Member Reviews

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  5 of 5 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 4 stars

  “A haunting story that is going to stick with me much longer than the sparse narative would seem to initially warrant. This book was probably first witten as a rebuke toward some of the more conservative Christian reaction to the abortion debate in the mid-1980s. Now it has very scary implications to the anti-terrorism panic of modern US society. To me the story shows the consequences of our indifference to the loss of civil rights in the name of security. The creation of a political therocracy in the name of safety to the 'homeland' is much more terrifying, and in this story is frightenly real. Having lived through both the '80s as a teen may give me a better appreication for the change in the message but the leasons for today's world makes me strongly recommend this book.[br/][br/]One note: The book is written from the perspective of a female 'handmaden', and so may be difficult for male readers like myself to fully appreciate, but patience was greatly rewarded in the end as I found myself relating to the main character. Overall grade: B+”

  Keneti wrote this review Sunday, December 9 2007. ( reply | permalink )
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  3 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 4 stars

  “The Handmaid's Tale was an extremely interesting book about how society can change in the blink of an eye. Offred was once a working woman, married with a daughter, and her best friend and mom stopped by often. After the coup, she is now a handmaid and her sole purpose in life is to bear children for the Commander and his wife. Unfortunately, women no longer easily get pregnant and those that do seldom give birth to healthy children.
  
  I found it very interesting that one of the reasons continuously presented for the removal of women's rights was to protect the women from the same rights they fought so hard to win in the first place (if that makes sense)! I wish the novel would have been set a little farther in the future because it was hard for me to picture in present day times although situations very similar to this are present in some parts of the world.
  
  Overall, a great book that makes you think about society and what is best for it! Drop me a note if you have read this and would like to discuss it further...there is definitely LOTS to talk about!
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  Nicole R wrote this review Monday, July 14 2008. ( reply | permalink )
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  3 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 0 stars

  “Although this has got to be the most disturbing book I've ever read, it's also brilliantly written, extremely moving, and can serve as a powerful warning against extremism in our country.
  
  I think the hardest part is accepting the premise of the plot - the USA has been transformed into a society where religion is used to brainwash, and women are forced into rigid roles that they must follow to survive. At the heart of the story is Offred, a Handmaiden whose sole purpose in life is to produce a child for her Commander and his Wife. This very idea (along with the rest of the social hierarchy of the book) is more than shocking, but I think that once we as the readers accept that this is the setting of the story, it's easier to focus on the more familiar elements.
  
  For one, this book is full of amazingly well-developed characters. What is most heart-breaking about Offred is that she can remember a time when she had a husband and a daughter, when she was allowed to wear pants, and, most importantly, to read. Yet none of the characters in this book is fully good or evil. The Commander's subversive interactions with Offred portray him in a more sympathetic light, and even Serena Joy has her moments of kindness.
  
  I think that this is one of Atwood's strengths - she shows us real people trapped in bizarre situations, and that is where the power of her novel lies. She shows us that this COULD really happen in the future. That's why I'm glad that some of the English teachers at my school (not mine, sadly) are teaching this book - disturbing as it is to anyone (and especially immature high schoolers), it certainly gets across some important points about gender roles and intolerance. I think that everyone (of a certain age, granted) should be required to read this book, so that none of these scenarios will ever come true.”

  Tara O wrote this review Thursday, April 10 2008. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 2 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 5 stars

  “I loved it. Well, most of it. It was slow goings when I started the book because the author skips around to flashbacks a lot, and you start in the middle of the plot. Also, she has a very poetic style of writing. Lots of short metaphorical sentences and descriptions. But before long, I was HOOKED. I ended up absolutely loving her style of writing. It was very detailed and random, similar to the way a person's train of thought might work in that situation. It's really a fascinating book, and I loved the ending of the book.
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  Derf d.l. Vina wrote this review Thursday, September 13 2007. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 4 stars

  “WOW! This is a really different book, and very good. Kind of Ray Bradbury-ish. Creepy. I read this with a tenth grader. The cover makes you think it's set in the middle ages, but it is set in modern times. Religious and sexual themes, but a really, really thought provoking book. All adults should read it, and it is appropriate for mature high schoolers.”

  Jennifer S wrote this review Thursday, July 3 2008. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 4 stars

  “She originally slept in what was once a gymnasium. They had army issued blankets and some still had U.S. on them. Immediately you know it is in America , but no longer America . Offred is a handmaid in the Republic of Gilead . In this place women are not allowed to read. Handmaids are there for a purpose and one purpose only to get pregnant. A dystopian novel written in the 80’s that at times events in the book reminded me of today. The first 50 pages or so were confusing because the story starts right away not giving away information about how Offred came to be where she is. This comes out slowly through the book in flashbacks. I think this is a book I need to read again to make sure I get everything out of it.
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  i.should.b.reading wrote this review Thursday, July 3 2008. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 4 stars

  “Rating: 4.5
  
  The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is a novel of dystopia set in the near future. In the tale, women are now commodities. They are not allowed to read or gain knowledge in any way. They are not allowed to make conversation with each other. Sex is for reproduction only, not pleasure. They have a job to do and if you happen to be a Handmaid, like the protagonist in this novel, then your job is to get pregnant by the Commander under whose roof you live. Our protagonist lives under a man named Fred so her name is Offred (Of Fred). Throughout this tale she remembers a time when she had her own name, her own husband to make love to, her own daughter to nurture, her own job and money....but those days are gone. She describes in pieces how the government in America changed to the totalitarian Republic of Gilead and how many people, her husband and daughter included, tried to escape it. This novel is chilling and gloomy. Offred describes her life as a handmaid in a dispirited and dejected way. The book is compelling though and thought provoking.”

  songcatchers wrote this review Thursday, July 3 2008. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 3 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 5 stars

  “Great dystopian work. It's scary how close it comes to what our world is becoming.”

  Dailydog wrote this review Friday, June 22 2007. ( reply | permalink )
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  2 of 11 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 1 stars

  “Ugh. Absolute worst book ever. Good if you like man hating propaganda I suppose.”

  Kevin H wrote this review Thursday, December 13 2007. ( reply | view 3 replies | permalink )
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  1 of 1 members found this review helpful.

  • Rated 3 stars

  “The book was immensely readable. So much so, that it was almost as if I didn't want it to end and then it did, so abruptly. Surely I recognized that I was running out of pages left in the book, but I soon realized that those very last pages were transcripts of a symposium about future generations who had read Offred's tale - how she wrote it and where it was found is not really known. I was never a fan of 1984 or Brave New World, I read them for courses taught by mediocre teachers so didn't really care for them, but this one - perhaps because it is from a female perspective - kept me interested. I was continually hopeful despite the narrator's changes in optimism. I see parallels in our modern world from the book's so-called terrorist actions that begin the land of Gilead to the collusion of church and state.”

  Ballroom_Pink wrote this review Saturday, July 26 2008. ( reply | permalink )