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Summary: An Intriguing look into a Futuristic society
Review: This book was on my A.P. English summer reading list. I had just come to the conclusion that my English teacher hated me when I started to read this book. As it turned out this book was really wonderful. What I liked most about the book was the way the author never really told you anything that happens. If this style of writing would annoy you do not read this book. The book is set in a futuristic society where men control everything and women are just tools. The way the author writes makes this bizarre society seem belivable. The author also uses irony by including events that have already happened in our past history. Overall I would highly recommend this book to any reader who is interested in exploring different points of view.
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Summary: Loved it - couldn't put it down - it could happen
Review: I found the book to be quite similar to Brave New World. I loved it - took it on vacation and couldn't put it down. It's the best assigned summer reading book Sprayberry High School (Marietta, GA) has ever given. In today's society - anything is possible. Women can be stripped of their rights and used for nothing but reproductive purposes. Atwood uses a parody of the Playboy Bunny combined with a cheesy nightclub to show how objective women are to men. An excellent book.
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Summary: Suprised it was science fiction. Read this book.
Review: Admittedly, I came across this book whilst studying for my English A-level. Nevertheless, I liked it, and found it a refershing contrast to the heavy language of Thomas Hardy. I was suprised to find this book listed as science fiction, as it is usually a genre I despise. Atwood presents the reader with a frigteningly plausible prophecy, in which a current view of todays society is taken to an extreme. If you've never read any of Atwood's books this is a good one to start on. It worked for me.
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Summary: Disturbingly realistic and incredibly fascinating!!
Review: When I first picked up this book in grade eleven, I hated it. I thought it had a slow start, and that it was very unrealistic. I couldn't wait to put it down. However, as I got deeper into the plot of A Handmaid's Tale , I couldn't stop reading it. I grew attached to the main character Offred, and I was so disturbed by the conditions she lived under, even though it could really happen. It was so sad that she was taken away from her family to be a carrier of a man's child whose wife could not bear children. She accepted that. It was devastating that the things we take for granted now, brought her happiness, such as magazines, body lotion and even a simple board game. Throughout the book I wondered many times if this sort of dystopia could actually happen. Would women be oppressed, would they be under man's power again? Could society advance and yet revert back centuries? It is very possible. I thought Margaret Atwood did a wonderful job at portraying the city of Gilead, and even though I did not read the Historical Notes which could have given me a better understanding of The Handmaid's Tale, I thought it was exceptionally well written and a must read.
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Summary: Wow.
Review: This book is no less than terrifying, and although there are definite elements of science fiction and the impossible, this novel seems frighteningly realistic, something that scares me to the very core. I am not a fan of science fiction, and being a lover of all things Atwood, I can't say this is my favourite of her novels, although they are difficult to contrast. The 'ending', is perhaps the most enigmatic conclusion to a novel I have ever encounted, and quite a bizarre method. However, call me old fashioned, but I find nothing more annoying then reading a novel, but not knowing what happened in the end. For this reason, and my dislike for such a method, I cannot give it a full 5 stars. It was a fabulous storyline, and worth the read, if just for the shock factor.
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Summary: Amazingly realistic and almost frightening...
Review: I read this in senior english and when we were done, we discussed it. It is absolutely amazing at how real it seems. This is something that could possibly happen. I remember that it has been a book that will never leave the mind of those who read it.
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Summary: Undoubtedly my favourite book of all time
Review: 'The Handmaid's Tale' is both a carefully contructed dystopia and also an exemplary example of (almost) post-modernist literature. The much critisied 'time - jumps' of the narrative make the story seem more real, as though these are truly the thoughts of a fallible, human character, and not some omniscient, distant author/narrator. While there have been criticisms of the portrayal of the various male characters and the ambiguity of the ending, I believe that both these aspects are important to the book. The 'conclusion'- allows us to draw our own conclusions,to write our own endings, depending on our mood. The rather negative portrayal of most of the characters reflects the negative aspects of the work, such as the brutality of the regime and its people, the 'weakness' and capitulation of Janine and the rather foolhardy defiance (admired, certainly, but hardly conductive to survival) of Moira, and also Offred's procrastination. While I first read the book when I was about 15 (and took it literally - so I had nightmares for a week), it's probably better to wait a couple of years (I'm 17 now), before one can be more aware of the use of metaphor and symbolism of the work,the poetic quality, and the exaggeration (at least I hope its so) of Gilead so we can examine the world more critically. I would recommend this book to (almost) everyone, but I doubt it is meant as an 'easy' summer read, or to be taken at face value.
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Summary: Undoubtedly my favourite book of all time
Review: 'The Handmaid's Tale' is both a carefully contructed dystopia and also an exemplary example of (almost) post-modernist literature. The 'time - jumps' of the narrative make the story seem more real, as though these are truly the thoughts of a fallible, human character, and not some omniscient, distant author/narrator. While there have been criticisms of the portrayal of the various male characters (I think that one that I haven't yet classified as a 'sleazy bastard' is the guy that gets ripped to shreads) and the ambiguity of the ending, I believe that both these aspects are important to the book. The 'conclusion'- where Offred steps into the van, allows us to draw our own conclusions, whether the escaped or was captured, whether she is carrying Nick's child, or whether she encounters any of the other characters again. The rather negative portrayal of most of the characters reflects the negative aspects of the work, such as the brutality of the regime and its people, the 'weakness' and capitulation of Janine and the rather foolhardy defiance (admired, certainly, but hardly conductive to survival) of Moira, and also Offred's procrastination. While I first read the book when I was about 15 (and took it literally - so I had nightmares for a week), it's probably better to wait a couple of years (I'm 17 now), before one can be more aware of the use of metaphor and symbolism of the work,the poetic quality, and the exaggeration (at least I hope its so) of Gilead so we can examine the world more critically. I would recommend this book to (almost) everyone, but I doubt it is meant as an 'easy' summer read, or to be taken at face value.
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Summary: This book is horrible...
Review: Those of you who like Atwood will enjoy this book,... I guess... it's very futuristic and deals with some scary subjects, but flat out, it's boring...if you have to read it, I suggest Cliff Notes!
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