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nilsar's review against another edition
2.5
+
exploring this premise
parts of the beginning of the book
-
flat characters
the writing style
exploring this premise
parts of the beginning of the book
-
flat characters
the writing style
didemertens's review against another edition
5.0
The Power won the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction! It’s high time for a review:
In The Power, the whole world changes completely. For once, women are the strongest and this book tells the story of what happens next. It’s a ‘historical’ novel set in the future, describing the consequences of women being able to produce electricity themselves and shock – even kill – people if they touch them.
Have you ever wondered what would happen when women would rule the world? Would it be a peaceful place filled with calmness and serenity? If so – think again. The Power shatters this nice, pink-clouded dream entirely. And I absolutely loved it for doing that.
The book mainly follows Roxy (a British gangster queen), Allie (who, after years of abuse, turns into some sort of goddess), Margot (an American politician out to get more and more power), and Tunde (a young man and journalist who is covering the changes around the world). The story switches every 5-10 pages or so to another person’s perspective, which I found very intriguing and much praise to Alderman (and her editor) for being able to pull this off.
Funnily enough, the Power does not start with the story about these characters. It starts with emails sent by ‘Neil’ to Naomi about this manuscript. Apparently, he has written a novel based on the findings of archeologists. He describes the moment when women found out they had the power, something that is years and years in the past.
In the beginning of this book, I felt that the Power was a great thing. Women could finally defend themselves. But then it all changed. It turned darker and darker and became very, very real as I realised the horrible truth.
Besides shattering my peaceful dream and showing what a world ruled by women would look like, this novel shines a light on our current lives. As Tunde thinks:
“When he walked past a group of women on the road – laughing and joking and making arcs against the sky – Tunde said to himself, I’m not here, I’m nothing, don’t notice me, you can’t see me, there’s nothing here to see.
…
In his journal, he wrote: ‘For the first time today on the road I was afraid.'”
How many times have I had exactly the same experience as Tunde? And why? Because women are weaker? I think this novel gives the following answer:
Because power is always abused
And why is power abused you ask? Because people can, that’s why.
This book confused me completely. I’m frustrated because of the world we live in and I’m sad because I think The Power is right. And I absolutely loved it.
In The Power, the whole world changes completely. For once, women are the strongest and this book tells the story of what happens next. It’s a ‘historical’ novel set in the future, describing the consequences of women being able to produce electricity themselves and shock – even kill – people if they touch them.
Have you ever wondered what would happen when women would rule the world? Would it be a peaceful place filled with calmness and serenity? If so – think again. The Power shatters this nice, pink-clouded dream entirely. And I absolutely loved it for doing that.
The book mainly follows Roxy (a British gangster queen), Allie (who, after years of abuse, turns into some sort of goddess), Margot (an American politician out to get more and more power), and Tunde (a young man and journalist who is covering the changes around the world). The story switches every 5-10 pages or so to another person’s perspective, which I found very intriguing and much praise to Alderman (and her editor) for being able to pull this off.
Funnily enough, the Power does not start with the story about these characters. It starts with emails sent by ‘Neil’ to Naomi about this manuscript. Apparently, he has written a novel based on the findings of archeologists. He describes the moment when women found out they had the power, something that is years and years in the past.
In the beginning of this book, I felt that the Power was a great thing. Women could finally defend themselves. But then it all changed. It turned darker and darker and became very, very real as I realised the horrible truth.
Besides shattering my peaceful dream and showing what a world ruled by women would look like, this novel shines a light on our current lives. As Tunde thinks:
“When he walked past a group of women on the road – laughing and joking and making arcs against the sky – Tunde said to himself, I’m not here, I’m nothing, don’t notice me, you can’t see me, there’s nothing here to see.
…
In his journal, he wrote: ‘For the first time today on the road I was afraid.'”
How many times have I had exactly the same experience as Tunde? And why? Because women are weaker? I think this novel gives the following answer:
Because power is always abused
And why is power abused you ask? Because people can, that’s why.
This book confused me completely. I’m frustrated because of the world we live in and I’m sad because I think The Power is right. And I absolutely loved it.
mexican_ninjas's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
futurememory's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? No
2.0
Ehhhhh. Probably a 2.5, but I don’t feel like rounding up today.
This book hits with the subtlety of a sledgehammer, and reads like genre fiction for the litfic set. The audience for a book like this is clearly for those that don’t read a lot of science fiction and fantasy.
I do this the premise was an interesting one, and I definitely enjoyed the framing narrative. But the actual reading experience of this one was painful. A lot of the POVs are flat out uninteresting. Their stories spin their wheels. And while the last pages make the author’s intent very clear, it didn’t exactly make any of the previous pages any more engaging or… not tiring to read.
A pretty big disappointment overall, unfortunately. I could have DNFed this.
This book hits with the subtlety of a sledgehammer, and reads like genre fiction for the litfic set. The audience for a book like this is clearly for those that don’t read a lot of science fiction and fantasy.
I do this the premise was an interesting one, and I definitely enjoyed the framing narrative. But the actual reading experience of this one was painful. A lot of the POVs are flat out uninteresting. Their stories spin their wheels. And while the last pages make the author’s intent very clear, it didn’t exactly make any of the previous pages any more engaging or… not tiring to read.
A pretty big disappointment overall, unfortunately. I could have DNFed this.
martindochall's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
javiertenenbaum's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
meekoh's review against another edition
2.0
I can't lie, I hated reading this book.
I felt like I was reading violent feminist revenge porn. I couldn't understand the point. We're already familiar with these horrors, so why not just flip the pronouns in a history book and call it a day? I don't want to read about anyone being brutalized, regardless of their gender.
After finishing, I reflected that maybe I wasn't the target audience for this book. Maybe, it's about centring men in feminist narratives to make it easier for them to identify with women's lived experiences.
Alderman has said in interviews that female empowerment, for her, isn't putting women on a pedestal to be treated like morally superior beings. Rather, that it's important to recognize that we are the same, and what differentiates us is merely social constructs paired with power dynamics.
I don't agree with the author's premise. That's not to say I think women's empowerment would inevitably lead to a utopia or anything, it just means that I believe (in general) that even if the outcome is just as morally objectionable, there do exist real gendered divides concerning how power is exercised. This makes Alderman's speculative fiction seem lazy because it doesn't include any creative reimagining of how society would function.
But hey, let's say that I do buy into the author's premise. I still think her narrative misses more interesting and thought-provoking situations in favour of going the shock and awe route.
I felt like I was reading violent feminist revenge porn. I couldn't understand the point. We're already familiar with these horrors, so why not just flip the pronouns in a history book and call it a day? I don't want to read about anyone being brutalized, regardless of their gender.
After finishing, I reflected that maybe I wasn't the target audience for this book. Maybe, it's about centring men in feminist narratives to make it easier for them to identify with women's lived experiences.
Alderman has said in interviews that female empowerment, for her, isn't putting women on a pedestal to be treated like morally superior beings. Rather, that it's important to recognize that we are the same, and what differentiates us is merely social constructs paired with power dynamics.
I don't agree with the author's premise. That's not to say I think women's empowerment would inevitably lead to a utopia or anything, it just means that I believe (in general) that even if the outcome is just as morally objectionable, there do exist real gendered divides concerning how power is exercised. This makes Alderman's speculative fiction seem lazy because it doesn't include any creative reimagining of how society would function.
But hey, let's say that I do buy into the author's premise. I still think her narrative misses more interesting and thought-provoking situations in favour of going the shock and awe route.
thelaurelwreathcrowned's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75