"Oryx and Crake" (book review)

...by Margaret Atwood.

So, once I'd read The Year of the Flood, imagine my joyful surprise when I found this treasure lurking in the library.
The narrative is much more conventional in structure than TYotF, and focuses on the character of Jimmy, who, post-meltdown, has become "Snowman".
The story of how the meltdown occurred is narrated in more detail here than in TYotF, and the element of surprise/realisation is weaker once one has read the companion novel.
I found the journey through Jimmy's nightmare world an "enjoyable" and gripping one, all the same.
Having read both books, I had a sense of having been given a stereo, or even 3D, account of the world of Oryx and Crake (by the way, Oryx and Crake are the 2 other central characters in the story).
There is the usual wit, incisiveness, and morality, shot through with detached irony so as not to become cloying (as it would in "lesser hands").
The basic question being asked through both books I suppose is whether mankind should play God, and if what happens when we do?
(Reminds me of a lesson plan/report I read once in the UK: "With 7R today we played Chopin - Chopin won".)
I found myself wanting a bit more detail on the character of Oryx.
And in spite of the dire situation humanity finds itself in within the pages of this book, there are many instances of LoL humour.
I wonder what Atwood will write next?
My next reading will be Lady Oracle - slightly different in scenario and tone, I think.

9/10.