Reviews tagging 'War'

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

6 reviews

raru's review

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, War, Death of parent, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death, and Sexism

jcqscottclifford's review

challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

In Oryx and Crake, Atwood presents an intriguing and broken world whose roots you slowly discover as its principal character recounts his personal history. There are many clever links readers will quickly pick up on, and her prose is well thought out. The fall of Oryx and Crake's world is different than other dystopias and 

Spoiler

its discussion of bioethics, animal gene splicing, and human gene splicing

ring true even 20 years later.

However, her characters can become boring and a slog, especially when they explicitly wax about the morals the book presents. The most difficult part is 

Spoiler

hearing about Jimmy's past, especially his difficulty with women, when I really wanted to see more of the present self wgise.

, but the end retroactively makes those parts more bearable and lets the reader feel like it wasn't worthless. Additionally, the creativity of 

Spoiler

the Crakers and the gene spliced animals are a delight to behold, and they are present all throughout the book

It isn't a "fun" book, but it is thought provoking and engaging. Ultimately, I finished the book and am curious how the series plays out.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Body horror, Child abuse, Trafficking, and War

Even the world of flashbacks in this book is messy and cruel. There is the mention of child porn but without any description of rape/sexual interaction.

backyardjake's review

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Speculative fiction bundled with a very sad character study. Parental issues, relationship issues, confidence issues, and then existential issues. Jimmy has a lot of issues. Not for the feignt of heart, as I suppose most of Atwood's work is like. Inside is a very human and flawed tale, of the kind that revolted, resonated, sadend, and thrilled me as a reader.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, War, and Classism

Moderate: Abandonment

Minor: Animal cruelty, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, and Drug use

hannahbailey's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Unsure how to feel on this one. Atwood is such a good writer that I was pulled into the narrative and the world she'd built despite my immediate dislike for the protagonist. There are some interesting themes with a lot of 'what ifs' but my god, this was so bleak and depressing. Glad I made it to the end to see a bit of hope but it was quite the trudge and not at all what I was expecting!

Very reminiscent of 1984 and A Clockwork Orange in terms of its violence, intensity and reflections on the darker side of humanity. Fans of these novels (I was not a fan of either one) will almost definitely enjoy Oryx and Crake.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Trafficking, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Cursing, Rape, Blood, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug use, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, War, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Death, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Violence, Child death, and Infidelity

vanamo's review

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Genocide

Moderate: War, Trafficking, Suicide, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, and Child abuse

Minor: Child death

nataliebeech's review

challenging dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

The concept and world behind this book is so interesting, but I found it strange that Atwood decided to tell the story through the eyes of a basically misogynistic (and potentially a pedophile? - feel like this was brushed over) white man. Why? It felt almost like an exercise in writing an unlikeable character which felt a bit thin as a reason. The events that unfold also felt a little out of line with Crake’s personality and intelligence. However, the ideas that it presents are stunningly relevant now despite being written 20 years ago, it almost felt too close to home. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence

Minor: Body horror and War