Shattered But Not Silenced by Helena St. George
Dystopia Meets Near-Future Reality
In a world where productivity is the measure of one’s worth, who truly decides human value? As debates over economic policy, public benefits, and government authority intensify across the country, St. George’s new dystopian novel Shattered But Not Silenced challenges readers to confront these difficult issues.
Set in a near-future America devastated by economic collapse, the story imagines a regime that targets social service recipients and the homeless for “reform” under the guise of economic recovery. At the center is Maya, an autistic young woman grappling with the complexities of life, navigating a country in turmoil, and surviving her forced “rehabilitation.”
Her sensory sensitivities, coping mechanisms, and layered internal processing are presented through her sharp, ironic first-person voice, representing one facet of her complex, multidimensional character. The narrative asks thought-provoking questions: Who defines human value? And what happens to those who don’t meet the definition?
Shattered But Not Silenced explores survival under authoritarian rule and the human cost of government-imposed control. Like The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, it examines how a regime assigns social value, enforces roles, and limits personal autonomy. Like Vox by Christina Dalcher, it portrays the danger of speech, the weight of silence, and the psychological tension of navigating a controlled society. Like On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis, it follows a first-person autistic narrator, exploring the ethics of survival, the definition of human value, and challenges the idea that only the most capable or worthy deserve to survive.
Tense and emotionally rich, the novel explores power, resistance, and the courage it takes to remain human under authoritarian rule. The narrative reveals how art, perception, and quiet defiance become vital acts of resistance in a world that rewards compliance.
The novel is a work of fiction influenced by oppressive government institutions from history. These include prison camps, forced labor, abuse of the disabled, and policies that equate human value with productivity. Shattered But Not Silenced explores complex themes of institutional power, forced conformity, imposed definitions of worth, and the framing of differences as deficiencies.
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