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Loading... The Heart Goes Lastby Margaret Atwood
  
Books Read in 2015 (240) » 14 more Books Read in 2016 (1,136) Books Read in 2020 (2,128) Books Read in 2017 (3,370) Biggest Disappointments (161) SFFKit 2016 (3) Science Fiction (40) To Read (223) KayStJ's to-read list (1,251) No current Talk conversations about this book.  lazalot | May 25, 2024 |   Reviews describe the book as 'madcap', 'darkly comic'. 'droll'. I never found those bits. The plot became ever sillier and ever more far-fetched. Characters who'd been introduced in the first pages of the book, such as Stan's good-for-nothing brother Conor reappeared after an absence of almost 400 pages, having apparently had a character transplant whilst away. I seem to be the only person I know who isn't a Margaret Atwood fan. This book's done nothing whatever to convert me. (  ) Margaret09 | Apr 15, 2024 |  ) danielskatz | Dec 26, 2023 | ) BerrinSerdar | Dec 5, 2023 | What I think I appreciate the most about this book, is the way in which it is broken up into sections making it flow smoother. I love how the title of the book also appears many times throughout the novel, which I must admit is clever. My one issue with the book, and this might be on purpose on the author's part, but I feel like I had no closure from this book. I feel like the end left so many questions unanswered, or at least a hint of something more to come? It was a clever ending, but there was something missing in the end...I can't quite put my finger on it, but then again, I feel ending like that leave the door open for so many possibilities. Overall, I did enjoy this book very much and I highly recommend it! (  ) KrabbyPattyCakes | Dec 3, 2023 |
 But then a narrative that has been taut, dread-inducing and psychologically tense careers off the road, skids into the woods, hits its head, loses its memory and emerges as a strange quasi-sex romp concerned almost exclusively with erotic power, kinky impulses and the perversity of desire.  “The Heart Goes Last” wrestles with many of the same themes that have preoccupied Ms. Atwood for decades, such as sexism, the dangers of unbridled greed and the risky moral terrain that comes with technological progress.  Though Atwood is obviously delivering a serious lesson about societal greed and human exploitation, it’s frankly an amazing achievement how jovial The Heart Goes Last is from start to Shakespearean-style comedic finish. The novel is certainly a dystopian effort that belongs on the same hallowed list as Brave New World, 1984 and Atwood’s own masterpiece, The Handmaid’s Tale, but it also manages to be a whole lot of quirky, poppy fun, without ever once undermining its core message. The further one reads, the less clear the novel becomes on a philosophical level. The narrative is riveting (if occasionally so ridiculous as to remind the reader that perhaps we’re not meant to take it entirely seriously), and the characters deepen as time goes on, moving from broad types to sympathetic (if not entirely likable) individuals. But throughout, there is a sense of larger purpose, a deeper motivation at work. Part of this is a function of the conspiracy in which Charmaine and Stan find themselves “linchpin” figures, but the overarching narrative control – layers within layers, manipulations within manipulations – comes to feel like the work of the writer herself. By the time the novel concludes, one is left with an image of Atwood holding all the puppet strings, orchestrating every event. And grinning widely. Margaret Atwood’s future holds little cheer. Dystopian sex romp The Heart Goes Last comes off as jaded, contemptuous...Stan and Charmaine elicit little (Charmaine) to no (Stan) sympathy. Two self-serving, foolish, and facile jerks stand at the heart of Heart. The comedy ridicules them; it’s at their expense. And because their unappetizing characteristics encourage onlookers to grow indifferent to their antics and dilemmas, their fates — good, bad, or more of the same — matter not in the least. Dystopian tales rely on readers caring or identifying with about the oppressed and victimized. If that’s taken away, so is the tale’s power to move, provoke, and command attention. Belongs to Publisher SeriesOtavan kirjasto (282) AwardsDistinctionsNotable Lists
"Margaret Atwood puts the human heart to the ultimate test in an utterly brilliant new novel that is as visionary as The Handmaid's Tale and as richly imagined as The Blind Assassin. Stan and Charmaine are a married couple trying to stay afloat in the midst of an economic and social collapse. Job loss has forced them to live in their car, leaving them vulnerable to roving gangs. They desperately need to turn their situation around and fast. The Positron Project in the town of Consilience seems to be the answer to their prayers. No one is unemployed and everyone gets a comfortable, clean house to live in. for six months out of the year. On alternating months, residents of Consilience must leave their homes and function as inmates in the Positron prison system. Once their month of service in the prison is completed, they can return to their "civilian" homes. At first, this doesn't seem like too much of a sacrifice to make in order to have a roof over one's head and food to eat. But when Charmaine becomes romantically involved with the man who lives in their house during the months when she and Stan are in the prison, a series of troubling events unfolds, putting Stan's life in danger. With each passing day, Positron looks less like a prayer answered and more like a chilling prophecy fulfilled"-- No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.35)
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