The Test
- Downloads：4662
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-09-26 09:55:33
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Sylvain Neuvel
- ISBN：1250312833
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Reviews
Natalie
，
Book 4 of the September Readathons is finished！Bookopoly: Read a book that is the color of the last book you read （White）Whew。。 Black Mirror or the Twilight Zone would have had a field day with this one
Alexa
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“You can change the world with one smile。 Do you know the difference between a customs officer and a dentist？ There isn’t one。 They both do cavity searches。”Idir Jalil is an Iranian immigrant taking the British Citizenship Test。 Since only one male family member above the ages of sixteen and forty-five needs to pass it， he is single-handedly trying to secure citizenship for not only himself， but his wife and their two children。 He knows all the answers to the historical and political questions; “You can change the world with one smile。 Do you know the difference between a customs officer and a dentist？ There isn’t one。 They both do cavity searches。”Idir Jalil is an Iranian immigrant taking the British Citizenship Test。 Since only one male family member above the ages of sixteen and forty-five needs to pass it， he is single-handedly trying to secure citizenship for not only himself， but his wife and their two children。 He knows all the answers to the historical and political questions; he knows that Saint David is the patron saint of Wales， and that his feast day is the first of March。 He knows that a lot of people carve lanterns out of pumpkins during Halloween。 He knows that King Richard III was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485。 He thinks he’s well prepared， that it’s going to be a great day。 He is wrong。 The Test was a quick， satisfying read。 It’s about one hundred pages and takes about as much time to get through as an episode of Black Mirror （about an hour）。 As other reviewers have pointed out in spades， it very much reads like an episode of Black Mirror， too。 To say more would be to spoil far too much; in a book as brief as The Test， most of the joy of reading is in the discovery。 What I will say is that Neuvel pulls it off brilliantly; you end up really feeling and rooting for Idir， and the whole thing is incredibly thought-provoking。 The rest of this review will mostly be hidden under spoiler tags， as I’ll be discussing some of the major plot points and reveals， so click at your own risk！ （view spoiler）[ One of the best aspects of The Test was the subtle hypocrisy of the BVA employees。 They add or dock a significant number of points for subjects recycling in-simulation， but offhandedly throw non-recyclables into the recycling bin; they eagerly pat themselves on the back and look forward to the ground-breaking results of their decisions as operators， while the subjects inside the simulation beg for death， for release， and suffer irreversible mental traumas。 And then there’s the horrific element: subjects who pass are given citizenship and left forever changed， abandoned to struggle through their associated traumas and newly-formed dissociative disorders， while subjects who fail are essentially lobotomized and deported， left a shell of the person they used to be。 The successful subjects are traumatized and forever changed， while the unsuccessful subjects are cast out and… also forever changed。 And of course there’s the matter of the “ideal citizen”。 What makes a person an ideal British citizen to the BVA is also， at least in Idir’s case， exactly what transforms him into a different， significantly worse person。 But all Deep and the other BVA employees can think about is how fortunate Idir was to pass the test and how ground-breaking the subsequent research on Idir’s simulation and literal death under their supervision is going to be。 They don’t care about its consequences on Idir himself beyond him passing or failing。 Every hopeful immigrant taking the BVA is just a social and psychological experiment to them; the simulation totally dehumanizes them， changing them from an actual person to a mere lab rat。 Much like the current real-world immigration process， ironically。 How does knowledge of British culture， geography， history， and politics adequately judge a person’s capacity to be an exemplary British citizen？ How does knowing which year King Richard III was killed in battle determine a person’s ability to contribute meaningfully to British society？ After all， does the average Britain-born citizen even know which year King Richard III was killed？ （hide spoiler）] The Test is a shockingly provocative experience for such a short novel， and the real-world parallels it makes （and implications it forces you to consider） are both complex and deeply troubling。 If you’ve never thought before about the hoops immigrants have to jump through to be made into legal citizens， what those hoops truly entail， and what the consequences of both success and failure are， then this book will hastily correct that。 And if you have thought about those things before， then this book will challenge you to contemplate it even further。 。。。more
