Staff Pick
Naomi Alderman writes a blistering feminist screed that underscores the issues of the power imbalance between the sexes. It's a scathing takedown of the history of men abusing women, but also a glimpse into the ugly possible future of the tables turned. If "absolute power corrupts absolutely" then the dominance of either sex is rife with harm; Alderman is unafraid to spotlight the consequences here, and in so doing, casts an accusatory glance at men, and our society, today. There are so many tangled threads to this issue, and perhaps The Power is one point of the unraveling. Kudos to Alderman for revealing the alternate history that sounds like paradise, yet is anything but. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
WINNER OF THE 2017 BAILEYS WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION
What would happen if women suddenly possessed a fierce new power?
In The Power, the world is a recognizable place: there’s a rich Nigerian boy who lounges around the family pool; a foster kid whose religious parents hide their true nature; an ambitious American politician; a tough London girl from a tricky family. But then a vital new force takes root and flourishes, causing their lives to converge with devastating effect. Teenage girls now have immense physical power — they can cause agonizing pain and even death. And, with this small twist of nature, the world drastically resets.
From award-winning author Naomi Alderman, The Power is speculative fiction at its most ambitious and provocative, at once taking us on a thrilling journey to an alternate reality, and exposing our own world in bold and surprising ways.
Review
"Electrifying! Shocking! Will knock your socks off! Then you'll think twice, about everything." Margaret Atwood
Review
"The Power is the stuff of superhero fiction....What starts out as a fantasy of female empowerment deepens and darkens into an interrogation of power itself, its uses and abuses and what it does to the people who have it....her breakout work." Claire Armitstead, The Guardian
Review
"A thriller that terrifies and leaves behind a lingering tingle that's part discomfort and part exhilaration. Easy to read, hard to put down, difficult to forget." Cory Doctorow, author of Walkaway
Review
"Magnificent. I'm agog. Really, I'm several gogs. So smart and scary and sad but true. I can't say enough. It's a classic, in the way that it's hard to imagine it ever wasn't there." Joss Whedon
About the Author
Naomi Alderman is the author of The Liars’ Gospel and Disobedience, which won the Orange Prize for New Writers, has been published in 10 languages, and is being made into a film by Rachel Weisz.