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A review by seventhswan
Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein
challenging
informative
medium-paced
4.25
This was my first time reading Naomi Klein, though her work came recommended so my expectations were high. Doppelganger lived up to these expectations - I found it to be an engaging, insightful look at a range of related political and social issues, using ideas about doubling and replication as a springboard. Notably, this is the first text of any length I've read where I came away feeling like I'd actually improved my understanding of the politics surrounding Israel and Palestine.
I found the section on autism a little random - slightly strange in tone and out of step with the rest of the book, even though the changeling-as-doppelganger theory made for an obvious link to the title. Klein's denial that autism is a disability ("just a different way of being human" - well-meaning, but no!) meant she didn't engage with disability politics in that section too closely, instead critiquing the Autism Mom Community largely on their promotion of medical misinformation. None of this content was incorrect, of course, but something just felt... off.
Overall, though, this was a few pages of a largely excellent book, and I'll look to read more by Klein in future.
I found the section on autism a little random - slightly strange in tone and out of step with the rest of the book, even though the changeling-as-doppelganger theory made for an obvious link to the title. Klein's denial that autism is a disability ("just a different way of being human" - well-meaning, but no!) meant she didn't engage with disability politics in that section too closely, instead critiquing the Autism Mom Community largely on their promotion of medical misinformation. None of this content was incorrect, of course, but something just felt... off.
Overall, though, this was a few pages of a largely excellent book, and I'll look to read more by Klein in future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Ableism, Misogyny, and Violence