Title: Gregor the Overlander

Author: Suzanne Collins

Type:  Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 248

Rating: 3/5

This book is the first in a series of middle grade books by Suzanne Collins, who is mostly known for being the author of The Hunger Games. This series is a different kettle of fish entirely, a portal fantasy series for younger readers that follows a kid called Gregor who discovers another world that’s attached to the laundry room in his apartment building.

Unfortunately, I didn’t think too much of it. I’ve come across a lot of indie books that basically tell this same story, and Collins’ writing isn’t enough to save it. The thing with The Hunger Games is that while the writing is mostly workmanlike, the plotting was excellent.

The plot here is okay, I guess. It’s just that it’s not the kind of plot that I’m particularly interested in, and even a little nod to Kafka’s Metamorphosis in the form of a kid called Gregor talking to a giant cockroach wasn’t enough to save it.

I mean, I’m still glad that I read it, and I’ll be continuing with the series purely because I have the next three books after picking them up cheap in LIDL.

Learn more about Gregor the Overlander.