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A review by sisala
The Power by Naomi Alderman
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The shape of power is always the same, it is the ‘shape that lightning forms when it strikes from heaven to earth’.
⚡️⚡️⚡️
As I was reading this book, I kept asking myself, what is power? Where does it come from? And who has the right to it and who doesn’t?
And suddenly the voice said to me : Power is power.
Alderman’s concept of a world where women have an electrifying power coursing through their skein was ingenious. However, the outcome of the story seemed to be anticlimactic and underwhelming. There was realism in the end but not enough imagination.
The core message of the novel was that the one who wields the power will inevitably become corrupted by the power.
And certainly, Alderman’s not entirely off the mark here, especially given the legacy of historical fact. However, I’d have liked her story to go absolutely wild with fresh possibilities, nuance, and complexity, from the root to tip 🌳
Lastly, I wanted more gravitas. I wanted an epic, so did not take a liking to the book’s colloquialisms and phrases such as ‘honeybun’ which threw me out of it.
P.S.
Sometimes, I wonder if I’d have connected with this book more in my teens. I’ve kept it on my shelf for so long (6 years!) that now just felt like the right time.
⚡️⚡️⚡️
As I was reading this book, I kept asking myself, what is power? Where does it come from? And who has the right to it and who doesn’t?
And suddenly the voice said to me : Power is power.
Alderman’s concept of a world where women have an electrifying power coursing through their skein was ingenious. However, the outcome of the story seemed to be anticlimactic and underwhelming. There was realism in the end but not enough imagination.
The core message of the novel was that the one who wields the power will inevitably become corrupted by the power.
And certainly, Alderman’s not entirely off the mark here, especially given the legacy of historical fact. However, I’d have liked her story to go absolutely wild with fresh possibilities, nuance, and complexity, from the root to tip 🌳
Lastly, I wanted more gravitas. I wanted an epic, so did not take a liking to the book’s colloquialisms and phrases such as ‘honeybun’ which threw me out of it.
P.S.
Sometimes, I wonder if I’d have connected with this book more in my teens. I’ve kept it on my shelf for so long (6 years!) that now just felt like the right time.