08 Dec / The Test by Sylvain Neuvel [in Booklist]
*STARRED REVIEW
No doubt that Sylvain Neuvel’s (Themis Files series) standalone novella is a thought-provoking, heartbeat-raising experience. As convincing as the narrative is on the page, Neil Shah alchemizes Neuvel’s words into a revelatory performance, infusing contagious energy and creating impressive resonance.
Sometime in the not-so-distant future, the UK citizenship test becomes much, much more than answering multiple-choice questions. London dentist Idir, originally from Teheran, has just finished Question 5 – gleeful that he knows the answer – when five armed men storm the immigration office. Idir is targeted by the brutal leader to make unthinkably horrific life-and-death decisions. But all this turns out to be in Idir’s head – literally – because he is lying in a hospital bed, attached to wires and forced into virtual reality scenarios; his responses will determine the fate of his citizenship.
In the control room, a technician-in-training watches closely. As another person of color struggling to prove himself in a white majority, Deep, too, faces evaluation, personally and professionally. If Idir passes, so should Deep.
Shah turns Idir into a softly accented, desperately caring man; the vicious terrorist leader into a falsely friendly monster; Deep into a façade of calm control; and Deep’s supervisor Laura into a study of smooth detachment. Each exacting characterization would be an impressive feat; melded together, they form one of the best aural performances of the year.
Review: “Media,” Booklist Online, November 15, 2019
Readers: Adult
Published: 2019