The Blind Assassin

Rating:
Summary: 2 Plots Featuring Blind Assassins, A Tale About 2 Authors
Review: This is initially quite a confusing book to start and does require some effort on the reader's part to persist. The chapters which begin with a realistic narrative about two sisters are frequently interrupted by interspersed chapters relating a bizarre science fiction tale. Flashbacks and foreshadowing add to the confusion. Persistence becomes rewarding when a third narrative links the two seemingly unrelated plots in a clever and unexpected fashion. The reader's interest and the novel's pace pick up. There are several more surprising plot twists and the truth is eventually, but only gradually, revealed.

The author's skill at interweaving these plots, her keen insights and observations, and her polished literary style and masterful use of language, which at times flows almost poetically , all add to the effect of the whole- which is truly the sum of its parts .The characters are interesting and well developed even if they are flawed and not very likable.

This novel is more intricate, more difficult and longer reading material, than many of Margaret Atwood's other novels such as Robber Bride or Cat's Eye,. Try those for easier reading and much faster moving storylines. This is, however, a very unusual and a very creative work, well worth the reader's time and effort. The divison into small chapters helps and it actually makes this book a good choice for bedtime reading.

I agree with other reviewers that there are indeed analogies between the two plots involving the sci fi mute sacrificial maiden rescued by a blind assassin and the sister forced to marry as an arranged business deal. I would add that there are also really two characters which fit the title of "blind assassin,"- one real and one figurative .

Rating:
Summary: Read it for its beautiful language
Review: Margaret Atwood is an accomplished writer, and The Blind Assassin won her the Booker Prize. Kazuo Ishiguro, author of The Remains of the Day, said this recognition was overdue as she had been short-listed four times, and, indeed, one reviewer, who likes Atwood but not so much this book in particular, commented that Atwood might have gotten the Booker for Assassin in a kind of acknowledgement of her writing cumulatively. Certainly, this book has considerable grace and elegance, as well as humor and insightful observations. If Assassin is picked up solely for these aspects of the reading experience, it will have been worth it.

Here's a quick example of the humor: To set it up, this guy is living in a cheap apartment with thin walls. Next door are a couple who go at it noisily every night. "He doubts the nightly doings are her idea. Too fast, for one thing. The guy's in and out like a bank robber."

And here's a beautifully captured image of a well-heeled woman on her way to meet her lover one winter afternoon, walking through an impoverished neighborhood: "From inside the houses comes howling, barking, a rattle or slam. Female voices raised in thwarted rage, the defiant yells of children....Women hurry along, heads down, shoulders hunched, carrying brown paper bundles. Married, they must be. The word "braised" comes to mind."

It's hard to get into a meaningful discussion of the book without giving away important plot features to those who should discover them as the story unfolds. But basically, it's a memoir of an elderly Canadian woman named Iris, who relates her story partly in the present and partly in flashbacks.

Along the way, we learn that Iris was born shortly before World War I to a family who'd made a fortune making utilitarian buttons. After that war, Iris gets a little sister, Laura, who grows up idealistic, guileful, and tone deaf to society. We meet their mother, who died when the girls were young, and the family's cook, Reenie, who was a fountain of love, comfort, discipline and advice as the girls grew up. We also come to know the father, Iris's husband and his sister, a guy too old for Laura whom she idolizes, and, later in Iris's life, her daughter and granddaughter, as well as Reenie's daughter and her husband. Lots of characters, all well developed through the filter of Iris's viewpoint.

The family fortune went to pieces during the Depression, and the repercussions of that profoundly affected the way the lives here are later shaped.

Interwoven in this tale of family relations is a manuscript, The Blind Assassin, that Laura left for Iris to find immediately before Laura drove a car off a bridge to her death. (No spoiler here. You learn that in the opening lines.) The manuscript is a tale of two lovers (the man the writer of sci-fi pulp fiction), and the longing, frustration, and subtle expression of their love that only achieves the full clarity of its depth and tragedy at the story's end.

