ALIAS GRACE (REISSUE)

Book Review: Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood: "Sometimes I whisper it over to myself: Murderess. Murderess. It rustles, like a taffeta skirt along the floor." -Grace Marks. The story fictionalises the notorious 1843 murders of Thomas Kinnear and his housekeeper Nancy Montgomery by two servants of the household, Grace Marks and James McDermott. McDermott was hanged but Grace escaped the gallows and sentenced to life imprisonment. She also spent some years in an asylum after an emotional breakdown. She gave three different accounts of the killings whereas McDermott gave two. The whole incident stayed a mistery and Grace an enigma. The author has taken a fragment of thread from the reality and created another thread of narrative with a fictional doctor, Simon Jordan, who researches the case, and has tried to fill the terrible gaps of reality with fiction, and the end result is a beautiful patchwork quilt. The book gives a clear picture regarding the state of the oppressed lower class especially the lesser sex during that period. The lasting impression for me is the trauma and pain suffered by Grace while emigrating, which began at the ship and ended nowhere. The book is writing in multiple narration and quilt is a particularly apt metaphor of the various narrative perspectives. Quilt is the running theme of the book as each chapter is named after a quilt pattern and there is also illustration of the respective pattern; and Grace kept quilting while sharing her story throughout the book. Sometimes a book has an inbuilt character which keeps you longing for more, which keeps you feeling unsorted, perturbed, unfulfilled, yet somewhat satisfied; Alias Grace is that book, a 560 page long conundrum, which is bound to haunt you long after you turn the last pages.

Based on a true murder committed sometime in the mid-18th century, its a masterful recreation of the crime. The characterization is nothing short of brilliant. At this rate, I will soon have quite a stack of "Atwood's books.

Margaret Atwood has a beautiful way of describing a twisted terrible mystery. The book is very intriguing and keeps your attention built up at all times. A lengthy read but worth every minute of it.

It was not clear in the product description that this was a used book. Was a bit shocked at how dirty and weathered the cover was. However. went to the product description again to check that it mentions somewhere that it is 'used'. However, the rest of the book is in great condition, pages are fine, unmarked and not curled at the corners.

Im not half as qualified to write about a brilliant author as Margaret Atwood. Made for a great, great read. I have no reason not to give it all the stars. Quality of the book is good too.

Good quality product...binding is good....worth for money

The pace drags through the first 60 pages or so and the plot is rather predictable, but I found myself intrigued by Atwood's clever manipulation of tense, and am glad I kept reading. This is yet another example of Margaret Atwood's unique and insightful style, though I must admit I felt rather betrayed by the ending. A reader expects that all loose ends be tied by the third act, and Atwood has left one too many lingering questions that just cannot be chalked up to "leaving it to the reader's imagination". For this reason, and also because it took so long for the pace to finally pick up, I rate 'Alias Grace' 3 stars. I would recommend it to writers as a fantastic lesson in tense manipulation and evocative description, but that's all. Unless you're an Atwood fan, skip this one.

Front cover is crumpled.

１５歳のGrace Marksが関わっていたとされる殺人事件を題材にした小説である。精神科医のSimon Jordanとの接見の過程で事件の一部が描かれていくが、最後まで呼んでも真実は謎のヴェイルに包まれたままだ。冒頭に置かれている事件当時に作られた詩が何かを暗示しているのかもしれない。

Magnifiquement bien écrit !

Amazing . It is based on a true story. I was really gripped by the story all the way through. I can't say too much without revealing the plot and creating a spoiler. I will just say that I found it a very worthwhile read.

I have always shied away from Margaret Atwood's book as I felt they were a bit strange. Had to read Alias Grace for my book group and absolutely loved it. I am now a fan of hers and will be reading more of her books.

I really enjoyed reading Alias Grace. Very few writers can match Margaret Atwood's talent and skill. Her writing is precise, deliberate and controlled, and more than anything, it is underpinned by emotional intelligence and depth of thought. A good, solid novel. I recommend it.