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The Power
- Narrated by: Adjoa Andoh, Naomi Alderman, Thomas Judd, Emma Fenney, Phil Nightingale
- Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
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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)
What listeners say about The Power
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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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
- Jac Dircks
- 28-03-2018
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.
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5 people found this 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
- Sandra C
- 28-08-2020
WOW
Just wow.
This story about the ascension of women from the margin to the highest echelons of humanity, becoming the dominant gender had my mind reeling.
The way in which the story was told, from the viewpoints of Margot (an American politician), Roxy (daughter of a British crime lord/thug), Allie (an abused child runaway) and Tunde (a wealthy Nigerian boy) was a little disjointed, with certain characters and their stories being more interesting than others. It was a constant mental exercise to manage the concept and imagine men in the inferior and weak position. Some of the scenes were absolutely shocking but then I would remind myself that the descriptions of rape, genital mutilation, degradation and power-based fear are actually accurate representations of the world we currently live in, with men as the perpetrators.
Funny how when the injustices currently borne by women seem disproportionately evil when the shoe is on the other foot. Active mental thought adjustment required again.
Hot tip: once you've finished, go to the beginning and read the prologue again. It puts a new perspective on the book.
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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
- Wendy
- 02-08-2020
Not For the Faint-hearted
Considering that we are all under a soft version of house arrest right now, this certainly sets the stage for struggles well into the future of humanity. Very timely!
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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
- Ariane
- 08-04-2018
A Compelling Thought Experiment
What made the experience of listening to The Power the most enjoyable?
I hardly have the time for 'fiction' these days. However, The Power certainly grabbed mine! I was utterly fascinated by how such a complex thought experiment could still be pitched the early adolescent reader. To my mind, what Alderman presents is not a Matriarchy but rather a Patriarchal system ruled by females. The qualitative difference is an important one which speaks to the heart of, indeed, 'power' structures. I'd love to speak to other readers about on this topic.
Thank you Naomi Alderman!
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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
- Shannon
- 13-04-2018
Performance is exceptional
I’m not sure I could have got all the way to the end of this book, had the performance of the narration not been as incredibly spectacular as it is. There are sections in this book that I literally had to hit pause on and walk away from because they were too much for me to process. However, the perseverance was worth it. It is a difficult book to read on multiple levels; a challenging symbolic exploration into our actual past rather than any kind of dystopian warning of the future.
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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
- 14-03-2018
A future classic
This novel is a masterfully written and thought provoking dissection of gender and power. A must read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- pieta
- 19-07-2017
Excellent! A must read
I loved this book, right to the VERY end. A very clever idea and well written without being too dark. I laughed so hard to myself at the end.
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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
- Roxy blackheart
- 27-06-2018
READ THIS
This book was at first, a brilliant HA! FEELZ BRO type story. Then it went and blew my mind because it is so true.
10/10 must read
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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
- Anonymous User
- 27-08-2018
Well structured story.
A great story that highlights the struggles of women in a male dominated society and completely flips it 180. Told from many different view points the stories of each character eventually cross paths and the outcomes are very thrilling. Very well thought out. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 02-11-2018
Struck
unexpected
confronting
exiting
provoking
both dark and light
will stay with me a long while
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