Son is a novel set in a futuristic 'perfect' world where there is no free choice. They call this world a community.
Claire lives in such a world. There is no war, no sadness, and no romance. Parents are specifically matched together, and then given a child that is not their own. That's where Claire comes in. In the words of Jonas, another community member, "Things were different back then." He says this many years later after he has left and made a new life for himself.
Claire was assigned the job Birthmother, and her task is simple. She must birth a child that will be given away to a set of parents. But when something goes wrong, Claire is decertified and sent to work at the Fish Hatchery. She was fourteen years old, not much older than me when I first read the book.
This part of the book gave me a sense for the ugly 'behind-the-scenes' of a seemingly perfect world. There is so much injustice that no one knows about. Instead, they blindly follow what they are told is right, believing that everything is taken care of and as it should be. After reading Son, I realized that there really is no such thing as perfect. It is merely an imagining, something found only inside our heads.
In the second part of the book, Claire escapes the 'perfection' of the community for a new life. When she washes up on the coast of Newfoundland*, she is helpless - and without all her memories. When she meets Alys, the medicine woman, she must piece together her old life. "It's as if the sea sucked away her past and left her empty," says Old Benedikt about Claire.
Once Claire regains her memories, she climbs a steep cliff with one mission: to find her son. "I do want it," Claire says in the book. "I want him."
Claire's fierce dedication-so much unlike the 'perfect' community-drives her onward, up the huge cliff. At the top, she comes face to face with something she never could have imagined: pure evil, in human form. "My name. . . is Trademaster." He says. Will Claire's journey end there, or will she find her son?
Claire's story is one that I find myself coming back to time and time again. Her journey from perfection to imperfection-combined with her determination and spirit-makes it a book everyone should read at least once.
The End
*The book never comes right out and says 'Newfoundland', but the way people talk as well as the landscape and weather descriptions made me fairly sure it was Newfoundland or someplace like it.
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