Now a Hulu Original SeriesThe Handmaid’s Tale is a novel of such power that the reader will be unable to forget its images and its forecast. Set in the near future, it describes life in what was once the United States and is now called the Republic of Gilead, a monotheocracy that has reacted to social unrest and a sharply declining birthrate by reverting to, and going beyond, the repressive … beyond, the repressive intolerance of the original Puritans. The regime takes the Book of Genesis absolutely at its word, with bizarre consequences for the women and men in its population.
The story is told through the eyes of Offred, one of the unfortunate Handmaids under the new social order. In condensed but eloquent prose, by turns cool-eyed, tender, despairing, passionate, and wry, she reveals to us the dark corners behind the establishment’s calm facade, as certain tendencies now in existence are carried to their logical conclusions. The Handmaid’s Tale is funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing. It is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and a tour de force. It is Margaret Atwood at her best.
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I’m embarrassed to admit that this was my first time reading The Handmaid’s Tale, but I already can’t wait to read it again.
I love dystopian worlds, and the one Atwood created here was just believable enough that it actually gave me nightmares. It’s clear she did her research on how fascist governments gain and retain control, like creating a …
Few books have made such an incredible impact on my life. As I would expect the story was well written and I couldn’t put the book down. I read it in one sitting and at 1:30am I called my best friend. I had to talk to someone, another woman. I was upset, frightened, amazed. I needed to talk, but didn’t want to give the story away. She promised to …
If you haven’t read this book yet, you need to immediately. I can’t believe it took me this long to pick it up, and yet, there seems no time more appropriate to read it than right now. Even without the context of our current political climate, The Handmaid’s Tale is a deeply disturbing and very difficult read. It articulated for me so many of the …
I started watching the first episode of Hulu’s adaptation of The Handmaid’s tale on Saturday, and was so disturbed and enthralled that I paused it to read the book immediately. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. I can’t help but draw parallels between Offred’s flashbacks and what’s happening now in our government. “Can they …
Chilling is the way to describe this book from years ago that begs rereading. Now timely for a new generation of women to read. About a futuristic USA where women are given a “role”.
Wish I had hulu to watch, but it would probably keep me up nights. After I watch Tv news nowadays, it resonates with my reading this book when I was a young …
My favorite book. Set in a near-future North America, in a totalitarian Christian theocracy which has overthrown the United States government, The Handmaid’s Tale explores themes of women in subjugation and the various means by which they gain agency.
Powerful to the very end….
Tension courses through this book and drew me in. Anxiety, ritual, fear, hierarchy, death… This book is a tableau of power and the lack of it in a post-apocalyptic setting. The story is unsettlingly both because of how tenuous the protagonist’s position is in this new harsh society but also because so many of the …
This book is an incredible read. Definitely a solid page turner. This entire book I was captivated and it had my full attention. This story is original and fascinating. It did take my awhile to get used to the writing style, but once I did I was completely won over. 5/5 star.
Generally, I avoid dystopian and post-apocalyptic books, but The Handmaid’s Tale drew me in from the first page. In many ways it reminds me of A Canticle for Leibovitz and Stranger in a Stange Land.
The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood, is a masterclass in worldbuilding.
Most authors would have detailed the story’s premise—or at least painted the broad strokes—within the first few pages, or even the first paragraphs: that in the late 20th century, after disease and pollution rendered many women infertile, Christian extremists overthrew …
It had been several years since I had read The Handmaid’s Tale. With the series coming soon on Hulu, I jumped at the chance to revisit the world that Margaret Atwood has invented – so close to our own in time, but (hopefully) so different in substance.
In the near future, a complete shift to religious fundamentalism has happened across America – …
Great take on the dystopic future. The characterization is deep, the plot compelling and deeply twisted. Atwood’s Gilead is what waits a the bottom of the slippery slope.
I’ve been meaning to re-read The Handmaid’s Tale before the upcoming Hulu adaptation! Margaret Atwood is brilliant—the attention to detail in her world-building makes the dystopian futures she crafts feel eerily realistic. I highly recommend this book for any fan of speculative fiction, and any literary fiction readers who want to dip their toes …
I loved this book. After reading other Buzz recommendations, I was expecting a timely classic, but maybe one that was a little preachy. It was certainly the former, but not at all the later. It was also something I didn’t expect: A captivating story.
My favorite part of the book was the last bit, the historical note. I thought this was a fun …
Read this book immediately.
Throughout the reading of this book, I was constantly telling whoever would listen about how good it was, but couldn’t relay too many details because I wanted them to it for themselves.
A dystopian masterpiece, its origins are startlingly close to our reality. The format is original and the end is unexpected. Any …
It was an interesting look at how society can go awry, and women can be subjected. I think this book should be read by all
Between watching the last available episode of June’s story and opening –with the utmost care, as the author urges me to do on the cover – The Testaments to read what happens next, I reread The Handmaid’s Tale.
The TV series is based on the book. In its own right the series is powerful, uncompromising, thought-provoking. It is also full of …
Just reread it in one sitting.
Chilling.
The writing is superb. But the story is the key.
It’s amazing it was written a while ago but is right on track with what we are experiencing now.
Americans who have never lived overseas are terribly naive about how stable their country is. Those of us who have deployed to countries that fell apart, know …
Written in the 1990’s, a prescient story about a dystopian world where men take over the rule of women’s lives. In today’s social environment, it has become more important to read than ever.
Intense, scary and haunting, especially in today’s times. This isn’t a light beach read, but well worth the time.