Pedro L。 Fragoso
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Very plausible， actually。 And also， frightening。 It's very difficult for people and societies to be decent and then there is unfortunately the possibility of terrible prices to be paid， namely for conformity。 People who say that this is a Black Mirror episode in novella format are right。 It is， a very good episode， one of the best。 Charlie Brooker should give it serious consideration for adaptation。 Very plausible， actually。 And also， frightening。 It's very difficult for people and societies to be decent and then there is unfortunately the possibility of terrible prices to be paid， namely for conformity。 People who say that this is a Black Mirror episode in novella format are right。 It is， a very good episode， one of the best。 Charlie Brooker should give it serious consideration for adaptation。 。。。more
Sara
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This reminds me of a bit of a BBC program I saw: not the same story but the same atmosphere。 The disconnect， the unreality of being in some unknown place， with stressed-out strangers & cold officials， answering unnecessary questions。Moving citizenship to a psychological experiment rather than a standard test is scary enough but the lack of understanding of the result is even more frightening。 Knowing that studies have shown that the fastest way to create a criminal is to put a juvenile offender This reminds me of a bit of a BBC program I saw: not the same story but the same atmosphere。 The disconnect， the unreality of being in some unknown place， with stressed-out strangers & cold officials， answering unnecessary questions。Moving citizenship to a psychological experiment rather than a standard test is scary enough but the lack of understanding of the result is even more frightening。 Knowing that studies have shown that the fastest way to create a criminal is to put a juvenile offender into an adult criminal population gives the reader an understanding of what is happening here。 I found it overwhelmingly tragic。 。。。more
Tala Baz
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What is this weird book and why do I like it so much
উচ্ছ্বাস তৌসিফ
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মূল বইটা সুন্দর। মনস্তাত্ত্বিক টানাপোড়েনের গল্প। আমি পড়েছি অনুবাদ। ফুয়াদ ভাইয়ের অনুবাদ এখানে ঠিক যেন যুৎসই না， কেমন ছেড়ে দেওয়া একটা ভাব। সম্পাদনাতেও অযত্নের ছাপ। কেন এরকম রয়ে গেছে， জানি না।অভিনব গল্প， টানবে， টানার মতো। দ্য এক্সাম মুভিটার কথা মনে পড়ে গেলেও， মিল নেই কোনো। সিলভে ন্যুভেলের অভিনব লেখক পরিচয়টাও বেশ আকর্ষণ করেছে।ছোট বই， রেকমেন্ডেড।
Hannah
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I think this novella would have worked better as a short story。 I couldn't make myself finish it， which is a bummer because I typically love Neuvel's writing。 I think this novella would have worked better as a short story。 I couldn't make myself finish it， which is a bummer because I typically love Neuvel's writing。 。。。more
❦ Anna Francesca
，
Very few authors could make you feel so much including horrified and emotionally attached in 108 pages， yet here we are。 Of course there’s a twist on this narrative which I expected because it’s Sylvain Neuvel。 Idir seemed to be a character I instantly felt connected to Idir with his thoughts running a mile a minute， trying to do his best to provide for his family。 What horrified me the most was that it felt like it wasn’t out of the realms of possibility。 It tackled some very heavy themes of id Very few authors could make you feel so much including horrified and emotionally attached in 108 pages， yet here we are。 Of course there’s a twist on this narrative which I expected because it’s Sylvain Neuvel。 Idir seemed to be a character I instantly felt connected to Idir with his thoughts running a mile a minute， trying to do his best to provide for his family。 What horrified me the most was that it felt like it wasn’t out of the realms of possibility。 It tackled some very heavy themes of identity， immigration， terror and more in a way that made you feel so uncomfortably connected。 I finished and immediately sighed， trying to gather myself。 。。。more
