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Summary: Another fascinating novel from Margaret Atwood
Review: The Blind Assassin gives you everything you expect from a good Margaret Atwood novel Ð a plot more intricate and absorbing than the best murder mysteries, intelligent and intriguing characters, profound psychological insights, sharp writing, a wicked, hypocrisy-busting sense of humor, and thought-provoking ideas. IÕve read every one of her novels and never been disappointed. She has consistently been the most entertaining of literary writers. Before I read the book, I glanced at the reviews and was disappointed by their vagueness. Some people loved it, some people hated it (a writer as intelligent and original as Margaret Atwood invites extreme reactions), but nobody explained very clearly, I thought, what the novel was about. Now that IÕve read it, I understand the vagueness, and sympathize with the reviewers. ItÕs impossible to explain much of anything about The Blind AssassinÕs plot without ruining it for another reader. The novel revolves around a woman in her eighties, Iris Chase-Griffen, whose sister, Laura, famous as the author of a science fiction novel with a cult-like following, died more than fifty years ago, possibly a suicide. A few years after LauraÕs death, IrisÕs husband also dies, also a possible suicide. And thirty years later, IrisÕs only daughter dies in an accident involving drugs and alcohol. We learn all this within the first twenty pages of the novel, and spend the next five hundred pages trying to figure out the relationships between these people and events. To give you even one more hint about the plot would wreck the suspense. As in AtwoodÕs previous novel, Alias Grace, the more you learn, the farther from the truth you seem to get. The suspense holds you right to the last page. The best thing about The Blind Assassin is the main character (and narrator for most of the book). Iris Chase-Griffen is one of AtwoodÕs most interesting characters to date. She has a cranky, curmudgeonly streak that allows Atwood to give free rein to her biting wit (while reading the book, I kept driving my family crazy repeating deliciously mordant Atwoodisms Ð they were so good, so funny, I couldnÕt keep them to myself). But as the novel progresses, you discover a pain under the wit that makes her a more complex and interesting character than you first gave her credit for. By mid-novel, itÕs no longer just the suspenseful plot that keeps you turning pages, but also a fascination with Iris. As much as I enjoyed The Blind Assassin, I donÕt think itÕs AtwoodÕs best. I prefer both The HandmaidÕs Tale and Alias Grace Ð and if you have never read a book by Margaret Atwood before, IÕd suggest reading one of those before you read this one. In the Blind Assassin, Atwood uses a trick of speaking of characters only as "he" and "she," without naming them, so that you canÕt tell until the very end who the characters are. In the end, her reason for doing that makes sense, but it still seemed a little bit of a cheat. Also, she has bits of Laura ChaseÕs science fiction novel scattered throughout the book. To some extent, it reflects and comments on the lives of the people in AtwoodÕs novel. At least I think that was AtwoodÕs intention. I donÕt think she completely pulls it off, and that disappointed me a little, because I think exploring the connection between authorsÕ lives and the fiction they create would have been fascinating. Including more of the science fiction novel would have made The Blind Assassin even better than it is. But those are quibbles. This may not be Margaret AtwoodÕs best, but thatÕs an awfully high standard to hold anyone to. It would be most writersÕ masterpiece. You really donÕt want to miss this book.
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Summary: Heart wrenching and astonishingly lyrical novel.
Review: This is the very first book that I've read, written by Margaret Atwood. Her excellent writing style, poetic prose, unforgettable sub-plots (especially Xenorians, Sakiel-Norn and other mind staggering stories) inside the deeply fulfilling plot made me felt rewarded as a reader after I read the last page just five minutes ago. Iris Chase and Laura Chase, the two main characters, were brilliantly depicted. Reenie's witty remarks, Winnefred's gaudiness, and Richard Griffen's highly ambitious but lurid characters were all portrayed with the guile of a master of art. The soliloquies of the main character are simply unforgettable. I've read few other booker prize winning books in the last few years, The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is the best among them. I heartily recommend it.
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Summary: Atwood's Flawed Masterwork
Review: This is an amazing novel, and I very much wanted to give it five stars, but the plot and some of the characterizations were surprisingly weak and disjointed. However, by no means should you pass up the chance to read The Blind Assassin! Atwood is clearly at the top of her form here, and her command of the language is nothing short of stunning. Her way of setting a mood, describing small details and employing simile and metaphor make for those small, literary epiphanies that true readers long for! Read this and experience the author's incredible gift for language.
