Wordie Wednesdays | When She Woke, Hillary Jordan

(Yes, that’s snow falling in this picture.  Don’t worry– the snow was light and the book was unharmed.)

I love dystopian/utopian literature; some of my favorite books include The Giver, 1984, and Brave New World, among others.  I received this book from my brother-in-law for Christmas, and when I noticed in a blurb that it was compared to The Handmaid’s Tale (by Margaret Atwood, a favorite author of mine) I had a feeling this novel would be right up my alley.

The world in When She Woke is one in which church and state are inexorably tied together.  Primarily run by puritanical individuals, the society requires individuals (and women in particular) to live a strictly bounded life.  Our narrator, Hannah, has many passions (such as creating gorgeous garments) that she is unable to pursue publicly because it is an immodest passion.  However, these callings are so strong that she pursues them in private and simultaneously worries that what she is doing is wrong and impulsive.  With her heart and mind continuously in conflict with one another, Hannah leads a difficult and painfully restrained life.

After an affair with a pastor, Hannah finds herself accidentally pregnant.  Although she obtains a secret abortion, which solves part of her problem, she is caught.  Hannah is required to spend a short amount of time in prison, but the real punishment is having her skin changed to a scarlet hue.  The red hue, which is a signal that the individual committed a murder, makes it so she is unable to live a meaningful life; her society heavily ostracizes Reds, and there are even vigilantes who believe that they are meant to kill Reds for the betterment of society.

When She Woke explores morality with frightening results.  As readers, we must explore our own feelings about discrimination (both sexual and general), religious beliefs, and hot button topics such as abortion.  Although this is not our society, When She Woke paints a picture of what our society could end up like if certain events occur, and thus provides us with a space to reflect about where society currently stands and allows us to consider what changes we’d like to see in our world.