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cherryxlee's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
moshikami's review against another edition
3.0
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and devoured it quite quickly. It is well-written with timeline-shifting short chapters in which plot details are scarce, but graphic depictions of Atwood's dystopian speculative world of spliced-animals and casual child pornography and execution watching teens are abundant. Naturally, I was intrigued.
I read on, in hopes of gleaning more information about the world and our three main characters: Snowman, Oryx, and Crake. My curiosity about this new world was satisfied, but I cannot say the same in regards to the characters. Jimmy/Snowman was the most fleshed out, but Oryx and Crake were somehow hollow? It may have been intentional on Atwood's part, but it didn't make them sentimental characters to me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
As I was reading this book, I found myself already excited to read the next books in the trilogy. However, at this point I am unsure if I will continue and I may check out one of Atwood's other works instead. I enjoyed the narrative structure and found Atwood to be a terrific writer, but there was something abrupt and unsatisfying about the resolution of Oryx and Crake. I am thankful for the page-turning experience I was able to have, and hope to have more in the future.
I read on, in hopes of gleaning more information about the world and our three main characters: Snowman, Oryx, and Crake. My curiosity about this new world was satisfied, but I cannot say the same in regards to the characters. Jimmy/Snowman was the most fleshed out, but Oryx and Crake were somehow hollow? It may have been intentional on Atwood's part, but it didn't make them sentimental characters to me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
As I was reading this book, I found myself already excited to read the next books in the trilogy. However, at this point I am unsure if I will continue and I may check out one of Atwood's other works instead. I enjoyed the narrative structure and found Atwood to be a terrific writer, but there was something abrupt and unsatisfying about the resolution of Oryx and Crake. I am thankful for the page-turning experience I was able to have, and hope to have more in the future.
bittersweet_symphony's review against another edition
3.0
Atwood delivers a biotech dystopia where large genetics companies engineer new animals and microorganisms, ultimately to the detriment if civilization. She is a master at her craft. The voice is firmly jaded, cynical, and cold, presenting a world with unhappy, or muted characters. Oddly, the companies operate more like government agencies or unaccountable political actors, rather than the way individuals behave within market systems. Her misunderstandings surrounding economic forces and businesses left this novel less than believable.
The scientific elements were interesting, but I was not too worried by the outcome. I am far more optimistic about biotech than Atwood appears to be. There's no utopia in this world, but The Handmaid's Tale is a far prescient warning to the world than Oryx and Crake.
The scientific elements were interesting, but I was not too worried by the outcome. I am far more optimistic about biotech than Atwood appears to be. There's no utopia in this world, but The Handmaid's Tale is a far prescient warning to the world than Oryx and Crake.
kivt's review against another edition
1.0
read this book years ago and found it miserably embarrassingly bad.
karrama's review against another edition
4.0
SOoOoOoO Depressing, but then anything post apocalyptic can be. It was gripping enough that I kept reading, but very bleak.
matticatti's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
coffeequasars's review against another edition
4.0
I'm usually not the biggest fan of sci-fi/dystopian fiction, but Margie popped off with this one!
becci's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
whimsicalmeerkat's review against another edition
5.0
[b:Oryx and Crake|46756|Oryx and Crake|Margaret Atwood|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1303565743s/46756.jpg|3143431] is both post-apocalyptic and dystopian. It deals with themes of religion, sexuality, violence, oppression, genetic engineering, love, lust, and friendship. It opens with a man who calls himself Snowman living on a beach after a disaster of proportions we do not fully learn until later. There are also other beautiful beings who seem like humans, but both more advanced and more simple. Snowman's thoughts then turn inwards and backwards to his childhood, when he was called Jimmy. The book switches back and forth between Jimmy's memories of life and his present day reality. We learn about his friendship with a boy named Crake and who they both became, as well as his relationship with a girl named Oryx. We also see an unfolding picture of how and why Jimmy became Snowman and why his world is the way it is. Along the way, the themes I mentioned above also unfold, with all the questions they bring.
I found myself thinking of [b:This Perfect Day|139390|This Perfect Day|Ira Levin|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1249566974s/139390.jpg|1945300] a lot while reading this, but also of [b:Speaker for the Dead|7967|Speaker for the Dead (Ender's Saga, #2)|Orson Scott Card|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1295660894s/7967.jpg|2327777]. This has intriguing similarities to both. It is also an excellent book.
I found myself thinking of [b:This Perfect Day|139390|This Perfect Day|Ira Levin|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1249566974s/139390.jpg|1945300] a lot while reading this, but also of [b:Speaker for the Dead|7967|Speaker for the Dead (Ender's Saga, #2)|Orson Scott Card|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1295660894s/7967.jpg|2327777]. This has intriguing similarities to both. It is also an excellent book.