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loonyboi's review
3.0
This was...okay. Not sure what I was expecting from this novel, but it's clearly Hawley working out his feelings about the current state of the world (as of 2020) in a very Vonnegut-esque style. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed it for what it was.
adamskiboy528491's review against another edition
3.0
"The adults are lost. We, their children, are starting over."
Anthem by Noah Hawley is kind of like a shadow. There is no visceral commentary at work here, only the light of real life projected onto caricatured cutouts, their flat shapes moving ceaselessly about the page.
Something is happening to teenagers across America, spreading through memes only they can parse. At the Float Anxiety Abatement Center in a suburb of Chicago, Simon Oliver is trying to recover from his sister's tragic passing. He breaks out to join a woman named Louise and a man called The Prophet on a quest as urgent as it is enigmatic. Who lies at the end of the road? A man is known as The Wizard, whose past encounter with Louise sparked her collapse. Their quest becomes a rescue mission when they join up with a man whose sister is being held captive by the Wizard, impregnated and imprisoned in a tower.
I’m a massive fan of Hawley’s work after discovering his tv miniseries, Fargo, and I’ve realised he is a master at tightly plotting unpredictable stories and writing believable characters. Hawley is also a pop culture maniac (in a good way), borrowing names from Stephen King’s The Stand, Hunger Games, and other sources that provide a bit of vintage wit. More importantly, Hawley recognises that the country is in shakedown, in a terror grip of disasters, social and geological. Anthem is a great novel which invokes many ideas and sentiments around our twisted modern America. Guns, religion, conspiracies and a struggle with a seemingly subjective reality all encompass his young protagonists as they struggle to find purpose in a world beyond the truth.
Anthem by Noah Hawley is kind of like a shadow. There is no visceral commentary at work here, only the light of real life projected onto caricatured cutouts, their flat shapes moving ceaselessly about the page.
Something is happening to teenagers across America, spreading through memes only they can parse. At the Float Anxiety Abatement Center in a suburb of Chicago, Simon Oliver is trying to recover from his sister's tragic passing. He breaks out to join a woman named Louise and a man called The Prophet on a quest as urgent as it is enigmatic. Who lies at the end of the road? A man is known as The Wizard, whose past encounter with Louise sparked her collapse. Their quest becomes a rescue mission when they join up with a man whose sister is being held captive by the Wizard, impregnated and imprisoned in a tower.
I’m a massive fan of Hawley’s work after discovering his tv miniseries, Fargo, and I’ve realised he is a master at tightly plotting unpredictable stories and writing believable characters. Hawley is also a pop culture maniac (in a good way), borrowing names from Stephen King’s The Stand, Hunger Games, and other sources that provide a bit of vintage wit. More importantly, Hawley recognises that the country is in shakedown, in a terror grip of disasters, social and geological. Anthem is a great novel which invokes many ideas and sentiments around our twisted modern America. Guns, religion, conspiracies and a struggle with a seemingly subjective reality all encompass his young protagonists as they struggle to find purpose in a world beyond the truth.
pio_near's review
4.0
This was a strong 4.25... edging 4.5!
I know there is a bit of controversy around this title... let me breaknit down for you...
"I like Action-Thrillers":
The pitch: The world is in an uproar as children are discovered to be committing suicide in record rates, with only a cryptic one-word message left behind. Meanwhile, a brother races to save his abducted sister. A wild ride that takes The Stand and makes it real!
"I like cerebral books that make you think":
The pitch: Imagine a world where the Covid pandemic is but the calm before the storm. Hawley takes an in-depth look at how our fragmented social strata is being hyper-sensationalized and paints a startlingly realistic look at what the future may hold for us in. Regardless of political motivation, or right or wrong, this cause-and-effect look at world events is sure to make you look at the world differently.
"I like well-written, literary books":
Noah Hawleys prose is beautiful, as he first brings us back to a time of pride, safety and plenty, then sweeps us forward with clarity and insight thru the eyes of children. The relationships he creates, histories that he unearths and future that he paints will have you laughing and crying. Filled with personal stories of a family struggling to find their child, a father looking to redeem himself, young love and the redeeming power of faith, you will love these characters and their struggles.
While I didn't rate it as high as it may seem I enjoyed it (no spoilers), I think this was and exceptional book ro either enjoy, or get you thinking about where the world is headed. Bravo, Noah!
I know there is a bit of controversy around this title... let me breaknit down for you...
"I like Action-Thrillers":
The pitch: The world is in an uproar as children are discovered to be committing suicide in record rates, with only a cryptic one-word message left behind. Meanwhile, a brother races to save his abducted sister. A wild ride that takes The Stand and makes it real!
"I like cerebral books that make you think":
The pitch: Imagine a world where the Covid pandemic is but the calm before the storm. Hawley takes an in-depth look at how our fragmented social strata is being hyper-sensationalized and paints a startlingly realistic look at what the future may hold for us in. Regardless of political motivation, or right or wrong, this cause-and-effect look at world events is sure to make you look at the world differently.
"I like well-written, literary books":
Noah Hawleys prose is beautiful, as he first brings us back to a time of pride, safety and plenty, then sweeps us forward with clarity and insight thru the eyes of children. The relationships he creates, histories that he unearths and future that he paints will have you laughing and crying. Filled with personal stories of a family struggling to find their child, a father looking to redeem himself, young love and the redeeming power of faith, you will love these characters and their struggles.
While I didn't rate it as high as it may seem I enjoyed it (no spoilers), I think this was and exceptional book ro either enjoy, or get you thinking about where the world is headed. Bravo, Noah!
namaria's review
2.0
39% of the way through the book and I decided to call it quits. The first couple of chapters were great and pulled me into the story, but then it turned dull very quickly. There wasn't any conflict. Someone needs to tell this author that a book is supposed to have three acts in it, which helps with reader engagement. This book is one very long act that doesn't go anywhere.
kathyblais's review
3.0
A fictional, crazy story that somehow tied in all the non-fictional crazy storylines we've been dealing with the last few years. Covid, climate change, Epstein, Trump, oxycontin, depression/anxiety, political division & extremism... this is not a feel-good book.
And yet I kinda liked it. The writing style was interesting, with the author breaking through and speaking directly to the reader every so often.
Trigger warning: The suicide thing was too extreme and almost fell by the wayside in terms of plot.
It was ridiculous and over-the-top, but it kept me interested and it felt like the perfect novel to read while I watched things unfold in Ottawa this weekend.
And yet I kinda liked it. The writing style was interesting, with the author breaking through and speaking directly to the reader every so often.
Trigger warning: The suicide thing was too extreme and almost fell by the wayside in terms of plot.
It was ridiculous and over-the-top, but it kept me interested and it felt like the perfect novel to read while I watched things unfold in Ottawa this weekend.
tschonfeld's review against another edition
2.0
I’m not exactly sure what to say about this book other than this: do not read it. It’s satire gone awry - completely over-the-top (and yet still likely realistic) but without a clear vision for what we are supposed to learn from/do with it. The author even admits this at the end (and in several weird asides through the book). I couldn’t keep the characters straight by the time I reached part 2…and I also didn’t care. There was plenty of gratuitous violence, ire, and indignation, but it really just felt like a privileged white man railing at the world. Nothing (new) to see here. Skip it.
rebelqueen's review
2.0
Way too much going on in this heavy handed dystopia. Everything is terrible- climate change, civil war #2, mass teen suicides, extreme politics, etc. Nothing to root for and no hope in sight in this dystopian novel.
onnapnewo's review
2.0
Thought the book was way too preachy and I’m part of the choir here. Huge chunks felt entirely irrelevant and the ending annoyed the hell out of me.