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The Power
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Publisher's Summary
2017 Winner of the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction
'She throws her head back and pushes her chest forward and lets go a huge blast right into the centre of his body. The rivulets and streams of red scarring run across his chest and up around his throat. She'd put her hand on his heart and stopped him dead.'
Suddenly - tomorrow or the day after - girls find that with a flick of their fingers, they can inflict agonizing pain and even death.
With this single twist, the four lives at the heart of Naomi Alderman's extraordinary, visceral novel are utterly transformed, and we look at the world in an entirely new light. What if the power to hurt were in women's hands?
Critic Reviews
" The Power is a subtly funny, lyrical and utterly subversive vision of an impossible future. As all the best visionaries do, Alderman shines a penetrating and yet merciful light on to our present and the so many cruelties in which we may be complicit." (A. L. Kennedy)
"Alderman is a fluent and powerful writer." ( Sunday Times)
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Tim
- 09-01-18
Entertaining story, nice structure, perfect performance
Story flows easily and in an addictive way despite a series of characters (and perspectives) that never meet. Performance is perfect. The different characters come to life, adding richness to the story
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Zaira
- 02-11-18
Mind Blown!
This book really blew my mind and left me feeling emotionally charged at the end. Not just the story but the letters exchanged between Neil and Naomi - really had an impact. The fact that this book was actually written by a man makes it even more interesting! There were parts of this book that were down right gruesome and soo hard to digest - let alone imagine! I wanted to look away but couldn't "move on" with the story without reading every word! This really makes you re-think the way the world works today.. the cruelties, the injustice, the compassion, the peace - we all, male or female, have the power to change things that happen in this world today. Question is do we really want things to change and if so, what do we want the future to look like?
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Raine
- 29-12-16
Visceral, Stirring and Inspirational
Would you consider the audio edition of The Power to be better than the print version?
I only listened to the audio version.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Power?
There were so many moments, but overall the finding of the 'power', as told by several different perspectives, was so intense and made you think so much. It made me reflect on so many issues in my daily life I never would have reflected on otherwise.
Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favourite?
I loved Ally. Her journey and how she changed over the course of the books, leading up to her final realisations of what she had become were incredibly moving and thought-provoking.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Absolutely!
Any additional comments?
The narration was the best I've ever heard on an audiobook. Wonderful.
9 of 9 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- jo
- 18-12-16
Reeling from the power of this book.
I may become a bit evangelical in my wish to share this book... It is astonishingly good. This book makes me feel invincible. (Hope I remember soon that I don't, in fact, have The Power so I'm not!)
Can't say too much in case of spoilers, but it's so clever and thought-provoking and engaging, it's hard to 'put down'. It is blunt in places - the reversal of women using rape as an instrument of war, for example - but some bits so subtle it's almost painful to realise how immune we are to incipient sexism until we hear it reversed in this way. The conversation between the two authors at the opening and closing of the book is a superb illustration, and the final line just says it all.
Honourable mention should go to the narrator who is *phenomenal*. Great dramatic performance AND she's very good at the many different international and regional accents, which is often such an irritation.
Can't praise it highly (or articulately) enough.
40 of 44 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- bookylady
- 27-03-17
Wow! A shocking, visceral novel.Loved every minute
Any additional comments?
It is hard to do justice in a few lines to the amazing nature of this book. Naomi Alderman's vision of a world where women hold power over men through an astonishing physiological mechanism, is both terrifying and electrifying. The Power is about use and misuse of power, what sexual dominance actually means, how a shift in power can produce world-altering results and how power corrodes humanity and the psychology of relationships. The characters are wonderfully written and the attention to detail is fantastic. The plot is absorbing and full of twists and turns. Every female and male character adds to the story and brings it to a thought-provoking end. This is a novel that made me wince, laugh, cry and feel very uncomfortable at times. But it also held me spellbound, caught in a story I didn't want to end. Interestingly, as a female, I found many of the female characters unlikeable and deeply disturbing and I am still trying to work out why that was. This book will stay with me for a long time and I am desperate to discuss it with female friends.
The narration was fantastic.
13 of 14 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Lisa
- 12-01-17
Great narration and engaging story
Please get Adjoa Andoh to narrate all of the books on audible. Her narration is engaging beyond belief, and she inhabits each character uniquely. With regards to the story itself, I very much enjoyed the idea of turning the genre structure of our current society inside out with the help of a novel within a novel set 1000s of years in the future. Looking forward to more from Naomi Alderman.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Maya Connell
- 09-01-17
Okay, yes, oddly stared...
So... I really enjoyed this, but as a whole piece! There were certainly sections that frustrated me, or I did not understand why they were integral to the whole arc of the story- even if they might be interesting . Some of the actors voices also drove me a little mad but overall and for the 'main' characters I found her enjoyable to listen too. As a whole story, as a comment on society and a almost parallel universe idea it was sound and extremely enjoyable. This book did leave me thinking about the world differently which is what all good books should do.
Highly recommend!
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Mrs Charlotte Gaeta
- 22-02-17
Brilliant!
This is a must read for anyone who cares about relationships, human rights and everything in between. What starts off as a fantastic twist of fate which finally sets women on the path to the potential for proper equality gently and systematically turns the tables and shows how the gaining of power can corrupt. A morality tale for the 21st century, highlighting where inequality is still riff in the world and pondering whether if women ruled the world it would be any better? It's also an incredibly brilliant read!
24 of 27 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- S. J. Veal
- 22-02-19
Oh, I really am not sure I can make it to the end....
