In the near future, women are restricted to 100 words a day. Dr. Jean McClellan is in denial; this can’t happen in the United States. But as women are losing their jobs and being silenced, they have a minute space to make their voices heard. If they go over their allotted limit, they get a nasty shock to their system. Jean gets the opportunity to elevate her voice, for women everywhere.
We got an advanced copy of this book at work, so I picked it up because it sounded right up my alley. The premise reminded me a lot of The Handmaid’s Tale; but maybe even more realistic, given the current political climate. Since this new society is newly implemented, Jean can easily recall the life she had before, the life where she was able to speak her mind whenever she wanted.
Everything is made even more painful with Jean’s children; her daughter is learning that it’s better to be silent than to raise your voice, and her son is buying into all the propaganda the administration is spinning. Parts of this book made me so angry–and I think that was the point. In many of these dystopian texts, the characters regret not stepping in when they had a chance, not stepping in before things became drastic. The message here: speak up while your voice can still be heard.
While the pacing of the book felt a bit off to me, overall I was invested in the story right until the very end. Jean’s reliability as a narrator is questioned at times, but the supporting characters were interesting and I felt they were what drove the plot forward. Everything was a tied up a bit too neatly at the end; more neatly than most dystopian texts, but what’s life without a little hope?
Vox comes out on August 21st!
3.5/5 stars