Master Class by Christina Dalcher
Review by Melissa B. (dragoneyes)
A near future where babies are tested in the womb for Q scores. These scores determine a fetus’s intelligence level. If it does not meet the standards, an abortion is suggested. Even if your child does make the score, it doesn’t end there. Throughout their whole life, they will be expected to test well. These tests determine jobs, where you live, what color school bus you ride, etc. You are known by your smarts and your category.
Elena and Malcolm know all too well how the scores work. They were the ones who helped come up with it. Malcolm is one of the top leaders of the program. Elena never had a second thought to the system until she watched one of her daughters, Anna, succeed while her other daughter, Freddie, struggled. Slowly, she starts seeing little slips in the system. Things that shouldn’t happen but are. People who aren’t deemed worthy are taken away. When it is Elena’s own daughter this time, she decides to fight for her daughter’s right in this world.
I really didn’t think I would enjoy this book as much as I did. It grabbed me from the beginning and held me to the end. It angered me, it frustrated me, it made me want to punch Malcolm (I still want to do that). It was so believable and I could really see something like that happening. We already do things like that now and have in the past just not to that extent. The author’s note at the end about our history is quite as disturbing as the book. Not only was it a entertaining read but an important one as well.
