The ABLES Paperback – May 1, 2015

I think I'd normally give this novel a 4 star review, but for a "freshman" piece by a new author, it's worthy of 5 stars.I'd compare this to novel to two other YP books, Harry Potter series and The Hunger Games. That isn't to specifically say that the book is as high a caliber as those, but I see Jeremy Scott as having done within this book and his genre of "superhero stories" something similar to what JK Rowling did with the "fantasy setting" of Harry Potter, or what Suzanne Collins did with the "post-apocalyptic setting" of The Hunger Games.Specifically, Scott was able to pull from many existing stories and sources, but able to combine them into a new, unique world that was richly detailed, well thoughtout, but still presented in a simple enough way that a reader, not well versed in the world of superheroes, etc. would be able to understand and get into.I think at times, as the story is told through the perspective of a teenager, that the "voice" was wrong in that Phillip would use language that I doubt a kid his age would know or use, but beyond this minor discrepancy (perhaps this book is written when he's an adult?) the writing was fairly solid overall, though at times the story dragged unnecessarily.Jeremy Scott, best known for CinemaSins, has a love for film and I feel in a sense that this affected greatly his writing. That isn't a bad thing, but similar to how Suzanne Collin's experience as a script writer had a dimension to it that made The Hunger Games feel like you were reading a three-act film, The Ables follows a similar feel (though I've not sat down to analyze if its exactly 3-acts or anything). Instead, what I mean is that EVERYTHING that is done in the book, every secret revealed, every scene written always is building toward the final scenes of the book. Like an observant film watcher, I was able to predict around 95% of the twists and turns of this book just because I've "seen these movies before". While this is a common aspect of film, I'd hope that in any future continuations or other books, Scott might remember that novels are given the space to explore things and introduce facts and ideas that don't need to develop into a final whole. Entire stretches of character development or background can be fleshed out that just detail some other bit, and characters introduced in passing earlier in the book can remain just bit characters (at least till later stories, etc.).In that sense, his world feels flat. Every character he introduced had a role in the final scene, and Hollywood thanks him for that, because it means they don't need to cast any extras or sidecharacters in the movie-adaptation. But novels don't need to be so strict, and are allowed to leave some loose ends and dangle fruit to tease a greater world.Going back to film, which I feel is Jeremy's forte, part of what drove an entire industry of secondary material that I for one loved was the fact that the original Star Wars trilogy films DID give us these other little thoughts and avenues. Screentime was spent on side characters, and sentences that alluded to a world larger than the story we were watching sent the imagination of children and writers and game designers and artists and so many others reeling as they imagined and created backstories for others. As an example, an entire series of short stories called "Tales from XXX" were created. One was Tales of Mos Eisley, and in that, every one of those random aliens in the background of the Cantina scene in Star Wars was given their own story, most of which had little to nothing to do with Luke's epic journey. Another book in the series is Tales of the Bounty Hunters, about each of the many bounty hunters summoned by Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back.Some might see the screentime of these others as "wasteful" but its a flourish like that that made those movies more interesting and feel like a larger world than the self-contained story. Novels and literature are able to do this even more so than film because all it costs you as a writer to add some of this "color" to the background is a few extra words and willingness to not have the characters or scenes described become key to the story in some other way.In the Ables for instance, I have no idea what the rest of Freepoint looks or feels like. Every place described became critical to the story, there was never even a brief description of the town as a whole or what it was like to walk down the streets, etc. Even AFTER Philip was able to gain a kind of sight (initially I excused the lack of detail for such things to the main character's blindness). The one scene like this that stands out is Philips love of the ocean, which I really enjoyed and it helped me relate to and think about Phillip as more than just a flat-character having all these things happen to him at the whims of you, Scott, the author.In summation: It was a great book, and I look forward to it being at least a trilogy of novels, if not a running series. Alternately, I'd easily pick up another book by Scott in a different genre, and not just because I'm a fan of CinemaSins, but because he's a decent author.

I got this book for one of my classes and it absolutely lived up to the hype. Amazing book overall!

