Rating: 
Summary: PATHETIC
Review: I don't know where Atwood got her ideas for these characters but she wasted her gift for words on them in this book.Unlike the reviewer from Mahwah, NJ I didn't see the two sisters as victims. They mostly chose not to do or learn a dang thing. They couldn't feed themselves if they had to! They were pathetic. They had no friends nor cared to have any. They were never sent to any school and what tutors they had, they abused so as to get rid of them. Iris in particular had absolutely no aspirations, inclinations, or curiosity whatsoever. At least Laura got out to church and did charity work etc. So they stayed at home virtually all their lives, doing nothing until Iris at age 19 was married off to the much older flamboyant wealthy industrialist Richard Griffin, which is totally unbelievable cuz what man, especially one like Richard, is going to want an ignorant, inexperienced, braindead girl like Iris? There wasn't a spark of life in her....not even a ember. Dull, duller, dullest. She rarely spoke. Which brings you to the
next preposterous notion that this very same Iris has written this memoir. I bet Iris, by her own admission, could barely write her own name let alone spell or construct a sentence. The whole story is out to lunch. The actual 'The Blind Assassin' written by Laura the younger sister, and interspersed through out the book, I skipped. I didn't see the point in reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: A good read that requires patience
Review: Here's my humble take on the book - "Clear moments of literary genius overshadowed by excessive digression." If you have unlimited time, enjoy this slow read. If you're a busy mom, pass this and pick up a quicker read, as I'm not sure the end justified the means.
Rating: 
Summary: By Far, Atwood's Best
Review: And that's saying a lot, after reading Cat's Eye and Alias Grace, both of which are amazing. I literally could not put this book down. As in all her books, Atwood's prose here is more like poetry. The rhythms of her books always make me ache a little, in nostalgia, in sadness...something, and with this book, she achieves new heights with both story and stylistics. This has become one of my favorite reads. Atwood is not a writer, she is an artist. I found her a couple of years ago, after a long drought of inspid and mediocre authors. I have no idea how people like Judith Krantz and Whatz Her Name Steele or whoever else appears on Oprah's suicide list (yes suicide, anything associated with that load of cr*ck named Dr Phil loses all credibility in my book) can survive and become "best sellers" when the literary world is perfectly capable of producing such consistent stellar performers like Atwood.
Rating:
Summary: A pleasurable read on a deserted island
Review: Here's my assessment: Moments of genius overshadowed by excessive digression. This book takes a lot of patience to read, and I'm not sure my efforts were justified by reaching the end. There are true inspirational literary gems sprinkled throughout the novel, but you have to wade slowly forward through a lot of unnecessary desription to discover them. A good read for a slow vacation, a dubious choice for a busy mom.
Rating:
Summary: Chase family chronicle
Review: Blind Assassin: Margaret Atwood's masterpiece epic, Blind Assassin, a Chase family saga, spanning four generations, recited by aging protagonist Iris, is reminiscent of Ms. Arundhati Roy's brilliant book "God of small things". The characters go back and forth, as the story is being narrated by Iris, few names which appear early on are revealed only in the end as the jigsaw puzzle is finally assembled. Her sister, Laura, is the haunting character which reverberates throughout the book whose fate is revealed at the outset. It is hard in the end weather to feel sorry for Iris or hold her in contempt for her feckless behavior when Laura is packed off to an insane asylum by her manipulative husband and sister-in law. Both Iris and Laura are in love with the renegade, revolutionary, Thomas, who was implicated in burning down the family owned button factory, as part of a communist plot. The sisters conspire to protect him and hide him in their own attic, where he manages to seduce Iris. He leaves their home and then we find him as her discrete lover later on as Iris's story unfolds. When Iris tells her sister of her affair with Frank Thomas, then Laura stels her car and takes the fatal plunge off the bridge.It is hard to imagine Iris and her lover during her numerous rendezvous not once talking of Laura, an integral part of their lives! In her unique style with a brilliant twist, Ms. Atwood, conveys the vital theme of her story through a book also called "Blind Assassin". One has to read the book to determine the real author. It is interesting to read a novel set in Canada, so near and yet often forgotten land.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting and Fun
Review: I liked this book a lot, however, I didn't love it. The premise of the book was great, and I really enjoyed the "novel within a novel" writting. My biggest complaint is that it reminded me of those movies where there's no way to really say that the obscure guy did it, but you feel that way, and so just kinda ruins the end when the guy actually DID do it. My other complaint has absolutely nothing to do with the book--it has to do with the cover artwork. If the person it's supposed to represent is blond, why draw a brunette? But then, I had the same problem with the Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys books.
