Alias Grace
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Alias Grace
by Authors:
Margaret Atwood
Released: November, 1997
ISBN: 0385490445
Paperback
Sales Rank: 32,056
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List price:
$15.00
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$10.50
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Average Customer Rating: 
Alias Grace >
Customer Review #1:
 only having read one of atwoods books . . .
just finished a margaret atwood book--my first. im not overly impressed: she takes forever to make her point. and the writing on the way to it is not enlightening enough to justify the volume of it. she carries the reader in three directions at once in the case of _alias grace_, and i think its a deliberate part of the style, as the heroine is three-persons-in-one (along the lines of the madonna/whore position of women, in mens minds). the question of how a woman is to overcome that quandary is not resolved. i think that atwoods reputation of misogyny is not accurate--but her flat tone while conveying womens lack of agency and self-determination is not inspiring. her work is not hopeful, then. she also shames the reader with his or her pruriency--promising a story about a murderess involved in an extramarital sexual scandal, but scolding those characters within the novel who indulge their prurient and voyeuristic tendencies therein. nobody comes out well, and all manner of human failings are to blame: lonely wives, doting mothers of adult sons, priests, lawyers, men who dishonor willing women, young girls who seek mens attentions, and women who covet jewelry and clothing. (does anyone, then, come away from atwoods critical gaze unscathed?)i dont know if ill give one of her other books a try or not. i think i should, in order to come to a more solid conclusion about her writing. the subject matter of _alias grace_ may have necessitated its bleakness--although, from what i have read about _the handmaidens tale_, it may just be a general tendency on atwoods part.
Alias Grace >
Customer Review #2:
 Amazing Historical Fiction from Atwood
We always seem fascinated with sensational murder trials. But what happens after the crowds clear the courtroom and the media lose interest? Margaret Atwood not only explores this question, but creates countless more to ponder long after the last chapter of ALIAS GRACE, her novel based on the real-life conviction and imprisonment of Grace Marks in the mid-19th century.Atwoods GRACE is an intriguing and detail-rich tale, told through the eyes and memories of both Grace (a servant convicted of helping to kill her employer and his mistress) and Simon Jordan, a young doctor interested in mental illnesses. As Jordon probes Graces memories, he and the reader are pulled into her tale of the days before and after the murders, but with some very important gaps - she claims to have no memory of the murders themselves. Atwood provides Jordans thoughts and insights, which stand in contrast to Graces experiences and illustrates the very different lives of the upper and lower classes.
Atwood blends facts, speculation and her own storytelling ability in such a way that the reader isnt sure what is fact and what is fiction. Atwood creates a believable, fascinating tale that makes what could have been a bland historical novel quite exciting. Highly recommended!
Alias Grace >
Customer Review #3:
Powerful and Beautiful
Working from a fascinating historical incident: the murder of an emigrant Scotsman in Victorian Canada, Margaret Atwood has crafted an enigmatic and enduring anti-heroine.
I add my voice to a chorus of praise for Atwoods writing. Her prose is crystaline in its precision and clarity. A dark, almost macabre tale is illuminated with flashes of humour and striking symbolism.
Grace, a serving girl imprisoned (rightly or wrongly?) for the murder, emerges as an elusive yet fully flesh-and-blood character. Grace narrates the story, at once bringing us into intimate contact with her thoughts and shrouding the mystery of her actions. This is a device used in books like Rebecca and The Turn of the Screw; but here its fresh and riveting. Grace seems simultaneously bewildered by, and in control of, her reputation as a murderess. Its this allure which brings Dr Simon Jordon to her prison, seeking to understand her psychology. The charged interviews between the two are especially powerful.
Just as her characters are strong, the writer creates a landscape in the mind which is fully alive and three-dimensional.
If Ive dwelt on the novels literary aspects, dont be put off. I enjoyed this book tremendously, and recommend it whole-heartedly.
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Alias Grace >
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