As an avid follower of the CinemaSins Youtube channel for some time, it really wasn't shocking when Jeremy Scott, the channel's witty, humorous, and honest narrator and co-founder, announced this book. In fact, I was really looking forward to a book that the movie-nitpicker himself would write. If there's anyone who isn't familiar with the CinemaSins Youtube channel, a brief synopsis is: a channel dedicated to the nitpicking and sometimes harsh criticism of popular movies. There is a lot you can't get past these guys, so when this book was announced I was awaiting an original, cliche-free, well-built story, and you know what...it was exactly as I expected it to be. Scott's experience of pathetic story lines and laughable characters in movies was clearly demonstrated in this book. There was not a single character that I did not connect with. Every single one had me laughing with them, cheering them on, hating them, or mourning over them. Each and every character Scott created connected with me one way or another. Now, at first I wasn't easily convinced. The beginning was very blocky and a tad over descriptive sometimes. The entire story was thrusted upon quite early, which made me stumble somewhat and forced me to go back to make sure I read that right. I know not every reader is as serious as me, but to be perfectly honest it did stumble the advanced reader. However, anyone who has known Scott's Youtube personality, should well expect that his writing style is the same. You see, Scott has a personality that is very out going and public, and from what I can discern, quite rapid. About the majority of the book is written with this personality. Many times while reading the book, there would be a line or a whole sentence where it was completely obvious that Scott was the author. Not that I ever had my doubts, but if you took a moment and read a line of dialogue or of narration and you put into Scott's ever recognizable voice, I'm certain that it would be a perfect match. Anyway, as I was saying, the beginning was a tad choppy and sometimes the narration was a little bit overboard, but once the action begins the story just has this upward climb that continues even after the climax. The gripping story and plot will keep your eyes glued to the pages, wanting more and more. Sometimes the action would keep you reading more and more until you have to pace yourself so you can properly soak up the story and of course not losing the whole night of sleep over it. Scott has this specific and unique style of appealing to your emotions, while keeping it logical and straightforward. The characters develop with accuracy and they do so while keeping in the twists and surprises in tact. Hardly anything seemed forced just because the plot needed it or thrown in as a gut punch to the audience; instead everything was carefully planned and groomed so that each and every surprise was logical and backed up. I didn't expect anything less from the guy who finds these loopholes in movies for a living. Although, the most redeeming quality and most impressive mind you, was the originality. Scott's world of super heroes, or custodians as they are called in the book, are so original and fresh its almost refreshing. The names, the setting, and even the villains were all cooked up from Scott's own imagination. Originality is something we don't really see anymore in Hollywood and Scott himself has voiced his opinion on this issue as well. With sequels, reboots, and God knows what else, everything seems too rebranded and not new and exciting, but with this book it reminds me that there is hope for the original storytellers. As a writer myself, I can't begin to tell you how many original ideas I can cook up, and Scott's the same. Some stories can take only a few hours to properly make, others take years and years to get right. With this story, it was obvious at how well it was handled. Each detail was polished exclusively and made to fit into place. Finally, with its character design, plot, and originality, the best feature this book has is its ability to wrap you in and make you feel the suspense of it. Not many writers can do that these days, with plot holes and supposed "twists" that can be spotted a mile away. Here the suspense was real. I could feel myself getting more involved with the characters and then kicking myself later for not going just one chapter more. It was invigorating, captivating, and more importantly life-like. The way you put yourself into Philip's shoes and put your own voice and cognition into his is truly something to marvel at. Even in a world where there are telekinetics, super geniuses, mind-readers, etc. the struggle of these kids and their disabilities gave the story a huge dose of reality and kept it down to Earth. All in all, Scott's brilliant, creative, mind is nothing to trifle with. I'm fairly certain this not the last we see of him. As someone who was truly submerged into the story, I highly recommend it to any looking for a captivating, science fiction, yet strangely relative story. It is well worth the purchase and if there's anyone who hasn't had the chance to read it yet, well you are truly missing out.

Simplemente me encanta este libro. Tiene un humor bastante sencillo pero encantador que me sacó varias (muchas) carcajadas (así como el canal de Jeremy), digo, es un libro narrado por un niño de 12 años. Simplemente la historia es sencilla, pero da giros impresionantes y se la recomiendo a cualquiera que disfruta de la ficción, de un buen libro y de una historia sencilla y absorbente.

An interesting take on super heroes and magic schools. The book is written for children and could have been better edited (character's names are misspelled and powers are confused). However, Scott is a genuinely different voice in the fantasy world and if he writes a boon targeted at a more adult audience I'll be keen to read it.

Muy bueno, cinema sins qualityBest book ever 10/10*narration*also youtuber book cliché*also this is awesome but does not contain a lap dance

A thoroughly entertaining read which gripped me from the first page as we learn about the lives of our main characters and the issues they have to deal with before even contemplating integrating themselves into a world of enhanced humanoids aka super heroes and yes super villains. The Ables is a very easy read, paced exceptionally fast and that keeps you enthralled even if the story isn't overly complex but I don't believe that was ever the point. We've been given a good story with some great characters who we can root for and experience their failures and success in a world that demands even more from them that our normal world would.Just bought the audiobook to compliment the paperback and now looking forward to hearing Jeremy read his own work, recommended.

I'm not a Fantasy kind of person but this novel is so engaging that I read it in 3 days .. Great story .. And most important great execution ...I don't know if The Author read the reviews or not .. But I can honestly say this is one of the greatest read I had in the last few years .. Philip, Henry, James, Bentley, And Donnie characters felt so real to me that made me care about them and for that I applaud you dear sir ...congrats on your first book and the success it gained.. You deserve it :)