The Power

What if the power to hurt were in women's hands?Suddenly tomorrow or the day after girls find that with a flick of their fingers, they can inflict agonizing pain and even death. All over the world, women are discovering they have The Power. "The novel is constructed as a big, brash, page-turning, drug-running, globetrotting thriller... But it’s also endlessly nuanced and thought-provoking, combining elegantly efficient prose with beautiful meditations on the metaphysics of power, possibility and change..." - Justine Jordan, The GuardianIn The Power the world is a recognizable place - there's a rich Nigerian kid who larks around the family pool; a foster girl whose religious parents hide their true nature; a local American politician; a tough London girl from a tricky family. But something vital has changed, causing their lives to converge, with devastating effects. Now, with the flick of a switch, teenage girls can cause agonizing pain and even death. And, with this small twist of nature, the world changes utterly. "In her acknowledgments, Alderman thanks Margaret Atwood, Karen Joy Fowler and Ursula Le Guin — possibly the most brilliant triumvirate of grandmothers any novel has ever had. That lineage shows in this endlessly surprising and provocative story that deconstructs not just the obvious expressions of sexism but the internal ribs of power that we have tolerated, honored and romanticized for centuries." - Ron Charles, The Washington PostThis extraordinary novel by Naomi Alderman, a Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year and Granta Best of Young British writer, is not only a gripping story of how the world would change if physical power was in the hands of women but also exposes, with breath-taking daring, our contemporary world. 'She throws her head back and pushes her chest forward and lets go a huge blast right into the centre of his body. The rivulets and streams of red scarring run across his chest and up around his throat. She'd put her hand on his heart and stopped him dead.' Suddenly tomorrow or the day after girls find that with a flick of their fingers, they can inflict agonizing pain and even death. With this single twist, the four lives at the heart of Naomi Alderman's extraordinary, visceral novel are utterly transformed, and we look at the world in an entirely new light. What if the power to hurt were in women's hands?