Member Review
Review by
Tara H, Media/Journalist
I didn’t realize I would be reading a YA version of The Handmaid’s Tale when I began this book, but it became very quickly apparent that that’s what it was, and it will haunt me the same way Atwood’s classic does. What makes this book especially unsettling is that it feels so realistic and right around the corner. It’s a bit too believable, both to its credit and to the United States’ shame.
M Hendrix does a terrifyingly excellent job of portraying what life might be like if the U.S. experienced a schism between progressives and conservatives, whether it’s from an outright Civil War or from a more “civilized” split. I didn’t want “New America” to feel familiar and realistic, but as a former teacher, current mom, and current journalist living in Texas, it felt all too real, particularly as I see legislation being introduced and passed that eerily resembles some of the laws that are taken for granted in the “New America” that Stella lives in.
Stella is a fantastic protagonist to carry the story. She’s smart but naive, questioning but obedient and not wanting to make waves, curious but traumatized, frightened but brave. The growth she experiences in the novel as she learns more about herself and her world — and the world her country left behind — is realistic and paced well.
This novel does not have the depth and layers that The Handmaid’s Tale had, but as a YA book, I also don’t think it needs it. It feels authentically told from the perspective of a naive but intelligent and thoughtful 18-year-old. The world-building is, again, eerily familiar to anyone living in the contemporary U.S. Bible Belt, and I never felt that Hendrix went too over the top. Any time it seemed she might make things seem too fantastical, she pulled back and it felt real instead.
I have already recommended this book to friends, and I’ll continue to do so. It’s an important work that issues a warning similar to what The Handmaid’s Tale issued, but with far greater urgency.
This review is based on reading a complimentary advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley.
M Hendrix does a terrifyingly excellent job of portraying what life might be like if the U.S. experienced a schism between progressives and conservatives, whether it’s from an outright Civil War or from a more “civilized” split. I didn’t want “New America” to feel familiar and realistic, but as a former teacher, current mom, and current journalist living in Texas, it felt all too real, particularly as I see legislation being introduced and passed that eerily resembles some of the laws that are taken for granted in the “New America” that Stella lives in.
Stella is a fantastic protagonist to carry the story. She’s smart but naive, questioning but obedient and not wanting to make waves, curious but traumatized, frightened but brave. The growth she experiences in the novel as she learns more about herself and her world — and the world her country left behind — is realistic and paced well.
This novel does not have the depth and layers that The Handmaid’s Tale had, but as a YA book, I also don’t think it needs it. It feels authentically told from the perspective of a naive but intelligent and thoughtful 18-year-old. The world-building is, again, eerily familiar to anyone living in the contemporary U.S. Bible Belt, and I never felt that Hendrix went too over the top. Any time it seemed she might make things seem too fantastical, she pulled back and it felt real instead.
I have already recommended this book to friends, and I’ll continue to do so. It’s an important work that issues a warning similar to what The Handmaid’s Tale issued, but with far greater urgency.
This review is based on reading a complimentary advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley.
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