Cassie
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This was a short， very thought provoking， psychological thriller！！！ It had a lot of ethical dilemmas that I’m currently studying in my MPH which I thought was really neat。 It reminded me of the Trolly problem and the Tuskegee syphilis experiment。 Just a lot of fucked up decisions and situations to make you question your morals 😵💫
Chiya
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it took a turn， then it took another turn and then - what a way to look at the human behavior？？ in a tiny novella。 its short， its fast paced and it will make you think because， like， what the fuck just happened？？？？
Dawn
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Unusual concept worth a read
Rachel
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1。0 Star I really liked this Neuvel's other series The Themis Files， but The Test was a big swing and a miss for me。 Conceptually， I liked the idea of this novella， which follows a man taking a citizenship test in a dystopian UK。 The execution however was。。。not good。 I agreed with the points Neuvel was trying to make but it was so heavy handed and so preachy that I felt almost as if I was being condescending to。 I listened to the audiobook， and the narrator's voices irked me， which only added to 1。0 Star I really liked this Neuvel's other series The Themis Files， but The Test was a big swing and a miss for me。 Conceptually， I liked the idea of this novella， which follows a man taking a citizenship test in a dystopian UK。 The execution however was。。。not good。 I agreed with the points Neuvel was trying to make but it was so heavy handed and so preachy that I felt almost as if I was being condescending to。 I listened to the audiobook， and the narrator's voices irked me， which only added to my overall dislike of this。 Perhaps had I physically read it， I would have given it a higher rating but this is a good example of how a narrator can really change your perception of a book。 。。。more
Elephantom
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Deeply moving， hard to bear。 How to both save and destroy a man in a few hours。
Nothingtoread
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This short novella was quite ok。 It’s light sci-fi and touches upon very socially relevant topics。 Could easily be the script of a Black Mirror episode。 This has been very hyped but， unfortunately， it didn’t impact me as much as I thought it would。
TheIMakeupMaven
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'The Test' is a captivating short #read perfect for the commute。 A thrilling short story that quickly develops into a discourse into the human psyche when placed in an extenuating circumstance。#libraryfinds #librarybooks #booksofinstagram #bookrecommendations #subwayreads #bookreviews #newyorkpubliclibrary #nypl #fiction #reads #shortstory #quickreads 'The Test' is a captivating short #read perfect for the commute。 A thrilling short story that quickly develops into a discourse into the human psyche when placed in an extenuating circumstance。#libraryfinds #librarybooks #booksofinstagram #bookrecommendations #subwayreads #bookreviews #newyorkpubliclibrary #nypl #fiction #reads #shortstory #quickreads 。。。more
Mars Script
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The scariest thing about this book isn't what's happening in the story， the thing that scared me most is how real this felt。 The fact that I could see this happening in real life is the stuff of nightmares。 To think that this test was designed to find the most suitable candidates for citizenship by evaluating how they treat other people yet the test itself is the most vile and racist thing I've had to stomach in a while is truly disgusting。 I want anyone to read this so that we can talk about it The scariest thing about this book isn't what's happening in the story， the thing that scared me most is how real this felt。 The fact that I could see this happening in real life is the stuff of nightmares。 To think that this test was designed to find the most suitable candidates for citizenship by evaluating how they treat other people yet the test itself is the most vile and racist thing I've had to stomach in a while is truly disgusting。 I want anyone to read this so that we can talk about it， please 。。。more
James Seamone
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This was quite intense。 I felt like I was there with the main character and felt what he felt。 It is amazing what people go through and how it changes them。
Jane
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Interesting。 It really does remind me of a Black Mirror episode， like many others said as well。 Nice， short read for in-between。
