The plot of the book is that a sudden change has come across society and previously rational, self-controlled individuals suddenly start attacking each those around them, fatally if they can achieve them. The media gets a hold of the story and these people are dubbed ‘Haters’, a group which exponentially increases in size until nothing less than a state of emergency has been declared and a full scale war has broken out between ‘us’ and ‘them’. The key fear in the book is that the nice rational people turn into Haters instantaneously and without warning, and will attack any and all around them (with the exception of other Haters) including friends and family creating an exceptional level of paranoia.
My issue with the book is that even though I don’t think it’s particularly well written, I not only read it in a day but have kept thinking about it since. The main character isn’t the most likeable and I felt the conclusion of the story was somewhat lacking. Part of me feels like it was written with the purpose of setting up a sequel (and given that it is being made into a film by Guillermo del Toro I may not be far wrong) and yet some part of it has affected me in that way that only books can do.
There’s a lot of talk in the novel about the labels the media has applied and whether extensive news coverage can lead to a greater chance of retaliation. I am a firm believer that the two most dangerous words in the English language are ‘us’ and ‘them’. We’re wired to place great importance upon group loyalty and you can create it so easily by dividing people into the most arbitrary of groups, if you need proof look no further than the headlines of the Daily Mail. The change in group loyalty that the main character experiences is extremely well-done and possibly the best bit of the book. The reason for the change is never fully explained but rather is glossed over by a very brief description of ‘something’ being ‘different’ in a certain section of the population’s genetics and that ‘something’ has ‘activated’ this different behavioural programming. This is probably my least favourite bit of the books. Again, I am an ardent supporter of the view that behaviour is hugely, if not predominantly, influenced by genetics and Hater just falls disappointingly short of using it to good effect. It’s almost like Moody wrote the book before the idea behind it had fully formed (that or the sequel thing again).
Posts