Rating:
Summary: Do not remain blind to this experience...
Review: Another master of words, John Updike, has said that "Atwood is a poet" in his review of this book. Truly, this book cannot be classified as fiction. In this book, Ms.Atwood chooses to reveal little. It all takes place under the words, in innuedo form sometimes. Initially, the reader has trouble understanding where the book is going. It is obvious that it is a beautifully written book but what is it that it reveals? Starting with the form of a family saga, this book evolves and there are many surprises hidden until the very last page. In my opinion (for this book can be read in multiple levels) this is a story about love in all its forms: parental, religious, between siblings, erotic. It is also a book about loneliness and desire for what you cannot have. It is a story of maturation and coming to a new level of understanding life. It is an exploration of human nature, combined with irresistible storytelling ability.
The book has two parts: One, in which Iris Chase Griffen the only surviving member of the Chase family reflects on her life with her sister Laura, before the latter tragically commited suicide and the events that led to it. The other is Laura's novel "The Blind Assassin" which we read in breaks from Iris's narration. This second part also includes newspaper and magazine clippings that help us understand the events of the time period that mattered to the characters (made up by the author) and(as part of the novel) certain short science-fiction stories, some of which (Peach Women of A'a) give the reader a better view of the book's messages. (though I believe some others could have been omitted). The characters are real and extremely complicated, it is up to the reader to interpret what they say and do. "The Blind Assassin" is a book that slowly reaches a stunning climax and the clarity and catharsis the reader is offered at the end of the journey are a true gift.
Rating:
Summary: Atwood is Amazing as always
Review: I read constantly, so few books really stand out in my mind. This is an exception. This is one of the greatest books I've ever read. The plot is complex and interesting, the characters seem real, and Atwood is a master at intertwining the different narratives.
One word of caution: You will want to read it at least twice. The first reading will amaze you with Atwoods abilities as an author, but you'll need the second reading to truly understand the novel... maybe even a 3rd or 4th.
Rating:
Summary: Possibly the most deserving Booker winner of all time!
Review: Brilliant, is all I can say of this. I do not much read literary fiction - I find that to appreciate it fully you need to invest a lot of time and effort while reading it, and I often don't have that time. Occasionally, though, a book will sound so good (eg. Jeffrey Eugenides' work, much of Ian McEwan's work) that I simply have to try it. This is one such book, a marvellous panoramic work of history and experience. It is a long book, very long, and I was afeared that it might drag on, but not so! It remained fresh and interesting all of the way through, and i suspect that this is due mainly to the fact that we are reading, actually, two texts, both integrated into the book: The story of the life of Iris Chase, ailing nonogenarian whose sister drove her car off a bridge just after the war, and then also a novel written by that sister, Laura, which is part romance, part brilliantly imagined sci-fi story. I don't like sci-fi normally, but the stunningly vivid and imaginitive story interspersed through the text was an absolutely joy to read. It makes this whole novel shine. Some readers may believe that the structure of this book is a little complicated, confusing possibly, but it is not at all. Do not be put off! It is told beautifully and clearly, the structure is not complex at all really, although it may seem as if it should be, as we after all reading stories within stories. This was my first book by Margaret Atwood, and it won't be my last. She has a way with words that is quite marvellous, a way of tuning a phrase that is as perfect as a chord played on a harp in a huge auditorium. (sorry, that's a rather obscure, silly similie, but it strikes so true to me). She also creates character perfectly; Iris, in particular, is a wonderfully realised being. An elderly woman wanting to set down some meaningful record of her life, some confmiration of her existence. A marvellous book, this is. A book about the nature of writing, and what it means to do so, a book about life, all our lives, what they mean and they add up to in the end, a book about secrets and youth and age and love. it should be read by all.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly written
Review: One of the best books I've ever read...and I've read quite a few. Genius. Those who criticize the book for its hard-to-follow storyline aren't up to the task.
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