A Review of Bird Box by Josh Malerman

This dystopian future novel, told in a flash-back style of writing,  centers on Malorie, a young woman navigating a dangerous new world.

She had only recently found out about her pregnancy when the news breaks: there’s something out there making people go insane. With just one look at this mysterious entity, people will kill. As new incidents are reported across the globe, people begin taking precautions: boarding up windows, locking doors, staying inside. More and more people are committing suicide and attacking neighbors. It seems as if no one is safe anymore.

Malorie remembers her story as she is floating down the river with her children, escaping the safe house she has been in for four years. They are blindfolded, and relying only on their ears to get them to safety. All the while she knows whatever is doing this to people is still out there, and waiting to be seen.

I picked up Bird Box not expecting too much. It was rather short, about 300 pages, and I hadn’t heard much about it all. I knew it was made into a movie for Netflix, but I still wasn’t too hopeful. As I read the first page, however, I was hooked. This story was absolutely riveting. I found myself turning page after page, simply needing to know what happened next.

I was scared, I was sad, and did I mention I was scared? The thought of running from danger while totally blind terrified me. I could feel the dread every time a character walked outside.

Novels usually take me a week or more to finish. I devoured this book in 24 hours. I highly recommend that you give it a shot, and I’d easily put it in my top 5 books I’ve read this year. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up asap.