When She Woke by Hilary Jordan
By Lena Willis • Dec 8th, 2011 • Category: Book Review 2011 •
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Hillary Jordan, the author of When She Woke, takes her readers into a hypothesized United States, the conservative right-wing winning several elections through the years and gaining complete control over the country until it becomes more Puritanical than anything else.
Hannah Payne, once a young woman truly devoted to her church and her family, wakes to find herself a “Chrome.” Melachroming is the government’s chosen method of identifying, tracking and controlling criminals. The process involves altering the pigment of a criminal’s skin to coincide with the type of crime they were found guilty of. For example: Yellows generally committed misdemeanors, Oranges committed felonies; Blues were child molesters and Reds were murderers. In this time frame, Roe v. Wade is overturned and abortion is considered murder, hence, Hannah is a “Red” because she had an abortion.
Depending on their color, Chromes are often discriminated against and shunned by the general public and even other Chromes. It is not unusual to be unableto use certain gas stations, public restrooms or restaurants because you are a Chrome. Chromes are often abused, raped and even murdered, with very little protection from the police. Sometimes, Chromes can rely on each other, especially if they are the same color. Life as a Chrome is difficult and nothing like being a criminal on probation or parole today. Finding unemployment and housing is not likely if you are a Chrome and because of this, many of them live on Skid Row.
After reading Mudbound, which I thoroughly enjoyed as I love historical fiction, this book took me on a completely different ride. If you are looking for a Mudbound-type read, this is not it. But, this one did not disappoint either. This book was descriptive by putting me in the Chrome facility to the halfway house and on the rest of Hannah’s journey. I became completely engrossed in the characters, not just with Hannah, but wanting to know how each one fared and Hillary Jordan delivered. This is a politically-charged read that requires an open mind and an active imagination. I commend Ms. Jordan for her courage in writing this; while the theme is familiar, it was timely.
Reviewed by Lena Willis
APOOO Literary Zone
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Lena Willis is a single mother to two who recently moved to Atlanta, GA from the San Francisco Bay Area. Professionally, she works as a health care administrator and also has her own business, Imani Non-Profit Consulting Services where she primarily does grant writing and reviews federal grant applications. She has been reviewing for APOOO for about 2 1/2 years. She enjoys exploring other cultures, reading a range of genres, and taking road trips.
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