So, I don’t like being negative about any literature generally... and even shy away from reviews unless the whole experience is one I would recommend.. but this is really grating on me now, I am about 2/3 of the way through and unlike pretty much every one of my audio previous books ( of which would number in the hundreds), I don’t think I can make it all the way through. The narrator is good most of the time and her “normal” voice is sufficiently husky (filthy) and likeable (sexy) to narrate well, however the Russian and Nigerian accents do start to struggle at times to the degree I find myself thinking about skipping forwards to avoid them (but stugglingly haven’t so far), regardless of missing any plot twists (although there don’t seem to be any evidence there will be an clever sub plots at play as it’s a very linear book) and I can’t recommend it as the plot is paper thin and based on so much drivel I am getting a refund as quickly as possible.
Spoiler alert!!!!! Don’t read on less you want to hear further book details.
Omg! It’s like all the wimmin in this book go feral, packs of them roaming the countryside gathering up harvesting blokes to use as sex slaves, raping and knuckle bumping each other, killing children! Just so unbelievable...drives me nuts listening to this tosh! It’s like being able to have “the power” makes you superhuman, but where are the military ? It’s almost as if the author forgot that guns would still exist, it’s just so far fetched story most of the time I am biting my knuckles not to shout into the air that they are “F****** idiots”.
Please look worse where for you entertainment..
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Asper
- 26-01-17
Awesome, in the true sense of the word
Would you listen to The Power again? Why?
Yes. The story is both compelling and well written, and the Adjoa Andoh is easily one of the best narrators I've heard.
What did you like best about this story?
The tenacity of the plot; prologue and epilogue serve as a heady contrast to the main body of the work, especially in audiobook format.
Which scene did you most enjoy?
It's difficult to say without spoling the plot. There are so many viewpoints and reflections of our patriarchal society, it really is something to listen to. This book would be an excellent read for teenagers of both sexes.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Easily.
Any additional comments?
Alderman takes a subject currently under much discussion - that of whether gender is innate, or even an undeniable factor in how people are in themselves, and how they treat each other; or if we are all people, some of the female sex and some of the male, all capable of the same highs and lows.
I am so very glad this book didn't trek down the well travelled road of females being more nurturing, more caring; that a matriarchal society would be inherently better. After all, the sex of ones brain is not biologically discrete from the rest of ones body; and although society likes to think so, men and women are only physically different. The most compelling thing, for me, were the many moments of 'what if' triggered whilst listening to this.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- blewp1977
- 17-02-17
a clever and provocative narrative
This was an absolute find. Thought-provoking and compelling, I could have listened to this in one sitting.
16 of 18 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kaggy
- 24-10-17
A thriller to make you think
My head is still buzzing several days after finishing this story and I don't think I have ever read something that horrified and inspired me quite as much as this. Naomi Alderton has a fresh and insightful voice and the ability to write a thrilling and captivating tale to really make you think about power and its abuse, both in an imagined future and the real world we live in today. The narration of this audiobook is first class but a special mention has to be made of Adjoa Andoh who is one of the best narrators around.
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 16-08-18
Fantastic thought experiment!
Great book, very simple concept well executed. The book takes a simple and obvious concept; that the physical power and strength men have that allows them to dominate women is the reason they have dominated governments, militaries and religion through the ages. It then imagines a future where women have the power to hurt and dominate men in the same way and how that would transform society. This future is not a feminist ideal of equality and peace but rather a dystopia of inequality and violence between the genders which is horrifying for its cruelty and injustice but much more viscerally for the way it holds up a mirror to the horrors of our current world.
Oh and the voice performances on the audiobook are entertaining and energetic.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 28-03-18
Great concept but lacked depth
Some great passages, and a great exploration of the concept. Would love to hear what happened next. Some chapters were a little tacky or too dramatic, particularly conversations.
The big downer was the accents - they were pretty bad and detracted from storyline.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Hilary
- 21-09-17
Next Big Thing
I loved this book. Genuinely gutted when it ended. The characters were fascinating, the premise was well thought through, the story was performed with flair and drama. It felt more like a play than an audio book. Totally recommend.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 24-12-18
Remarkable
A most remarkable and insightful exploration of power, gender, and what it might mean to be human. The intersection between writen history and gender is explored, in terms of its limiting effects. This is a marvelous book, and every woman and man should read it!
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 18-09-18
Just couldn't get into it...
I wanted to like this book but I just couldn't quite get into it. The concept was great but the story itself was kind of average. Personally, the narrator is what killed this book for me in the end; she was more like a newsreader not a story teller.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 13-05-19
promising and interesting but it waned
I was hooked for the first third, maybe half, but then it lost me. The 'power' is a great fictional device for inverting gender based inequalities for both serious and humorous effect.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- simon
- 15-03-19
Fzzzt.
A great concept but the execution is woeful. The accents of the narrator are terrible - Southern American, African and Russian. Just read the story please. The ending is messy and rushed. The post script goes on far too long. The whole thing needed to be thought out better.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Sarah
- 05-03-19
Narration produced a gag reflex
Great concept and reasonably well executed. I felt that the main story sort of just petered out in the end.
But I reserve my main criticism for the woeful job done on the narration: frequently overwrought, at times verging on hysterical, it was as though the narrator thought it was all about her and her (very mediocre) acting skills rather than the story itself. And the accents - particularly the Russian/ Moldovan accents- were nothing short of appalling.
In all, the narration really distracted and detracted from the story itself, a great shame as the story was really rather interesting.
my recommendation: Read it, but avoid the audiobook.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- J. Bird
- 28-08-17
Great story
Nice job of turning gender bias and inequality on it's head. Captivating storyline and well narrated. I'd recommend this to anyone.
6 of 9 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Angelina Reay
- 25-08-19
Persevere to the end if you can.
I almost stop reading but persevered until the end when I decided that I did like the book. It was very thought provoking.