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katseye116's review against another edition
5.0
I'm almost ashamed to admit that until now, outside of "The Handmaid's Tale", I hadn't read Margaret Atwood's much-acclaimed work. I can't imagine why. "The Blind Assassin" has been on my bookshelf for over fifteen years but I never got around to reading it. But this year one of my reading goals is to (finally!) work my way through all those books on my shelf which I haven't read yet. That amounts to probably around a hundred books, give or take. I'm off to a good start. This is my fifth book from that batch I've read so far this year. And let me tell you, this one was definitely worth reading!
It starts off with the (literally) cliff-hanging information that Laura Chase drove off a bridge. As far as memorable opening sentences, this one ranks right up there. The rest of the book is the story of what happened to both Laura and her sister, the narrator, to bring Laura to that devastating choice. Information is doled out in small portions, but done so skillfully that I am in awe of Atwood's gift for storytelling. She weaves a story within a story within a story with such deft strokes that not only am I able to follow the several plots, but I am left breathlessly awaiting the next chapter of each. Atwood builds suspense and holds it throughout, without ever allowing the reader's interest to flag.
Some of the wisdom imparted through the story stays with me still. A couple of the most memorable for me are:
"No one knows what Colonel Parkman really looked like, since he left no pictorial evidence of himself and the statue wasn’t erected until 1885, but he looks like this now. Such is the tyranny of Art."
"Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment."
Here's another confession that should shame me, yet really doesn't: I find the vast majority of poetry pretentious and overblown. What a joy, then, to find that noted literary giant Atwood agrees with me. Or I should say, Atwood's character in this book agrees with me.
"The poems that used to entrance me in the days of Miss Violence now struck me as overdone and sickly. Alas, burthen, thine, cometh, aweary – the archaic language of unrequited love. I was irritated with such words, which rendered the unhappy lovers – I could now see – faintly ridiculous, like poor moping Miss Violence herself. Soft-edged, blurry, soggy, like a bun fallen into the water. Nothing you’d want to touch."
That passage makes my heart just sing.
Other highlights show how relevant Atwood's work is to current events. It's not hard to tie this passage to today's political upheavals:
"At the outbreak of the war, Richard was in a tight spot. He’d been too cozy with the Germans in his business dealings, too admiring of them in his speeches. Like many of his peers, he’d turned too blind an eye to their brutal violations of democracy; a democracy that many of our leaders had been decrying as unworkable, but that they were now keen to defend."
And peppered throughout, Atwood's mastery of language, nuance, and insight give moments of sheer literary beauty.
"I opened the desk drawers. In one of them there was a box of sample buttons from the days of Grandfather Benjamin: the circles of white bone that had turned to gold in his hands, and that had stayed gold for so many years, but had now turned back into bone again."
The many layers of this books, the various stories within stories which kept me enthralled, showcase why people read, why certain authors become literary icons, and how stories, skillfully wrought, can transport us into a world not our own, where we can live for a time and feel all the pleasure and pain of the connoisseurs of voyeurism without any of the attendant guilt.
This book should be read, celebrated, and honored.
It starts off with the (literally) cliff-hanging information that Laura Chase drove off a bridge. As far as memorable opening sentences, this one ranks right up there. The rest of the book is the story of what happened to both Laura and her sister, the narrator, to bring Laura to that devastating choice. Information is doled out in small portions, but done so skillfully that I am in awe of Atwood's gift for storytelling. She weaves a story within a story within a story with such deft strokes that not only am I able to follow the several plots, but I am left breathlessly awaiting the next chapter of each. Atwood builds suspense and holds it throughout, without ever allowing the reader's interest to flag.
Some of the wisdom imparted through the story stays with me still. A couple of the most memorable for me are:
"No one knows what Colonel Parkman really looked like, since he left no pictorial evidence of himself and the statue wasn’t erected until 1885, but he looks like this now. Such is the tyranny of Art."
"Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment."
Here's another confession that should shame me, yet really doesn't: I find the vast majority of poetry pretentious and overblown. What a joy, then, to find that noted literary giant Atwood agrees with me. Or I should say, Atwood's character in this book agrees with me.
"The poems that used to entrance me in the days of Miss Violence now struck me as overdone and sickly. Alas, burthen, thine, cometh, aweary – the archaic language of unrequited love. I was irritated with such words, which rendered the unhappy lovers – I could now see – faintly ridiculous, like poor moping Miss Violence herself. Soft-edged, blurry, soggy, like a bun fallen into the water. Nothing you’d want to touch."
