Being by Kevin Brooks

I have fairly eclectic tastes when it comes to reading, and one of the types of books I like to read are novels for teens. I recently put together a new adventure-themed book list for teens. On it are several books I want to read, but so far, I've only read this one.

Being by Kevin Brooks is survival novel with futuristic overtones and plenty of suspenseful moments. After having a routine exam that turns out to be anything but, Robert learns about the mechanical parts, tubes and plastic casings that make up his being, forcing him to flee what he doesn't understand and the people who wish to find him. Robert escapes the hospital room and embarks on a sometimes violent quest to discover just who--or what--he is.

Being is dark and suspenseful. Robert, an orphan who has been in numerous foster homes, is a loner who looks out for himself and doesn't rely on others for help. He is the archetypical loner hero.  When he escapes from the threatening men in suits--think MI5 or the CIA--he knows he won't be safe until he figure out what is happening and why he is different. Robert is scrappy and intelligent and eventually develops a trusting relationship with the young woman--a beautiful cyber thief--whom he kidnaps.

There is some graphic violence, although not much different than your average police television show. Robert reopens his abdominal incision to see for himself what is inside him; he kills an agent that discovered him, and there is a bloody shoot-out at the end. I did not find these disturbing. These scenes were well plotted, not gratuitous, and moved the story along quite well. I don't usually try to figure out a book's ending, but I was intrigued by how the author would end this book. While the ending isn't a typical "happy ending", it is satisfying and makes sense.

In the end, Being is not about the violence or Robert's run for survival. It is about what makes us human and who we are, and whether or not our "parts" make the sum total of our humanity. That remains the essential question of all good literature, and I think this is good teen literature. I would recommend this book to those aged 16 and over.