The Chaos Code:The World Unraveled tIf you figured out a way to manipulate the world, how would you use the knowledge? In The Chaos Code, set in present day Europe, Matt arrives at his dad’s house to find it in disarray, and Arnold, his dad, missing. He then heads to his aunt’s house and meets Venture, an old family friend and researcher, and Robin, Venture’s daughter who becomes Matt’s friend. These three, plus Harper, a rich and famous man, head off to look for the treasure of St. John, where they believe Matt’s father will be. Harper turns against them because he only wants the treasure to control the world, and evidently, he can already control the four elements. Justin Richards brings alive the idea of how mankind can bring itself to ruin in this science fiction novel. One of the themes in The Chaos Code is that too much power can destroy the world because the idea of power can turn anyone evil, it is how Atlantis was destroyed, and Harper was planning on gaining enough knowledge to achieve it.tOne reason why too much power can destroy the world is because the idea of power can turn anyone evil. An average everyday person named Katherine Feather happens to be in cahoots with Harper. At one point, she pretends to switch back over to Matt’s side, only to betray them and steal their information. Thus, the reader can almost believe that she really is moral, “‘Thanks for helping us’ Matt said to Katherine as they hurried back to the entrance and out into the sunshine. ‘No problem. Like your dad says, there’s a point where money isn’t enough of an excuse. Maybe I’ve just taken it for too long without really thinking’” (264). In this quote, Katherine is playing along just to receive more information for Harper. She actually would do anything for money.tAnother example of how why too much power can destroy the world is how the ancient city of Atlantis was destroyed. The book brought up this topic a lot because some of the characters turned out to be survivors that have aged incredibly slowly. Apparently, the Atlantians were on the verge of a major discovery, something like what the characters were solving now. Something or someone wiped out the whole civilization, accidentally or on purpose. Matt has his own theory, “Matt shrugged. ‘Nothing. I just wondered if it was the same last time. If someone deliberately destroyed a civilisation.’ ‘And why would they do that?’ she asked, head tilted to one side. Wet hair rippling in the light breeze. It was her father who answered. ‘To prevent anyone having the same sort of power they were trying to create,’ he said” (387). In this quote, Venture is saying that the reason why Atlantis was destroyed is because they had to protect the world. If the knowledge that they knew had escaped, it could have finished mankind.tLastly, too much power can destroy the world because Harper was planning on gaining enough knowledge to control every living and nonliving thing. If everything had gone his way, he could go into people’s minds and do what he wanted with them. The affect would be, people frozen until they were desired to play a part in the new world. You couldn’t even call it life, “His father stared ahead, blankly. ‘If you can hear me, try to help Mum. Try to break Harper’s control. You-we-have to get out of here. And she has to stop him copying his program code. Dad?!’ But there was still no reaction” (369). This quote shows that if Harper doesn’t wish for the person to move, then they can’t. Matt and Robin could move because they had strong enough willpower to sever the hold. With this computer code, Harper can control everybody.tOne of the themes in The Chaos Code is that too much power can destroy the world because the idea can turn anyone evil, it is how Atlantis was destroyed, and Harper was planning on gaining enough knowledge to achieve it. I would rate this book three out of five stars because I enjoyed it. It was interesting, but also a little peculiar how someone could think of a storyline like this. I can relate to Matt the protagonist because sometimes I feel like people are hiding things from me. I get really nervous, like most people do, if people are whispering around me, just like Matt suspected Robin wasn’t telling him something about her past. Also, I don’t always comprehend everything that’s going on, like a challenging math problem, just like Matt didn’t know what to make of all these new ideas. Third, Matt is really good at working with computers. I’m not an expert, but I know more than the basics because my dad works with them a lot.tAfter reading this book I realized that no one can know everything because Venture knew a great deal from his long life, but he couldn’t predict what Harper would do. Second, the book teaches us to embrace strange ideas because they could be right. When Matt first met Venture and Robin he thought they were crazy. They told him to not light candles, which was bright because Harper could control fire. Third, think outside the box because your mind has to be open to new ideas. If you sit there not letting anything new sink in, you can’t move forward in life.tI think I deserve an A on this project because I worked hard on assembling everything to flow smoothly. I spent about two hours total on this assignment. Finding a lot of high-quality details for the three reasons was easy because they were three amazing reasons. Summarizing was difficult because there was a lot of information that I wanted to add, I just couldn’t find a way to do it. Next time, I would want to create a better hook because my mind was drawing a blank and I could only think of that one. I think I added a lot of excellent transition words to this paper.
