The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

First of all let me start with how I came across this book and the rest of Margaret Atwood's novels. It was during the final year of my degree and my tutor suggested that I read "The Handmaids Tale". After reading that, I went on to read many others of hers as such as the Blind Assassin, Alias Grace, The Edible Woman and The Penelopiad. I enjoyed her books so much that I decided to write my whole dissertation on two of her books, The Handmaids Tale and The Robber Bride. Margaret Atwood is a Canadian writer who has written a huge amount of work ranging from novels, to short fiction to poetry to children's books. She is known for her feminist views which do ...  Read the complete review

"There's a lot that doesn't bear thinking about. Thinking can hurt your chances, and I intend to last." The Handmaid's Tale was written by Margaret Attwood and has been described as a cross between The Scarlet Letter and George Orwell's 1984. This book is one of my favourites and every time I read it I pick up some new layer to it that I hadn't noticed or considered before. It falls under the category of dystopian literature and it is a fascinating insight into a vision of the future and the corruption that occurs with every society no matter how pure it makes out to be. It is the story of a society gone horribly wrong, repressing its female citizens ...  Read the complete review

Written in 1985 by Margaret Atwood, a Canadian author and poet also famous for being a feminist and political activist, The Handmaid's Tale is a chilling view of a dystopian future, that whilst being purely science fiction is scarily not beyond the realms of possibility. Atwood has received much acclaim for her work - in 1966 and 1985 she won the Governor General's Award for English language fiction, in 1987 she won the Arthur C. Clarke Award for The Handmaid's Tale and she won the Booker Prize in 2000. The History __________ Before the Handmaid's Tale can be told it is necessary to understand the dynamics of this new dystopian ...  Read the complete review

I HATED this book when I first picked it up. I studied The Handmaid's Tale for A-Level English and found the way it was put across in class was uninspiring, pulled apart to the point where there was nothing left to the story. To be honest I found it a very boring book with nothing interesting going on. Years later I picked the book back up again. Not sure why but I am so glad I did. Taking it away from the classroom autopsy changed my perception of it completely! The plot centres around one character, Offred (possible real name June although you never find out). The story is her interpretation of everything that is going on, people's emotions and ...  Read the complete review

I don't know how much this book costs in the store as I received it free for my A-level however I have read the book twice now so therefore know quiet a lot about it. The book itself I did not particularly enjoy, however it would be perfect for females into a scfi read. The story is set in the Republic of Gilead in the future and is based on the story of Offred a handmaid in the story. Offred is a handmaid as few women can now have children and it is her job to have children for richer families known as the Commander and the Commanders Wife. However Offred remembers to much from pre Gilead. The point of the story is how her life was and what it ...  Read the complete review