From the Bookshelf of La Crescent Public Library…

[close] 3/5 stars, rounded up for the discussion quality - This was a great book club choice for discussion as the group had some strong love it/hate it feelings. But no one could put it down! Despite how some readers felt about the Positron Experiment, they all had to read to the end to see what happened.

We had some really interesting discussions about the real life scenarios and new stories Atwood used to inform her novel. You can go down some fun rabbit holes by watching her interviews about this book's release.

The book was difficult for some to read as now in 2025, the events happening feel plausible. This was a good introduction to the speculative fiction genre and what that entails. There was a lot of discussion about the real panic readers thought an economic collapse would create, and many could see the Positron prison experiment looking very appealing if in similar situations to Stan and Charmaine.

There was a also a general love for the infusion of humor - the robots, particularly the Elvis ones amused a lot of readers.

Great discussion, some trigger warnings/content warnings requested or recommended for future readers, but overall a book full of situations and themes to dive into.