Order versus chaos. It’s a time honored conflict and the Chaos Code is certainly not the first book to deal with this conflict, and it won’t be the last. Order causes a society to stagnate, thus inhibiting progress. Order also causes society to be stable, thus encouraging progress. Chaos causes a society to fragment, thus inhibiting progress. Chaos also engenders the will to solve pressing challenges, thus encouraging progress. Richards firmly believes that chaos is the answer. But I myself believe that moderation is actually the answer – one needs both chaos and order to advance as a civilization. Anyway, the Chaos Code begins when Matt goes to stay with his archeologist father and his father’s old friend, millionaire businessman Julius Venture. Venture soon drags Matt to an archeological dig of critical importance. The secrets that they uncover there could end up bringing the earth to a new age of progress – or destroy it entirely. For a villainous individual is bent on using those secrets to bring the world under his control – literally. As you might guess, only Matt can stop the antagonist’s fiendish plans from becoming deadly reality.Richards provides a surprising depth to the arguments provided within this text, and seamlessly provides a philosophical text and an exciting action novel in the same book to great effect. Although I do not necessarily agree with his beliefs, I recognize that his arguments are cogent and fascinating. Lest you think this text is dull and boring, I can assure you that there is plenty of action to be found as the protagonist battle mercenaries, the elements, and bizarre creatures made of sand for the destiny of the world. Yay for action!One thing I did not appreciate, but solely on a personal level, is Richards’ bias against technology. People who see technology as ruining society forget that it is technology that has built up society in the first place. In my view, if technology is causing problems for society, it is actually the fault of society for not being able to adapt to it. Furthermore, it’s all well and good to criticize technology if you can easily avoid using it. But I have a writing disability, and I need technology to function in the educational sector and the workforce. Anyway, that was just a rant of mine there. I seem to have spent more time talking about the themes of the book than the book itself, but that just shows you how insightful and interesting this book actually is. I rarely read books that are as intelligently written as this one. Actually, that’s because most books as intelligently written as this one are also unbelievably pretentious. The Chaos Code is not pretentious. It is a rather brilliant text that also doubles as a thrilling YA novel.
What do You think about The Chaos Code (2007)?
This book was just plain fun. It has a lot of action, mystery, and excitement. When Matt Stibling is sent to his father on his school break he doesn't expect to wind up in a mystery that ties to the hidden technologies of the fabled city of Atlantis. This book is fast paced and well written.I would compare this book to Indiana Jones--fast paced and action packed.Cautions for sensitive readers: Some violence, but not explicit and some horror like creatures (Golems). Other than that the book is free of sex and I can not remember any instances of foul language.
—Melissa
This was an action packed read that I really enjoyed! This books reads like a lot of the cheesy actions movies I love- The Mummy, Tomb Raider, National Treasure. It flows from peak to peak, each scene somehow topping the one before it, all moving towards the final battle at break-neck speed. Loosely, the plot is about Matt who upon arriving at his father's house, finds the house in disarray and a few clues that help Matt start his journey. Matt is aided by a young girl and her father, who are more than they appear to be. Although some of the plot devices are predictable, this was a really fun read. If you like action adventure, this is up your alley.
—Alex
This book was the first book I have read by this author.The genre of this book is mystery.I love the way the author is so descriptive and well organized with the story.The book is about a kid named Matt, who's father is sent on a dangerous treasure hunt. His dad is then kidnapped and leaves a cryptic message for Matt.This leaves Matt and few family friends to find and save him.Finding him may not be so easy and it will uncover the biggest mystery of all,the lost city of Atlantis.I'm very impressed by the way Justin Richards wrote this book.I definitely recommend this book.It was a page turner and hard to put down!!!
—Danyal
