Reviews

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

rhi_reading's review against another edition

Bought a kindle and forgot about it - will come back to! 

krow48's review

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

xover's review against another edition

5.0

There is something very wrong with Margaret Atwood.

The misery in this book is unremitting, the horror unrelenting. There are no actually likeable characters (Empathy, yes. Like? Hell no!). The plot is… The plot is.

And yet… There is something utterly hypnotic about her authorial voice (helped not a little by the audio performance by [a:Campbell Scott|251177|Campbell Scott|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]). I'm not usually fond of post-apocalyptic scifi, and misery porn tends to bore me, but there was something here that not only kept me reading (listening) but… I think "transfixed" is the word.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone, and I would actively caution against it for anyone with any history of mental problems (don't matter what kind; this book would be bad for anything in the DSM), but it kept me coming back until the end and it made me think, so… I think I actually have to give it 5 stars.

There may be something very wrong with me.

mborer23's review against another edition

5.0

An incendiary tale of an apocalyptic future. A grizzled, half-mad survivor of a genetically-engineered plague, Snowman (formerly known as Jimmy) is charged with watching over and guiding a race of human-like creatures created by Jimmy's best friend, Crake. The story of how this future unfolded is chilling and fascinating, and the characters are memorable.

dangg140's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

thinklings's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

sj_books's review against another edition

5.0

This is one of my favourite Atwood novels, a mixture of speculative fiction, sci fi / mad scientist and dystopia that I have read many times now and still enjoy it just as much as the first read.

mthornburg13's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

domiurb's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

edorsettmill's review against another edition

slow-paced

2.5