A review by sydneythekydneybean
The Power by Naomi Alderman

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

3.0

A very, very odd book. It had me hooked for the majority. I liked all the characters (Roxy being my favorite, followed by Margot and Jocelyn, then Tunde, and Allie was somewhere in there before taking a major drop in the ranking in those final 10-20 pages) and the set-up, premise, and plot were all interesting to keep me interested. I really liked the way it made me think about power dynamics, morality, and gender stereotypes. The way the author processes the different ways women would go about life with "the power" is so fascinating, BUT the ending really fizzled out for me, which was even more disappointing since the build-up to it was so good. 

This book had so much potential to be a great, thought-provoking feminist read, but I don't think it can be that book when most of the women say
"yes, let's blow up the world because we can (???????). we have more power than men now, but they want it back so instead of working with them now that we're at an equal level, let's blow it all up, go back 5,000 years, and start all over again".
Not only did it completely blow up (pun intended) a lot of character arcs, but it was also just like a hopeless ending, which is notoriously the worst way you can end a story to me.

Allie's final story beat of becoming the President of Bessapara and choosing between war and peace had me at the edge of my seat, especially with the dynamic change between Roxy (who wants peace) and Allie (who wants war). I thought Allie finding her former adoptive mother and realizing that she was just as awful, if not worse than her former adoptive father, would lead to an epiphany that not all would be grand if women came out on top. Women can be just as vicious and violent and malevolent as men, and nothing will change. Only the reverse would happen. Women would be on top, leaving men with the scraps of the world, and I know historically that is how women were treated, but what kind of victory is that? Why would we create the same world that was so cruel to us? But nope, it seems like Allie didn't take any of this into account and chose war even after all of that. What an incredibly disappointing way to end her story.


Also, maybe someone can explain it to me, but I didn't really see the point of the letters at the beginning and the end of the book. Just give me the story in the middle. I don't need this weird back and forth, especially after giving me that apologetically bad ending.
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