Woman on the Edge of Time: A Novel

I'm surprised and embarrassed that I didn't know about this book years ago, since it should certainly stand as a sci-fi classic. Sci-fi achieves a greater diversity of authors and readers as time goes by, but this book offers a powerful challenge for and deserves readers from across the spectrum (not for children, though). Beyond story and characters it offers much for reflection on social and psychological issues. For instance, Piercy proposes a reasonable solution to the problem of the Modern English lack of a singular third-person, gender-neutral pronoun ("per": a perfect idea, much better than "they")--and that's just one small perk amidst a challenging and haunting novel.

I bought this book because a polyamorous librarian said I needed to read it. Needless to say our relationship didn’t last as long as it took me to slog through this novel.However, it came as described. I only knocked it down a few stars because of the emotional trauma this purchase reminded me of.

I read this book back in the 1980s and it had a different ending than the one I just read here. This one has a foreword By the author from 2016.

After reading the first chapter, I thought this book was going to be much different. Then I read the second, and realized what at least half of the book was about: some time-travelling person. I had to read this for my Women's Studies college class, and I have to say that this is one of those books that is just depressing the entire way through. You have the time travel stuff that breaks this up and keeps things hopeful, but back in her own time Connie seems just more and more screwed as the book goes on. I won't deny the book is interesting, because it certainly is, but it's not for me.And it's not because I can't like a dark book. I absolutely love 1984, and that bittersweet ending hit me harder than any book I've ever read. But here I don't really feel suspenseful of what's going to happen next as anytime something even remotely good happens, something bad comes to ruin it right away.Either way, the book was pretty cheap to get so there's that.

How does it feel to be so overwhelmed by outside forces that you have absolutely no control over your life? It seems that male and female roles have defined your path for you and doomed you forever to accept what is decided for you. What happens when you realize you've made mistakes, but no one will give you a chance to fix your life? Choices seem to be made for you without your consultation or consent. What kind of like is that? Wouldn't you want to know what life could be like if only people were more caring and concerned about others?I bought this book because I was intrigued by the tease of a time travel tale, but I finished the book because I kept getting pulled deeper into the mind of an abused woman and the dispossessed people around her. This is not so much a time travel tale as it is an exploration of the pain a mind can endure and the lengths to which it will go to find relief.The writing was very descriptive and colorful. I felt like I was in the mind of the main character. I gave the book five stars because I think it achieves a level of literary maturity not reached by most contemporary works.

I was surprised that this book has been around for so long. But it is an interesting look at possible futures. It is one of the only books where I quickly adapted to the lack of gender pronouns - it is usually very disruptive to my reading. The story was often not a happy one, but despite the fantasy element, it seemed all too plausible.I have some limited experience with the mental health care system - and I sadly found that much of the description of that system still rings true. How quick we are to judge and diminish others. At times I was quite angry: for example, at one point a patient is restrained in the bed and her pleas to use the bathroom are ignored, but later the orderly says "they just pee all over themselves and they don't even care."I do recommend this book. It is an interesting story, and makes a number of points. It doesn't bang you too hard on the head to make them, either.

This book remained on my TBR list as I worried that it would be dated, having been written in the 70s. On the contrary, Piercy's novel is a brilliant novel for the ages. Her prescience about issues of the environment and mental health pre-date the serious discussions going on today.And if that wasn't enough, Piercy is a first-class storyteller. Connie is constructed as a very sympathetic character and you turn each page hoping for her to triumph over all the stigmas that marginalize her from society--being a Chicana, poor, obese, widowed . . . to name a few. Although Connie is considered unfit for society, she proves to be the most compassionate of all.This is a book I've been thinking about for days. . . and feel I will continue to do so for a long time. What more can you ask for in a book. Highly recommended!

I was given this book 20 years ago to read. I loved it then and loaned it to a friend to read. She proptly lost it. I spent the next 20 years trying to find it. I should mention that my search was hindered because I could not remember the title or the author. I discribed the story to libbrarians and book store owners for years to no avail. I even discribed the original cover. On a whim I emailed some book lovers I know and some one finally knew the book. I baught it that day and read it (via my kindle) that night. 20 years later and I still found parts that made me stop and think; to look at the world we are living in now and see just how much and how little has changed. Read this book, I promise it is worth it!

100% recomme the this

I first read this book in @ 1983! I bought this copy for a friend but ended up reading it first. Interesting to see how it moved me all these years later. It still seemed as profound, as prophetic as ever, or even more so viewed in the light of where we are now in the first quarter of the twenty-first century. You can see how Piercy's vision of the future, of where we are headed, was so insightful. More importantly you can see now, more than ever, the direction we need to head in.If that all sounds a bit heavy, don't fear this book. It is warm, funny and human. A great story, well told, full of intriguing concepts and with a good, strong, page-turning, thriller thread. An absolute must-read if ever there was one, one you will think about for years, and maybe like me, buy for all your friends.Marge Piercy is one of the most most important and possibly the most under-estimated writer of our age.

Une très bonne histoire de SF, une très belle histoire féministe. Très bien écrit, dur mais beau. Je vais chercher d'autres livres de cette auteure :)

I felt that I knew what Connie was going through in her efforts to escape from the hospital, but the parts of the book I enjoyed the most was when she was living in the future with Luciente. A thoroughly thought provoking novel, one that will stay with me for a long time!

Despite being set in another country and (mostly) in the last century, it's a very real and relatable story for any woman who's had a life filled with coping and repeated trauma and the mental health issues that come from surviving like this.There is a lot of compassion, empathy and knowing in this book. It won't change the world that has barely changed for us in 50 years, but it will make you feel seen.