Young Adult Annotation

The Devil’s Intern by Donna Hosie

Publication Date:  2014

Number of Pages: 229

Setting:  Hell, Present-Day New York City, 970 A.D, Fleet Street (London) 1666, San Francisco 1967

Time Period: Contemporary/Slightly Historical

SYNOPSIS
Mitchell Johnson is just like any teenage boy. Besides making sure he doesn’t screw up at his job, he also has to try not to screw up with his maybe-something-more-than-a-best-friend Medusa.  Oh, and then there’s the fact that he’s dead.

 And he lives in Hell. 

And he’s the Devil’s intern. 

And his three best friends are all from different time periods and places in the world. 

On second thought, Mitchell Johnson’s life (or life after death, as the case may be) is anything but ordinary.

Matters are complicated when Mitchell is asked to work on a super-secret project to fix the over-crowding in hell.  The project involves a time-travel device called a Viciseometer which  Mitchell soon realizes might be his key  to going back in time to prevent his death.  But when his friends decide to tag along, the journey gets complicated in more ways than one.

The Devil’s Intern, the first in a planned trilogy, is a sometimes-humorous look at death that highlights the true meaning of friendship, the complexity of the power of second chances, and the need for closure.

ELEMENTS OF YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE:

“A better approach to defining young adult literature is to consider what teens choose to read as opposed to what they are required to read” (Cole 50).

Pacing

The pacing will very depending on the book’s story.  Young adult literature spans all genres.  For example, an adventure or sports story may have very fast pacing whereas a dramatic realistic fiction may have slow pacing.

Character

While characters may include siblings and parents, “The protagonist is [usually] a teenager” (Cole 49).  Children often like reading about characters slightly older than themselves and the same is true with tweens and teens. Many YA titles have “parents [that] are noticeably absent or at odds with young adults” (Cole 49).  This reflects teens’ desire for independence and the belief that they know best how to solve their problems.

Setting

Settings will vary greatly.  Very detailed natural settings are etched out in realistic fiction.  Science fiction and fantasy YA fiction will map out complex futuristic or magical worlds.  Sometimes setting is crucial to the plot; other times it is a mere backdrop for the characters and their issues.

Point of View

Typically, “The story is told from the viewpoint and in the voice of a young adult” (Cole 49).  Teens identify best with those around their own age.

Mood

The mood can vary as much as pacing and setting; however, the trend seems to be towards fiction that “doesn’t have a ‘storybook’ or ‘happily-ever-after’ ending” (Cole 49).  Current examples include the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

Language and Style

Style of young adult literature can range from traditional chapter-style texts to those that utilize text messages and social media to propel the story.  Language usually matches the tone and slang teens use today.  For historical fiction, authors will use slang of the era.

Story Line

·         “Events revolve around the protagonist and his/her struggle to resolve conflict” (Cole 49).

·         “Themes address coming-of-age issues” (Cole 49). 

READ-A-LIKES:

Never Trust a Dead Man by Vivian Vande Velde

The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray by Chris Wooding

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

White Cat by Holly Black

MY THOUGHTS

I went into this book a little unsure of what to expect. This was the title the teens at one of my local Catholic High Schools chose to read for our morning book club.  I wasn’t sure how deeply into religion this book would delve.  As luck would have it, even though the story is about teens living in Hell, the author stays far away from exploring the whys-and-wherefores and focuses more on the mission the characters take on.

The author uses humor to lighten the situation and honestly describes Hell in a way that doesn’t seem too horrible.  The teens still meet up at a burger joint, there’s a library (yay!), and there’s even a huge celebration once a year if you’re lucky enough to get to go.  The Devil himself is a bit of an idiot and acts like a big toddler most of the time.  Fortunately, his right-hand man (and Mitchell’s boss) Septimus, keeps things under control.

Even though the main character in this story is Mitchell, I liked his two best friends Alfarin and Elinor the best (his best friend/girlfriend).  They’re storylines were moving and their interactions between themselves and with Mitchell and Medusa are fantastic.  About half-way through the book I kept thinking ‘why did these teens go to Hell instead of ‘Up There’ in the first place’?  This question is not answered in this book.

Without giving away the story, I was unhappy with the ending.  The promise of a sequel is probably meant to assuage some of the frustration felt at the end, but I feel like this could have been a stand-alone book if the resolution had been played out somehow differently.  I can’t help but wonder why the author played things out like she did, but I will believe that this question (and more!) will be answered in the next installment, The Devil’s Dreamcatcher.  The quality of the sequel will depend on whether I stick through with reading the entire trilogy.  I don’t want to be left with a Divergent-esque resentment towards these books!

3 out of 5 stars.

Works Cited

Cole, Pam B.  Young Adult Literature in the 21^st Century.  Boston : McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2009. Print.