because this cavalier treatment of readers should not be encouraged.