Bookalicious

From Hicklebee’s When She Woke” is a fable about a stigmatized woman struggling to navigate an America of the not-too-distant future. Hannah unknowingly embarks on a path of self-discovery that forces her to question the values she once held true and the righteousness of a country that politicizes faith.

Required reading was never really my thing, but I read each book on the list that a teacher gave me. The Scarlett Letter was on my 8th grade summer list. I read it, I loved it dearly, I read it again, and again, and once more. Jordan has taken one of my most favorite childhood reads and put a spin on the story of a woman shamed. This too I loved dearly.

Hannah had a boyfriend, a secret boyfriend. Then the unthinkable happened. She became pregnant. In When She Woke society is governed by fundamentalist christian ethics. Different ‘crimes’ garner different punishments. Punishment is doled out by means of dying the skin of then offender. What color and how long depend on what you are convicted of. Blue is reserved for the most heinous of crimes, pedophilia and the like. Yellow is for misdemeanors, and red… Well red is what you get when you have an illegal abortion.

When Hannah is released back into the world as a red is when she truly begins to start living life for the first time. It took her being publicly shamed to realize life isn’t what it should be, that a woman’s body is her own and she should be able to do with it what she wants.

Watching Hannah grow as a character was incredibly believable and intensely gratifying. Watching the side characters through her eyes was a joy, Hannah is such a smart protagonist.

I truly believe that this book is incredible for a crossover audience. From sci-fi to literary, adult to teen, When She Woke has something for everyone and is a strong contender for my personal book of the year.