The torture scene in AFTER THE FIRST DEATH is still one of the bleakest things I've read in a novel.

The torture scene in AFTER THE FIRST DEATH is still one of the bleakest things I've read in a novel.

Based on entirely anecdotal evidence involving me and my friends and random strangers on the Internet, I've come to think this is pretty common with smart kids who like to read — that books about teenagers appeal to pre-teens who think being a teenager will be amazing, and to adults with some nostalgia, but that…

Based on entirely anecdotal evidence involving me and my friends and random strangers on the Internet, I've come to think this is pretty common with smart kids who like to read — that books about teenagers appeal to pre-teens who think being a teenager will be amazing, and to adults with some nostalgia, but that…

See above re: The Giver, and its upcoming sequel. Did everyone just get this book pressed on them in school? I didn't, and I missed it entirely until this year.

See above re: The Giver, and its upcoming sequel. Did everyone just get this book pressed on them in school? I didn't, and I missed it entirely until this year.

Have you read the spin-offs? There's a direct sequel coming out in November and I just got a copy, so I read The Giver for the first time, and then the sequel, and now I come to find out there are other books nominally considered part of the series, so they're next up on the list.

Have you read the spin-offs? There's a direct sequel coming out in November and I just got a copy, so I read The Giver for the first time, and then the sequel, and now I come to find out there are other books nominally considered part of the series, so they're next up on the list.

I still read it, though more dutifully than with great enjoyment — it's gotten so profoundly dense and tangled that I feel like I miss half the references at this point. I'm mostly just sticking with it to see if Oasis will ever be explained I follow several dozen webcomics religiously, though my favorites are Girl…

I still read it, though more dutifully than with great enjoyment — it's gotten so profoundly dense and tangled that I feel like I miss half the references at this point. I'm mostly just sticking with it to see if Oasis will ever be explained I follow several dozen webcomics religiously, though my favorites are Girl…

No clue, I'm afraid. If only we had an Ask The A.V. Club's Tech Team feature.

No clue, I'm afraid. If only we had an Ask The A.V. Club's Tech Team feature.

Wow, someone noticed. Tech isn't sure why Disqus made the abrupt change and change-back, but they're looking into it.

Wow, someone noticed. Tech isn't sure why Disqus made the abrupt change and change-back, but they're looking into it.

How'd the kids like the magic transforming scroti?

How'd the kids like the magic transforming scroti?

See above. Also, seriously, would maim, so if anyone needs someone maimed and knows how to get Frank Welker on the phone, let's talk.

See above. Also, seriously, would maim, so if anyone needs someone maimed and knows how to get Frank Welker on the phone, let's talk.

That was SUCH a beautiful moment. Apparently he's called on to do that fairly frequently, but the first time you experience it… it was just amazing.

That was SUCH a beautiful moment. Apparently he's called on to do that fairly frequently, but the first time you experience it… it was just amazing.