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Summary: Finally--an Atwood I Love
Review: Although I am not usually a Margaret Atwood fan, I found The Blind Assassin the best book I've read this year. This is partly because Atwood, even at her darkest, writes wonderful prose filled with innovative, yet apt metaphors. The Blind Assassin, though, is far more than great writing. Here, Atwood keeps us guessing throughout the entire book about the relationships involving the narrator and her deceased sister. The characters are vividly drawn, particularly that of the chief villain, the narrator's sister-in-law. The plot, subplot, the story that one character, a sometime writer, is fabricating, and excerpts from a novel published by one of the sisters are all beautifully interwoven. The book is set primarily during the era between the two world wars and contains historical background on Canada during this period that is also of interest. This book, which plays with the role of artifice in daily life, is definitely a work of art itself deserving of the Booker Prize!
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Summary: Haunting
Review: For once, the Booker Prize got it right. I despaired that they would continue choosing bland, but well written novels, ignoring the fact that readers like to be entertained as well as seeing the literary goal posts lifted. The Blind Assassin achieves both. It has a well-plotted story and is written in a free-flowing style that could best be described as 'seamless'. The Blind Assassin tells a story of two sisters. Sometimes the story is told in the first person, so there's no doubt about who is who. Sometimes it's told in the third person, and puzzling out which of the sisters is involved in the plot is the central theme of the book. You'd think, with just two people to choose from, that this would be relatively easy, but it's not. For different reasons, either of them could fit into the action. And (unless you're blessed with 20/20 visionary powers) the ending should come as a complete surprise. The opening chapters were difficult to get into. This isn't an easy beach read (at least, not to begin with). It's stylish and graceful, and it's well worth persevering because, from about page 100 onwards, everything that has come before suddenly starts to slot into place. The characterizations were superb, particularly that of Winifred. Some reviewers feel that her brother Richard was not well characterized, but it was quite unnecessary to do so, since it was clear that Winifred was the driving force behind his success. And this alone demonstrates a skill beyond many writers. The Blind Assassin with haunt you long after you turn the final page.
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Summary: Seamless Storytelling
Review: This was the first book I've read by Margaret Atwood, and I've already ordered "Alias Grace". She's a storyteller in the grandest sense, with intricately woven plotlines, and engaging and mysterious characters. The two central to this story are sisters, Iris and Laura Chase. The former is our narrator, and she opens the book by recounting on page one the circumstances of her sister's death. From there the book moves from the present, back to the past, and to a novel within the novel that slowly reveals its' origins as the story progresses. This is not a light read, and the multiple stories demand your attention, very much like A.S. Byatt's "Possession." Yet the writing is so rich, and the story so absorbing, I found it a thoroughly rewarding read.
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Summary: Great Summer read
Review: Take this one along on vacation, if you're looking for a great read many cuts above the usual Oprah selections. Atwood's latest---winner of the Booker Prize--is several novels within a novel--the story of a rich woman's clandestine affair with a leftist agitator in Canada in the 30's, a science fiction tale, the memories and dreams of an old woman full of longing and regret. Atwood leads the reader down many blind alleys and then almost casually reveals that everything that has gone before really happened in a completely different way. Several times I went back to attempt to discover how she did it--why did I so clearly think "X" was the case when now I see clearly that it was "Y" all along? The reader's experience mirrors that of the characters'--Atwood suggests we all live in our own worlds, focused on our needs, desires, and pain, only dimly perceiving what is really going on. Atwood writes in several different styles in this book, with great skill and a real feel for dialogue. You'll enjoy this one.
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Summary: The 30's
Review: The 30's!!! That's what this book envoked in me, what the 30's must have been like: the glamour and the economic despair! Iris marries to survive the depair and finds the glamour not that fantastic. This was an intricate and immaginative read!
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Summary: Unreadable!
Review: Unreadable! I wasted my money unless Amazon.com will give me my money back. Atwood can write interesting books with style but this certainly is not one of them. Like an aging tennis player maybe she needs to learn when to quit, or hire someone else to decide on what is a good work of art and what is not. Please don't inflict on us, your adoring public, all your work! --Strephon Kaplan-Williams
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Summary: A Novel with an "Echo"
Review: The Blind Assassin is the first book I've read by Margaret Atwood, and I must say, it was excellent. Although I am usually not fond of a plot that leaves the reader guessing throughout (mostly because the author fails, and I know "who done it" right away), THIS novel kept me guessing right up until the end. Atwood does an incredible job of telling a story within a story (within a story), being careful not to slip and give away the ending. She seems to have a knack for getting the reader to really care for her characters. I will certainly be reading more by this author!
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