Although I first thought this book was too much in the feminist spirit of male-bashing, I came to see that Atwood is an equal-opportunity cynic. As humans are flawed, so are most people in this book. It's a credit to Atwood's skill that she has enabled readers to see the warts in Iris's personality, even when her story is told in the first person, and also that Atwood has presented her characters so fully from Iris's perspective.

Assassin has a slow period, but stick with it. It has mystery and a surprise at the end, but the surprise is not unfair to readers. There are clues that let me guess it, and made me think back over other clues that Atwood had left. All in all, Assassin is a beautifully written, although sad, commentary on the tragedy humans can't help putting in their lives. I'm giving Assassin five stars because the writing is so good, and that is a rare commodity these days.

Rating:
Summary: By Far, Atwood's Best
Review: And that's saying a lot, after reading Cat's Eye and Alias Grace, both of which are amazing. I literally could not put this book down. As in all her books, Atwood's prose here is more like poetry. The rhythms of her books always make me ache a little, in nostalgia, in sadness...something, and with this book, she achieves new heights with both story and stylistics. This has become one of my favorite reads. Atwood is not a writer, she is an artist. I found her a couple of years ago, after a long drought of inspid and mediocre authors. I have no idea how people like Judith Krantz and Whatz Her Name Steele or whoever else appears on Oprah's suicide list (yes suicide, anything associated with that load of cr*ck named Dr Phil loses all credibility in my book) can survive and become "best sellers" when the literary world is perfectly capable of producing such consistent stellar performers like Atwood.

Rating:
Summary: A BIG pleasure; relax and savor the words
Review: I kept putting off reading this book; at 521 pages, "The Blind Assassin" can be intimidating for time-challenged readers. Finally, I read a few pages and was captivated by the writing. Time is relative, so I decided to relax and enjoy it, word for word, no skimming unimportant descriptive passages. Sometimes when pushed for time, I would read only a page, or even only a paragraph or two. And isn't this why we read books like this: literature, where we can savor the writing, as well as the story? For example, this is a book in which the protagonist, as an elderly woman, takes time to contemplate the paradox of doughnut holes (page 310), and wonders if they can be used to demonstrate the existence of God. "Does naming a sphere of nothingness transmute it into being?" Not a critical element of the story, but definitely an enrichment. Thank the literary gods we have authors who can write this way -- and are still allowed to.

I bought the book because it is a Booker Prize winner, which it truly deserves (as opposed to that dreadful "Vernon God Little" which won last year). This was my first Margaret Atwood book, so I was surprised at the poetic language, unaware that several volumes of her poetry have been published. On page 43 I knew I was in for a pleasant ride when I read this passage:

"For whom am I writing this? For myself? I think not.... Perhaps I write for no one. Perhaps for the same person children are writing for, when they scrawl their names in the snow."

There is the true beauty of this book, even more than its clever structure and challenging mysteries. Still, the structure is definitely a work of art: a story within a story within a story, like a Russian nesting doll, and with news clips and even letters tossed in occasionally as clues and atmosphere enhancers. With old, arthritic fingers, Canadian octogenarian Iris Chase Griffen is writing down the history of her family and its disasters, highlighted by the death of her sister Laura who "drove a car off a bridge" in 1945. Meanwhile intervening chapters are devoted to Laura's published novel, "The Blind Assassin," which is a parallel story in which clandestine lovers meet for sex, cigarettes, sousing, and science-fiction story-telling. The man, who is on the run for his life, continues to make up the science fiction story at each rendezvous. All three stories eventually merge, either literally or metaphorically. The result is a major achievement, and I was left wondering how many hours did this author spend bringing together three plots in such a beautiful, seamless fashion. Though the book is long, I now wish it was longer. (Maybe Atwood will work up a sequel, bringing us the story of the survivor.) Meanwhile, read it. Don't rush. Savor the words.

