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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
dark
funny
reflective
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This book started out as stressful/scary, then quickly became zany and ridiculous…in a good way. I listened to about half of this on audiobook and I think the narrator helped convey how silly some of the moments were (I might have missed the humor if I was just reading because it’s definitely dark humor). I thought the world-building was great and the plot was funny while also making me stress about my own possible dystopian future. I never really understood the characters’ motivations because they were such weird shallow people but this was more of a light fun read so I didn’t mind. Kindle/audiobook.
Really interesting, unsettling, and again the dystopia feels a little too close to possible. I also felt some echos of plot overlap with The Testaments at a couple points, which is not a bad thing.
It’s Margaret Atwood, so it can’t be completely worthless, but it’s come closer than anything else she’s ever written, in my book. A simplistic critique of the prison industrial complex that almost totally ignores class and race and that is genuinely implausible - we read this for my book club, and 3 English majors (one a lit prof and another a former lit prof) couldn’t figure out what the hell any of it meant. Messy and full of caricatures and just plain uninteresting.
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fascinating! So much to think about. This is going to make for an awesome book club discussion!
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love how calculated everything is about this book. It's like Margaret Atwood created this as an example of how to write many of the different literary elements taught in literary art classrooms across the world. It's so good, it's almost textbook.
Honestly, it's no Handmaid's Tale, but the story tickles your gut in an unexpected way. I'm equally irritated and thrilled by both Stan and Charmaine, so it's hard to give this a stellar review because part of me was really happy their lives sucked. But that's the beauty of Atwood's characters, isn't it? I am entertained and confused by how much they annoy me and I still root for them.
PS: The ending hurts.
Honestly, it's no Handmaid's Tale, but the story tickles your gut in an unexpected way. I'm equally irritated and thrilled by both Stan and Charmaine, so it's hard to give this a stellar review because part of me was really happy their lives sucked. But that's the beauty of Atwood's characters, isn't it? I am entertained and confused by how much they annoy me and I still root for them.
PS: The ending hurts.