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A review by elle_reads
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
4.0
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BOOK REVIEW
[The Testaments] Women work against and together to build and destroy Gilead.
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WHAT I LIKED
The Testaments is an action (not character) driven thriller. I loved Atwood’s increasing sense of urgency on each page. She makes some poignant contemporary social commentary without bashing it on the reader’s head. This book also allows reads insights into multiple factions of Gilead women. Instead of Offred’s utter isolation, these characters interact with other under a cunning guise or pure innocence. I’m excited that Atwood wrote another ‘academic conference’ chapter to end The Testaments. It difficult to restrain my annoyance at the light humor the modern speakers give their sources, but then the last paragraph…the last paragraph pulled at my heartstrings. It hit me hard and humanized the characters one final time before close.
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WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
*whisper* I skimmed a bit of Daisy’s narrative *whisper* There’s idealistic teenager, and then there is reader-unbelievable idealistic teenager. The pacing was just off. Her storyline was equally stagnant and rushed. Everything just fit to easily into place. It was predictable - and not just because I’ve read The Handmaid’s Tale. The other teenager, Agnes, was a touch flat as well.
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I think it's impossible to review The Testaments without some mention of The Handmaid’s Tale. IT IS DIFFERENT than The Handmaid’s Tale! The Testaments has a foot in instant classic (mostly Aunt Lydia’s plot) and a foot in action thriller. It may not be a modern classic like The Handmaid’s Tale, but it was still worth the read and recommendation.
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The Testaments (by Margaret Atwood) ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️4/5
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Favorite Pages: 10, 11, 13, 15, 48, 32, 142, 166, 174, 178, 278, 303, 307, 327, 364, 412
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Recommended if you like: The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, 1984 by George Orwell, Margaret the First by Danielle Dutton
BOOK REVIEW
[The Testaments] Women work against and together to build and destroy Gilead.
//
WHAT I LIKED
The Testaments is an action (not character) driven thriller. I loved Atwood’s increasing sense of urgency on each page. She makes some poignant contemporary social commentary without bashing it on the reader’s head. This book also allows reads insights into multiple factions of Gilead women. Instead of Offred’s utter isolation, these characters interact with other under a cunning guise or pure innocence. I’m excited that Atwood wrote another ‘academic conference’ chapter to end The Testaments. It difficult to restrain my annoyance at the light humor the modern speakers give their sources, but then the last paragraph…the last paragraph pulled at my heartstrings. It hit me hard and humanized the characters one final time before close.
//
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
*whisper* I skimmed a bit of Daisy’s narrative *whisper* There’s idealistic teenager, and then there is reader-unbelievable idealistic teenager. The pacing was just off. Her storyline was equally stagnant and rushed. Everything just fit to easily into place. It was predictable - and not just because I’ve read The Handmaid’s Tale. The other teenager, Agnes, was a touch flat as well.
//
I think it's impossible to review The Testaments without some mention of The Handmaid’s Tale. IT IS DIFFERENT than The Handmaid’s Tale! The Testaments has a foot in instant classic (mostly Aunt Lydia’s plot) and a foot in action thriller. It may not be a modern classic like The Handmaid’s Tale, but it was still worth the read and recommendation.
//
The Testaments (by Margaret Atwood) ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️4/5
//
Favorite Pages: 10, 11, 13, 15, 48, 32, 142, 166, 174, 178, 278, 303, 307, 327, 364, 412
//
Recommended if you like: The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, 1984 by George Orwell, Margaret the First by Danielle Dutton