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A review by vivalibrarian
The Power by Naomi Alderman
5.0
This book devastated me. I went into 2019 in a terrible reading rut. I was reading mostly romances or horror which is on point with reading trends in general due to the dumpster fire circumstances all around us. But, that doesn't do my professional book peddler status any favors so I was determined to do better and part of that meant reading books that received a lot of attention that I never picked up. It wasn't easy getting out of my comfortable rut and Alderman's tome is a perfect example of why.
At first, this was the book I desperately wanted. In a world that looks just like mine, women were starting to have a power that gave them influence like they've never had before. In fear of losing their alpha status, the leaders of the world (mostly men and women who were serving their best interests for the moment) kept taking more and more extreme measures to suppress this power and make it seen as something to hide and be embarrassed to have. Then, slowly, women started taking their power back and dear reader, it was wonderful. Women uniting together and saying we've had quite enough and you can suck it is some kind of drug. I was mesmerized. I cried. I cheered. FINALLY.
Then...it all went to hell. Thanks, Naomi! Sigh. Because there is a truth universally known but not universally accepted that it isn't your sex, it is power that corrupts. Watching that truth unfold was mesmerizing. I cried. I booed. It was devastating and that pushed me way out of my comfort bubble with my reading these days. I love it for doing so because it is so easy to hide and turn inward while the world destructs. Consider this one of those wake up calls you don't really want but desperately need.
“One of them says, 'Why did they do it?'
And the other answers, 'Because they could.'
That is the only answer there ever is.”
At first, this was the book I desperately wanted. In a world that looks just like mine, women were starting to have a power that gave them influence like they've never had before. In fear of losing their alpha status, the leaders of the world (mostly men and women who were serving their best interests for the moment) kept taking more and more extreme measures to suppress this power and make it seen as something to hide and be embarrassed to have. Then, slowly, women started taking their power back and dear reader, it was wonderful. Women uniting together and saying we've had quite enough and you can suck it is some kind of drug. I was mesmerized. I cried. I cheered. FINALLY.
Then...it all went to hell. Thanks, Naomi! Sigh. Because there is a truth universally known but not universally accepted that it isn't your sex, it is power that corrupts. Watching that truth unfold was mesmerizing. I cried. I booed. It was devastating and that pushed me way out of my comfort bubble with my reading these days. I love it for doing so because it is so easy to hide and turn inward while the world destructs. Consider this one of those wake up calls you don't really want but desperately need.
“One of them says, 'Why did they do it?'
And the other answers, 'Because they could.'
That is the only answer there ever is.”