In this multi-award-winning, bestselling novel, Margaret Atwood has created a stunning Orwellian vision of the near future. This is the story of Offred, one of the unfortunate "Handmaids" under the new social order who have only one purpose: to breed. In Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, and forming friendships, Offred's persistent memories of life in the "time before" and her will to survive are acts of rebellion. Provocative, startling, prophetic, and with Margaret Atwood's devastating irony, ...
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In this multi-award-winning, bestselling novel, Margaret Atwood has created a stunning Orwellian vision of the near future. This is the story of Offred, one of the unfortunate "Handmaids" under the new social order who have only one purpose: to breed. In Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, and forming friendships, Offred's persistent memories of life in the "time before" and her will to survive are acts of rebellion. Provocative, startling, prophetic, and with Margaret Atwood's devastating irony, wit, and acute perceptive powers in full force, "The Handmaid's Tale" is at once a mordant satire and a dire warning.
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Add this copy of The Handmaid's Tale to cart. $56.62, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1999 by Emblem Editions.
Add this copy of The Handmaid's Tale to cart. $112.82, new condition, Sold by GridFreed rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from North Las Vegas, NV, UNITED STATES, published 1999 by McClelland & Stewart.
This book has received a lot of favorable reviews as portraying a woman's plight in a dystopic society, revealed in a diary. Unfortunately, the approach is one of narrating a story with too many characters to follow, very little dialogue, often interspersed with many confusing flashbacks that make it very hard to follow. The causation for the environment setting isn't revealed until more than half way through the book, which might have helped if it had been done a lot earlier. The writing was excellent but the story and ending don't class it as a best seller for me.
Curmudgeon
Oct 21, 2014
Tritely (science) fictional
Implausible situation even considering the time when written. That the "heroine" would be so brain washed that she forgot her adulthood (past life) in a relatively short time frame, estimated at ca. a decade, rings with contriteness. Story seems redundantly arcane, infused with historical references to previous societies sprinkled throughout.
photoshock
Jul 13, 2014
A Prescient Tale
Like so many of the famous tales of the future, The Handmaids Tale is a prescient look into a dystopian future where, in America, the religionists rule by fiat. None can stand against their rules for in this tale, the Bible has become the law and anyone who breaks the law has also sinned against the ruling party's dictates.
The fact is that The Handmaids Tale is one engrossing and revelatory story. I heartily recommend this story to all who have read, Animal Farm, Brave New World, 1984 and so many others of this genre.
Carol B
Sep 3, 2010
Not original but well done.
Not as good as "1984," but still good enough. Would have been better had the final disc not been so damaged that I missed the (predictable) ending.
carriej
Aug 25, 2009
Tough - but Worth It
This was the first book I read after joining a book club. It was WAY outside of my comfy box of Dan Brown & Harry Potter. This book really made me THINK for a change. I thought about concepts that I had never imagined possible before!! Scary - life changing concepts about how easily it would be for my money and freedom to be taken away. It's been 3 years since I read this book - and I STILL think about the ideas I was introduced to regularly. Excellent read. Great for broadening ideas about life. Great for book club discussions.