Rating:
Summary: An enriching journey
Review: Margaret Atwood takes what could have ended up being a very long rambling story -- about a woman of some privilege who gets married off as a strategic financial alliance and thus ends up miserable -- and lures the reader in as if this woman's life is the most fascinating life story you'll ever encounter. The story is told in several narratives: the novel within the novel within the novel. The first narrative is, of course, Atwood's; the second narrator is Iris, the protaganist, in her old age, who is writing down the story of her life (she's a crotchety, sarcastic delight); within Iris' own "book," Iris includes the text of her "peculiar" sister Laura's novel, titled "The Blind Assassin," which we read in its entirety in alternating chapters. Atwood/Iris also uses newspaper clippings to tell parts of the story; they are interspersed throughout the book and help authenticate Iris' tale.

If all of this sounds confusing, it's not. The story skillfully unfolds and all of it works together, and ultimately comes together, just beautifully. I could offer up a full review, but I'd never do it justice. Easily the best book I read last year.

Rating:
Summary: Captivating novel, Imaginative in words
Review: The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is one of her best books. It has two parts to it, the real and the imaginary. Both of them are enchanting. The imaginary is haunting and transports you to a different world where children working on carpets with fine thread become blind due to straining their eyes too much and use their senses to commit crimes. It describes in detail the planet of Zycron and the city of Sakiel-Norn. Reading it, one can picture oneself out there. It has elements of the past such as Persian empire and the future thrown into it.

The real world is also equally scary. Laura publishes a novel and then commit suicide, but her brother-in-law was for the Nazis before the war. She manages to destroy him, though he tries his best to hold her down. The plot is involved, and intricate but put together beautifully and is enchanting. As in Cat's Eye, this is a book that has elements of fantasy, villany, wit, sci-fi thriller all packed in delicious proportion. Atwood is an outstanding author and captivates the audience with her style of writing and her way of depicting situations is unique. One must not miss this book, it is too magical. It deserves all the praise that it got.

Rating:
Summary: The Booker Prize winner? Surely not!
Review: Atwood writes very well. That's the good news. However, the story is dull, depressing, slow-moving, and obvious--yes, obvious. Virtually all of the plot twists are telegraphed so completely that the book's surprises come as no surprise at all. As the narrator unfolds her life, it is so pathetic and, honestly, uninteresting that one should admire Atwood's fortitude in completing the manuscript. But if you think a famous author and a famous prize make a book worth reading, you're as mistaken as I was! Learn from my mistake!

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Story
Review: I really think that Atwood's books only get better. The Blind Assassin is a great tale- I don't feel cheated by it or as though the ending was stunted.

Atwood blends the past and present as well as Science-Fiction and love to create a unique tale. Worthy of the awards it won, and fascinating to read.

Rating:
Summary: Such promise
Review: The first line of the book holds such promise for an incredible journey. The book goes downhill from there. Dull. Dull. Dull.

Rating:
Summary: A Brilliant Mixed Bag
Review: No question Margaret Atwood is a wonderful stylist and that she has here written a tour de force in her structuring three stories in one, the stories of Iris and Laura Chase and the science-fiction story within a story, as the lover of both girls, Alex Thomas, tells a gripping tale while making love to Iris. In itself this tale of Alex's could have held my attention if it had not been constantly interrupted to go back to the main tale and, in that interruption, gradually diminished my interest in Alex's story and rendered the main tale slow going.

The main story, Iris's, holds most of one's attention but finally shows that Iris is a woman with little spunk over the early years of her life, thus causing misery for herself and her sister. Yet, this is probably Atwood's aim: not to create a romantic heroine, but to show how we can mess up a life through inaction or what James Joyce would call paralysis.
None of the characters in the novel win our sympathy, with the exception of Laura, who spends most of the time in the wings. Alex Thomas, loved perhaps by both sisters, is an unworthy recipient of anyone's love. And Iris's husband Richard and his sister Winifred are Dickensian villains.

I found myself marking several insightful passages in the novel, but finally the excessively disruptive nature of the story made me take forever to read it and left me with little satisfaction at the end.