This is my first time reading a Lionel Shiver novel, although I’m familiar with We Need to Talk About Kevin. So going with my previous knowledge and the blurb only, I approached this with expectations of strong social commentary and some satire.
“2011 but not as we know it. Stupid is banned. Smart is cancelled. Or at least, that’s what the government have decided”
Set in an alternative recent past, the worst insult anyone can give is to call someone else “stupid” or to assume them idiotic.
As someone who usually reads a lot of fantasy and YA fiction this ain’t something I’d usually pick off the shelf, but I do like things that have a “Brazil” feel to them. The idea of a dystopia where one of our most toxic traits has become the norm (albeit vanity, superiority…) makes for an interesting look as people as a society and how we time can change what we deem as socially acceptable at any given time
“2011 but not as we know it. Stupid is banned. Smart is cancelled. Or at least, that’s what the government have decided”
Set in an alternative recent past, the worst insult anyone can give is to call someone else “stupid” or to assume them idiotic.
As someone who usually reads a lot of fantasy and YA fiction this ain’t something I’d usually pick off the shelf, but I do like things that have a “Brazil” feel to them. The idea of a dystopia where one of our most toxic traits has become the norm (albeit vanity, superiority…) makes for an interesting look as people as a society and how we time can change what we deem as socially acceptable at any given time