The Handmaid's Tale

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View books by Margaret Atwood.

Love this book! - Rated
I read this novel for the first time last week and I loved it!! I couldn't put it down!!

Disturbing and thought provoking. - Rated
Having read `1984' and `Brave New World', I was convinced Margaret Atwood's tale of dystopia in 21st century America would do little to add to the stark pictures already painted so vividly by Huxley and Orwell. However to witness, which is what the reader is able to do thanks to her wonderfully descriptive prose, this world through the eyes of a female creates an entirely new perspective on a time when life is produced for its functionality alone. Atwood constructs a society where women are at the crux of all activity yet it is still governed by men - it is hard to say which gender takes precedence and who has more control. This is a harrowing tale where the disposability of women continually shocked me as well as the brutality of those in power. I can't give this book five stars however, despite the fact that I enjoyed it immensely, due to the ending which left me slightly disappointed; while it is clearly thought provoking, I felt slightly betrayed having come so far with one character. Still, a book well worth reading.

Almost fabulous - Rated
God that was depressing! The author does a good job of bringing her character to life and describing the bizarre circumstances, it's just a shame that the end is so rushed and that it's not really finished.

What is all the fuss about? - Rated
I really don't understand why so many people gave this book five stars- in my opinion a five star book is 100% perfect, good story and good writing- this is not one of those books. I had to read this for A level literature and despite being an avid reader I really did feel this was a struggle.
I can admit that the story, the concept, is a good idea. The themes are interesting, so how did it turn out to be such a boring read? Probably because of the writing, its awful and boring, it drags and I just could be bothered to read it, so much so that I skipped and skim read large parts despite having an exam on it.
In conclusion, good idea, rubbish to read.

I don't get it........... - Rated
The Handmaid's Tale.

I don't get it. I'm sure it must be one of the greats because everyone seems to rave about it......but it just does nothing for me. I feel for Offred because of the situation she finds herself in and it's harsh, but it wasn't enough to make me want to keep turning pages to see if she'd be ok.

Hmmmmmm. I feel like I'm missing out on some secret or something. I wanted to love it :(