#131 in Young adult
The Ask and the Answer
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Our view
“The Ask and the Answer” is a tense, dark second volume that turns its series from a chase into a war story with no clean side. Todd and Viola narrate in turn from opposing camps, each drawn in without fully believing, and that divided view is what grips. Some readers rate it above the first book; some remain bothered by the prose style. It cannot be read without the opening volume.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Ask and the Answer is a 2009 young-adult science fiction novel written by British-American author Patrick Ness. It was published on 4 May 2009 by Walker Books. It is the second book in the Chaos Walking series, preceded by The Knife of Never Letting Go and followed by Monsters of Men. The story follows Todd Hewitt, a 13-year-old boy held captive by the mayor of New Prentisstown.
Reading order · Chaos Walking
Full order & progress →- The Knife of Never Letting GoStart here
7.97.9 / 10 - The Ask and the AnswerThis book
8.08.0 / 10 - Monsters of Men
8.18.1 / 10
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.1 across 260 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 64% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Young adult average of 7.8. That is how 8.0 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 8.1 | 260 | 100% |
Frequently asked
What age is The Ask and the Answer for?
The Ask and the Answer sits on the Young adult shelf in the sources we use, which by convention means roughly ages 13 and up. This is a guide from the book’s category, not a publisher’s age rating.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
Same shelf — Young adult — with scores between 7.9 and 8.1, closest to this book.
