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triplebriiii's review against another edition
4.5
This was so close to 5 ⭐, I just needed it to be more.. subtle.
To begin, I really enjoyed the story format. I find stories where the narrator is talking to us from some future point in time, and telling us the story of their life to be super interesting. I love the little hints they give when shit's about to go down, their self reflections and ruminations on what they would or would not change. And all of that is very much present here, along with the unreliable narrator.
I was also really fascinated by the world and the changes that happened due to the wars and conflicts that occured in the early 20th century. Tbh, that part hit a little bit too close to home, but that could just bc i'm coming at this from a rather pessimistic stand point, what can i say. I found most fascinating the differences in society due to the implementation of the no-family policy.
In particular, I found it really interesting that gay marriage, as well as interracial marriage, was legal in the 1950s, implying that after decades of total world war, the dissolution of religion (presumably), and the family unit (definitely), humanity actually came to its senses and realized that it doesn't fucking matter. And that wasn't the only positve change that was brought about due to the specific circumstances of that reality. After decades of war, the world is quite literally entirely at peace, there is global cooperation and, from what it sounds like, prosperity.
It reminds me of that Apple TV show For All Mankind, where one slight change in history (in the show's case, Russia landing on the moon before the US, and in this book's case, a massive world war that lasted for decades and killed off 60% of the world's population [okay that might be more than a "slight" change 😅😅😅]), resulted in, arguably, a more just and equitable society.
But at what cost is the main moral and ethical question here.
But while I really enjoyed this (and I will be checking out the podcast), I felt like the story would have been stronger if they had leaned more into the unreliable narrator of it all and didn't make it so obvious. Maybe it's just me, but the fact that the annotator was just spitting pure and obvious propoganda, intentionally and not subtly disparaging and dismissing everything the MC was saying, just really re-enforced that the narrator was likely telling the truth, their conspiracies were indeed true, and in fact it's the annotator who is the unreliable one.
I think if there was more subtlety and the annotator had stuck with the historian-esque commentary, keeping things unbiased, presenting the memoir without trying to manipulate the reader into a certain understanding, it would have caused more doubt and hesitence in me to believe the MC. And that uncertainty over whether or not to believe the MC would have increased the horror vibes and I would have appreciated that.
I loved the use of motherhood as such a clear indication of the actual harm these policies have wrought.
To begin, I really enjoyed the story format. I find stories where the narrator is talking to us from some future point in time, and telling us the story of their life to be super interesting. I love the little hints they give when shit's about to go down, their self reflections and ruminations on what they would or would not change. And all of that is very much present here, along with the unreliable narrator.
I was also really fascinated by the world and the changes that happened due to the wars and conflicts that occured in the early 20th century. Tbh, that part hit a little bit too close to home, but that could just bc i'm coming at this from a rather pessimistic stand point, what can i say. I found most fascinating the differences in society due to the implementation of the no-family policy.
In particular, I found it really interesting that gay marriage, as well as interracial marriage, was legal in the 1950s, implying that after decades of total world war, the dissolution of religion (presumably), and the family unit (definitely), humanity actually came to its senses and realized that it doesn't fucking matter. And that wasn't the only positve change that was brought about due to the specific circumstances of that reality. After decades of war, the world is quite literally entirely at peace, there is global cooperation and, from what it sounds like, prosperity.
It reminds me of that Apple TV show For All Mankind, where one slight change in history (in the show's case, Russia landing on the moon before the US, and in this book's case, a massive world war that lasted for decades and killed off 60% of the world's population [okay that might be more than a "slight" change 😅😅😅]), resulted in, arguably, a more just and equitable society.
But at what cost is the main moral and ethical question here.
But while I really enjoyed this (and I will be checking out the podcast), I felt like the story would have been stronger if they had leaned more into the unreliable narrator of it all and didn't make it so obvious. Maybe it's just me, but the fact that the annotator was just spitting pure and obvious propoganda, intentionally and not subtly disparaging and dismissing everything the MC was saying, just really re-enforced that the narrator was likely telling the truth, their conspiracies were indeed true, and in fact it's the annotator who is the unreliable one.
I think if there was more subtlety and the annotator had stuck with the historian-esque commentary, keeping things unbiased, presenting the memoir without trying to manipulate the reader into a certain understanding, it would have caused more doubt and hesitence in me to believe the MC. And that uncertainty over whether or not to believe the MC would have increased the horror vibes and I would have appreciated that.
I loved the use of motherhood as such a clear indication of the actual harm these policies have wrought.
njdarkish's review against another edition
4.0
Very good. I'm definitely planning on diving back into the Within the Wires podcast now (I've listened to 3 seasons, loved 1 and was lukewarm about 2 and 3). The worldbuilding is especially excellent.
lovely_bookshelf's review against another edition
Definitely wrong timing and lack of interest
jessuh27's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
andreabrownriley's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
thismustbemyexit's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
love it when books self-reflexively engage with unreliable narrators and as such i found the back-and-forth with the footnotes and main story fun. ‘fun’ was kind of where it ended for me though as i don’t feel like i got much out of this nor do i think i’d re-read it.
ananthousflorist's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.0
seereeves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I was interested in the world being built. The storytelling format I think was supposed to be clever and felt that way at first. However by the end the book just dragged on, the footnote annotations became less useful, and ultimately there didn’t seem to be a point.
After reading it, I discovered it’s a book set in the world of a podcast the authors also write together. Maybe there are seasons of the podcast I’d enjoy seeing as how the world itself seems interesting.
After reading it, I discovered it’s a book set in the world of a podcast the authors also write together. Maybe there are seasons of the podcast I’d enjoy seeing as how the world itself seems interesting.
historyofjess's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was such a fun read. The book is presented as a piece of found literature (a memoir) with addendums and footnotes from the organization that found her writing and made the, as they say, controversial decision, to publish it. The narrator traces her life in an alternate history of the Earth beset by worldwide conflict in the early 20th century all the way through the building of a new society. But what could have been just an intricate world-building book is elevated by the book's structure, which becomes a battle of unreliable narrators.
The footnotes and interludes begin with a kind of passionless, historically-minded voice, but as they needle and pick at the author's recollections over the course of the book, they become more hostile and judgmental. And as we learn more about the story the author is telling and why she is telling it, the longer footnotes seem less insidious than the frequent use of brief, "edited for clarity" notes. It's a wild ride that I thoroughly enjoyed and I was excited to learn at the end that this was actually born from a podcast these authors created in this universe and I'm excited to dig into that, as well.
The footnotes and interludes begin with a kind of passionless, historically-minded voice, but as they needle and pick at the author's recollections over the course of the book, they become more hostile and judgmental. And as we learn more about the story the author is telling and why she is telling it, the longer footnotes seem less insidious than the frequent use of brief, "edited for clarity" notes. It's a wild ride that I thoroughly enjoyed and I was excited to learn at the end that this was actually born from a podcast these authors created in this universe and I'm excited to dig into that, as well.
elsreadsandrecs's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0