Review by John Chon, grade 9
Insignia by S.J. Kincaid
Tom is a son of a gambler, with no mother. His often-drunk father rants about the government, which fights wars in space using drones. Tom is recruited by the military at age 14, where he has a computer installed into his brain and is placed in military school. Tom attends classes relating to such topics as strategy, coding, and physical education. He makes friends, such as Vik, Wyatt, and Yuri. They go through adventures together, bonding over trying to stop Tom’s brain from being reprogrammed, or ”coding wars” that consist of releasing viruses in coding class. Online, Tom meets the famous “Medusa,” who fights for the other side of the war, and they become friends.
This book was full of funny moments where Tom would tease his friends, especially Vik. They made up funny nicknames, for example, Gormless Cretin, or Doctors of Doom. The mood was not all fun and games, and the book had many serious moments as well. Despite the futuristic background, the book seemed like a real school, which was a nice touch. The teachers had personalities, and the other students acted real and competitive. However, sometimes, the book seemed a bit fast, it sped through days at times. It would’ve been interesting to see what they did on a normal day.
-Review by John Chon, grade 9
Find this book in our catalog: Insignia
Call Number: YA SF KINCAID, S
446 pages