Name: Animorphs #31 The Conspiracy
ISBN: 9780439070317

K. A. Applegate

Jake's dad and brother Tom have left for a meeting of the Sharing, where Tom may force their dad into involuntary Yeerk infestation. Jake must save his father, but for the first time, his quick thinking tactical mind freezes up...with everything at stake.

Animorphs #31 The Conspiracy

Jake and his friends have the power to morph into any animal they choose.

The Conspiracy

Maga P

This was a place of unimaginable horror. And we were so few, and so weak.
♢ 1/62 OF THE ANIMORPHS REREAD ⚠ tws for the entire series: war, death, child soldiers, child death, descriptions of gore, body horror, discussions of parental death, slugs, parasites, loss of free will, depictions of PTSD and trauma, ableism, imperialism. 
Where to even begin.

Animorphs is one of those pieces of media that I find myself revisiting every few years. It's fantastic despite its flaws and I'm awed and moved by the themes and the treatment every single time. And on a reread it's even more clear that the intent of the animorphs series was never to romanticize war, nor to talk down to its young audience— something crucial, considering the heavy subject matter it was treating. 

The Invasion is a great first installment that sets the basics for every character motivation and the future conflicts they'll face just as well as the theme and tone for the rest of the series: a bleak (albeit not completely hopeless) one that's not here to do pro-war apologism, who will take the premise of "Kids given powers to fight in a war" and take it to it's full realistic potential, one that won't shy away from its portrayal of PTSD and the heavy mantle of war on those who have to fight it.

Also: Petition to recategorize these books as horror because wow, certain passages are scarier than some of the horror media I've consumed recently.

Aishling

I’ll never understand why animorphs was never hugely popular (at least in Ireland), I guess 54 books is intimidating but the story is just so interesting and different. It’s really deserved better

renee badenoch

Story time: 

When Animorphs was at its feverish height of popularity and what seemed like an entire Borders' kid's section was devoted to these weird mutating frog kids, I was a snobby eleven year old who was like, "These covers are so GAUCHE, truly not meant for a SOPHISTICATED reader of TASTE and CLASS, please point me to the DEAR AMERICA, which has classy features like ITALIC FONTS and a silk bookmarks. I pity the plebeian child who reads this dreck." 

Twenty years later I am like, "Yum yum, dreck, I love to eat it," and am not as much of a literary snob. But if there's one thing I'm snobby about it's terfs and FUCK YOU, JK ROWLING! KA Applegate's Animorphs was recommended to me as an alternative to nostalgic 90's literature that wasn't written by a terf, and being the kind of snobby that history will prove right, I decided to give it a try. 

So, how is Animorphs (as reviewed by a 31 year old woman in the year of Our Lord 2020)? 

It's okay! I actually thought I would like it a lot less than I did. Here's a very unofficial review, based on a series of texts I sent my best friend who is also reading Animorphs for the first time: 

"Also, oh my gosh.... the font in this book... I can't" 

"I'm one chapter in and I've already decided Marco sucks." 

"Just got through my first morph and I wonder how much of this book series is just gonna be wacky hijinks with kids trying to get their clothes on after a morph?" 

"Rachel is my favorite so far. Why is KA Applegate so in love with Tobias? This whole book has a toBIAS." 

"Almost done with the first book. I am here for Tobias' huge and obvious crush on both Jake and Rachel. Bisexual icon, tbh." 

More formally, I thought the book was okay. I was actually impressed with some of the writing. The way that Applegate describes the morphs, when the characters are caught in an animal body fighting for supremacy of their thoughts over the instincts of the animal was quite vivid and detailed. The descriptions of the aliens races are precise enough that they're easy to picture. There's moments that she captures emotion quite well, especially terror. 

The plot moves along at the speed of a bullet. It goes zero-to-one hundred real quick. Almost right away the characters in the book are fighting for their lives, being chased by aliens, descending into hell pits full or tortured humans enslaved to an alien race, watching their brothers get thrown off of cliffs, and getting permanently trapped in hawks' bodies. (SPOILER if you are a child and it's 1997). It made the book read quickly, but the stakes were so high I got compassion fatigue and had trouble mustering up emotion when everything was dramatic from the get-go. 

The dialogue is bad. It's so bad. It's simplistic and forced and full of out-dated references ("We should tell someone we saw a UFO! Maybe we could get on Letterman.") I know I am not the intended audience for this book, but the dialogue gets Oooooooooooooooof stars rating. 

I don't know if I'll keep reading (though I might thrust this book into the hands of a 9 year old boy). I feel like I get the gist of the series, but also there's like 54 books in the series and if I read one a week I could be finished in about a year and part of that seems very appealing to my completionist soul.

b.andherbooks

Totally devoured these in 4th grade. So good.

Nia C

See, I've read and re-read this book several times since I was say twelve or thirteen. But now that I'm eighteen and in love with Sci-Fi, I'm going back to my roots and reading this was such a pleasure. 

I'm viewing things in a whole different light. These young kids, teenagers are so fucking noble, so brave and this was one of the first books to introduce a black protagonist and a fierce female one to me. I have fallen in love with Rachel & Marco (probably my faves, tbh- Marco cracks me up), Jake and Cassie and Tobias (who I now realize was a symbol of bullying and depression in such a novel way). 

I'm so friggin' excited to read the entire series (in a sequence that too). Animorphs is one of my fondest teenage / early adolescent memories and I love reliving it.

Five Stars and an A for all the feels this book brought about. Onward to Book Two: The Visitor.

Monicap

Amna A.

sash.

sky na

Jennifer S

Luca Masters

C. J. Daley 

Kayla Ndife

The Hissing Saint

Per Christian B. Viken

cléo

Jake's grandfather has died. It blows the family away, especially Jake's mom. His parents decide they should all travel to his grandfather's home to help with the arrangements. In another state. For three or four days. This is a very big problem for Jake's brother, Tom. He can't be away from the Yeerk pool for that long. So Tom refuses to go -- but his father insists. Tom's Yeerk will do anything to survive. Including making his father less of a problem. Now Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax have to find a way to protect his father without Tom discovering their secret. And without having to choose between his father's life...and Tom's.