Book Review (Rucksack): The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid’s Tale

Written by Margaret Atwood in 1985

The Raccoon: In the wreckage of what was once the United States, a military government forms a Christian fundamentalist society, justifying its oppressive, “Big Brother” theocracy with Biblical passages.  A woman known only as Offred (literally “of Fred”), whose sole purpose is to bear children to her Commander, chronicles her life as a slave in this new world.

UNMASKED: The Handmaid’s Tale resembles a crystal ball, offering simply a glimpse into Offred’s daily life and memories.  This writing style, which differs from every other dystopian book, deeply draws the reader in.  Rather than suffering through a historical lesson and watching an average person suddenly become a hero in the fight against the system, the reader sees Offred’s fear, confusion, and humiliation; she grew up in the United States and has to watch her freedom be taken from her.  Furthermore, Offred admits that she is not a hero.  An underground resistance helps smuggle women out of the country, but it has little power and is incapable of overthrowing the new regime.  Atwood allows us to experience life in a dystopian society as it would actually be for almost all of its citizens.

However, Atwood’s slice-of-life approach leaves glaring holes in the story.  The Handmaid’s Tale never explains one of its most important questions: how did society end up this way?  The reader is allowed only vague glimpses of the collapse of the United States government, the war being fought on the East and West coasts, the responsibilities of the “numerous commanders,” and the fate of any of the main characters.  An epilogue in the style of a history lecture still fails to clear up any of these questions.

Something powerful rests within The Handmaid’s Tale, the spark of a world-changing idea or lesson.  Unfortunately, the story’s abrupt ending and its withholding of crucial details prevent anything remarkable from taking shape.

Strengths:

• Offred is an unusually raw and vulnerable protagonist.  The reader develops a deep sympathy for her and a feeling of personal connection.
• The “Salvaging,” a mass execution ceremony, leaves a disturbingly concrete image in the reader’s head, one of many scenes so descriptive and emotional that they feels like the reader’s own memories.

Weaknesses:

• Far too many questions are left unanswered, and the reader’s confusion detracts from his/her ability to become immersed in the story.

Rating: 18/20 Marthas

Ideal Setting: Read this before it is too late.

Book Review (Canon): Scythe

Scythe

Written by Neal Shusterman in 2016

The Raccoon: After aging, disease, and political corruption are eradicated, overpopulation remains the one problem in an otherwise perfect society.  Population control is carried out by appointed “scythes,” who each “glean” (kill) several thousand people every year.  Unwillingly recruited by a scythe to be his apprentices, Citra Terranova and Rowan Damisch must wrestle with their morality and the question of whether any human-run institution can ever be perfect.

UNMASKED: Scythe takes place in a utopian futuristic vision of the United States.  Surprisingly, this made for a very difficult read. Having been conditioned by several dystopian stories, I was constantly skeptical of every feature of society that Shusterman introduced; it took reading half of the book before I could accept that there would not be any mysterious disappearances or a hidden dictator pulling the strings.

The lack of governmental corruption provides the perfect foundation for a strong individual to rise as a villain.  However, although the novel’s primary antagonist is mysterious and charismatic, his goal is barely justifiable.  Consequently, the villain’s character falls apart, leaving just a stereotypical bad person underneath.

Scythe daringly attempts to show the fate of humanity in a world losing touch with the interdependency and curiosity that created our culture.  While the novel describes compelling characters and unique concepts, the reader is left with an unchanged opinion on death and the disturbing claim that putting humans in power will never be a good idea.

Strengths:

• Shusterman uses popular, contemporary science, and the future he outlines seems very likely to occur.
• Every character has a different reaction to the presence of a scythe, making every moment special and intriguing.
• All of the action sequences create powerful imagery, many of them shocking to characters and the reader alike.
• The highly-advanced artificial intelligence does not suddenly try to take over the world or eliminate humanity.

Weaknesses:

• The main characters reach a point far too early on in the story when the reader understands their motivations and values completely and can predict their actions for the rest of the novel.
• Scythe presents an extremely pessimistic view of humanity as a whole.
• The prominent Tone Cult religion feels far-fetched and nonsensical, and no explanation is given regarding how other religions have fared in the aftermath of humans conquering death.

Rating: 16/20 philosophies

Ideal Setting: Read this when life seems to lose its spark.  Our culture of convenience has caused us to ignore and even forget the depth and importance of human emotion and expression.

Book Review (Rucksack): Elon Musk

Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

Written by Ashlee Vance in 2015

The Raccoon: Elon Musk delves into the life, personality, and mission of entrepreneur Elon Musk.  Journalist Ashlee Vance traces the development and trials of Musk’s many companies and features discussions with Musk’s peers, rivals, and relatives.

UNMASKED: “Do you think I’m insane?”

Vance opens Elon Musk with this arresting question that Musk himself asked the author during an interview, immediately establishing the kind of man we are about to explore.  As Vance paints the scene and events leading up to that particular conversation, the reader finds that he/she already has a picture of the way Musk’s mind works and how he relates to others by the time he/she settles into the book.

Elon Musk is far superior to other biographies because of the lens that the author uses.  While a significant chunk of the book is dedicated to Musk’s childhood and the environmental factors that shaped his personality, hobbies, and passions, Vance focuses on Zip2, Paypal, Tesla, and SpaceX. Musk’s inability, or perhaps unwillingness, to establish a work/life separation means that the structure and progress of his companies are the windows to his soul.

A biography has a more explicit goal than any fiction book; to teach the reader about the life of the subject.  Elon Musk passes with flying colors, allowing the reader to see inside of Musk’s mind, empathize with his successes and setbacks, and, in my case, become confident and inspired enough to invest in Tesla.

Strengths:

• Vance includes headlines and opinions of people who criticize Musk, as well as those who worship him.  His lack of bias enables the reader to develop his/her own opinion.
• Elon Musk also serves as a historical record of several companies and as an intriguing study of American attitudes toward innovation, space exploration, and renewable energy, providing a wealth of knowledge.

Weaknesses:

• The book is broken up by one huge collection of pictures, rather than having  interspersed images at relevant locations in the text.

Rating: 19/20 launches

Ideal Setting: Read this when you are sick of people saying, “When there’s a will, there’s a way,” and “If you really believe something will happen, it will.”  As it turns out, they are absolutely right, when you are Elon Musk.