Anne
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This is definitely a What The Actual F*ck Book for me。 In the near future Britain has developed a test to see who’ll get citizenship。 Let’s just say it doesn’t consist of historical and cultural questions alone。 This book is a rollercoaster read which makes you think about your own thoughts on humanity。 It is scary to me， but I could imagine something like this actually existing in a few decades…。
Josiah
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Very interesting and critical look at the idea of citizenship tests。 Near-future sci-fi simulations and their lasting consequences on the participants。
Anna Polowczyk
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3。75
Francesc Cortès
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4，2/5Igual de curt que d'intens， el doble de bo。 Planteja tantes qüestions （i ho fa molt bé） sobre la immigració， i no només des del punt de vista del que arriba sinó també des del que li arriben。Potser el final no l'esperava així， m'ha deixat amb ganes de més。 I amb un regust amarg: com a societat， serem mai capaços de veure a l'estranger com un igual？ 4，2/5Igual de curt que d'intens， el doble de bo。 Planteja tantes qüestions （i ho fa molt bé） sobre la immigració， i no només des del punt de vista del que arriba sinó també des del que li arriben。Potser el final no l'esperava així， m'ha deixat amb ganes de més。 I amb un regust amarg: com a societat， serem mai capaços de veure a l'estranger com un igual？ 。。。more
Jen
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I listened to this novella on audio and was captivated by the story。 Set in a future dystopian UK， the narrator of the story is an immigrant from Iran taking a UK citizenship test when an act of terror puts him in an impossible situation。 The Test is the 5th book I've read by Sylvain Neuvel， and he's quickly becoming one of those writers on my short list of "Read Everything These Authors Publish。" I listened to this novella on audio and was captivated by the story。 Set in a future dystopian UK， the narrator of the story is an immigrant from Iran taking a UK citizenship test when an act of terror puts him in an impossible situation。 The Test is the 5th book I've read by Sylvain Neuvel， and he's quickly becoming one of those writers on my short list of "Read Everything These Authors Publish。" 。。。more
Caroline
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Found this amazing！ Full of twists and turns and really enjoyed it！
melodiaprozy
，
2，75/5Ciekawe， całkiem niespodziewane， ale nie zrobiło na mnie ogromnego wrażenia。
Bronwen
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Ho boy！ Cracker of a short story， very Black Mirror-esque。 For a moment near the end I though it was going to go another level down and it would turn out that Deep was in his own simulation but I was wrong。 ;）
Steve
，
what the fuck
Patrick Crooks
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Strange little book。 Listened via Audible。
Amélie
，
Le type de nouvelle à lire d’une traite， sans s’arrêter。 Un joli petit bijou qui nous fait réfléchir sur nos propres jugements。 Une petite chose m’a néanmoins dérangée （et comme mon cerveau a des tendances obsessionnelles， je n’ai pas arrêté d’y penser jusqu’à la fin de ma lecture） :"Idir m’a dit que c’était injuste。" p。 13Notre narrateur s’appelle Idir。 Il est en train de nous raconter l’opinion de sa femme Tidir sur la restriction du passage de ce test uniquement aux hommes。 Sauf que la phrase Le type de nouvelle à lire d’une traite， sans s’arrêter。 Un joli petit bijou qui nous fait réfléchir sur nos propres jugements。 Une petite chose m’a néanmoins dérangée （et comme mon cerveau a des tendances obsessionnelles， je n’ai pas arrêté d’y penser jusqu’à la fin de ma lecture） :"Idir m’a dit que c’était injuste。" p。 13Notre narrateur s’appelle Idir。 Il est en train de nous raconter l’opinion de sa femme Tidir sur la restriction du passage de ce test uniquement aux hommes。 Sauf que la phrase dit bien Idir… notre narrateur parle-t-il donc à la troisième personne ？ Serait-ce une faute de frappe dans la traduction， voire même l’original ？ Ou est-ce qu’il faut que je retourne au CP pour revoir la compréhension du français ？Dans tous les cas， c’est une jolie petite découverte qui fera le tour des lecteurs de ma famille。 。。。more
DominikaC
，
Zaskakująca i przerażająca
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Test
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Test&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Test&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0