A review by tylermcgaughey
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

3.0

Like the other Atwood novel I've read, [b: The Handmaid's Tale|38447|The Handmaid's Tale|Margaret Atwood|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1489652243s/38447.jpg|1119185], I was impressed by this book on a technical level but, for the most part, it failed to engage me on a more emotional level. The writing here reminds me of Kazuo Ishiguro, who also employs very mannered, detached prose where most of the character's motives are buried in subtext. Unlike with Ishiguro, though, I still felt distant from the characters in [b: Alias Grace|58027|Alias Grace|Margaret Atwood|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1472960163s/58027.jpg|2069530] at the end of the novel. The last 50 pages take a strange turn, with Atwood seemingly falling into the conventions of the 19th century "sentimental novels" referred to at various points in the book. Still, her collage of historical documents and fictive techniques is compelling and worth analyzing. (If that's your thing; I read this for a class, so I have no choice.)