The Blind Assassin by Margaret AtwoodMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Matter-of-factly we’re given the moment that the main character’s life changed forever, but as we follow the narration of her life as well as insertions of the titular fictional novel things don’t seem so clear. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood is a novel within a novel—with another novel within the first—historical fiction whose multilayered unfolding mystery is peeled away until everything falls into place just as you get to the end of the book.
An elderly Iris Chase Griffin pens her autobiography that also is a biography of her famous sister Laura, whose posthumous novel the titular The Blind Assassin has a cult status in literary circles. While Iris’ biographical narration is the bulk of the novel, Atwood includes faux news articles and insertions from The Blind Assassin. But its these insertions from this novel within the novel begin revealing a different version of history of Laura’s life as well as Iris’ which would have surprised her deceased daughter who had been estranged from her. Atwood’s layered writing of biography, pulp fiction, and newspaper reports with subtle misdirection in the beginning and subtle revealing throughout the book creates a very engaging read that keeps the reader wanting to find out what really happened. Honestly, it was only in research after finishing that I learned of the Canadian history that Atwood wove into the narrative after thinking that the various real life individuals name dropped were fictional thus making me not understand the importance of some of the political talk—thanks to Iris’ politically ambitious husband—that was occurring within the novel.
The Blind Assassin was my first Margaret Atwood work and after finishing it, I can say that it will not be my last.
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