That passage makes my heart just sing.
Other highlights show how relevant Atwood's work is to current events. It's not hard to tie this passage to today's political upheavals:
"At the outbreak of the war, Richard was in a tight spot. He’d been too cozy with the Germans in his business dealings, too admiring of them in his speeches. Like many of his peers, he’d turned too blind an eye to their brutal violations of democracy; a democracy that many of our leaders had been decrying as unworkable, but that they were now keen to defend."
And peppered throughout, Atwood's mastery of language, nuance, and insight give moments of sheer literary beauty.
"I opened the desk drawers. In one of them there was a box of sample buttons from the days of Grandfather Benjamin: the circles of white bone that had turned to gold in his hands, and that had stayed gold for so many years, but had now turned back into bone again."
The many layers of this books, the various stories within stories which kept me enthralled, showcase why people read, why certain authors become literary icons, and how stories, skillfully wrought, can transport us into a world not our own, where we can live for a time and feel all the pleasure and pain of the connoisseurs of voyeurism without any of the attendant guilt.
This book should be read, celebrated, and honored.
jackielemon's review against another edition
5.0
Beautifully written, story within a story. Slow paced and melancholic life story of two sisters living through the World wars, the Depression, labor unrest and the loss of innocence and love.
scottreston's review against another edition
3.0
I can see why people might enjoy this book, but I'm not one of those people. Appreciated it, not enjoyed.
sara_seagreen's review against another edition
4.0
This may indeed by Margaret Atwood's best. She weaves stories seemingly unrelated to make a bombshell of an ending.
lizziekam's review against another edition
Couldn't finish this one - while I liked the writing, I just couldn't get to the point where the disparate threads started to weave together.
With that said, I'm going through a difficult time personally so I find concentrating difficult.
With that said, I'm going through a difficult time personally so I find concentrating difficult.
lesromansnoir's review against another edition
4.0
This book is a Matryoksha, minus the confusion.
The themes of old money, family tragedy and political upheavals were beautifully portrayed. Additionally, the way Atwood had interconnected both - the book’s story and the second book within it , is so smooth.
The initial chapters were a stretch but as soon as Laura walked into the story, it just turned so interesting. I love the way Laura’s character was built.
Reading about their childhood and their mother’s death was heart wrenching in so many ways. It probably led to me finding Reenie as my comfort character.
I felt furious when Iris was “forcibly” married to Richard. What made me fume even more was the fact that he hid her father’s death.
I loved the plot twist at the end of the book. All this time, I thought the book within it was about a certain set of characters - well atleast I was right about one?
The turn of events, may it be Iris’ toxic marriage, her father’s death and the reason behind her sister’s suicide are heartwrenching.
This book does require a lot of attention and there is quite a bit of information dump and rabling. However, the ramblings are pretty much acceptable considering that this story is being narrated by an 80 year old woman reminiscing her life.
The themes of old money, family tragedy and political upheavals were beautifully portrayed. Additionally, the way Atwood had interconnected both - the book’s story and the second book within it , is so smooth.
The initial chapters were a stretch but as soon as Laura walked into the story, it just turned so interesting. I love the way Laura’s character was built.
Reading about their childhood and their mother’s death was heart wrenching in so many ways. It probably led to me finding Reenie as my comfort character.
I felt furious when Iris was “forcibly” married to Richard. What made me fume even more was the fact that he hid her father’s death.
I loved the plot twist at the end of the book. All this time, I thought the book within it was about a certain set of characters - well atleast I was right about one?
The turn of events, may it be Iris’ toxic marriage, her father’s death and the reason behind her sister’s suicide are heartwrenching.
This book does require a lot of attention and there is quite a bit of information dump and rabling. However, the ramblings are pretty much acceptable considering that this story is being narrated by an 80 year old woman reminiscing her life.
iameannis's review against another edition
5.0
I bought this book in Valencia, Spain and devoured it on an all night bus ride from Barcelona to Paris. It's long, but it does not turn out to be what you expect. Excellent read.
readhikerepeat's review against another edition
5.0
Atwood manages to recreate a world where the suppression of women is commonplace, but not evil, while at the same time punctuating the story with little rebellions by strong women. For the full review, visit The Book Wheel.
woobat's review against another edition
4.0
Melancholy and compelling. The interweave of the several different levels of narrative really pulled me in - the relationship between them was a puzzle that I wanted to figure out.