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A review by night0wl_23
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
This book was so hard to read, for all the right reasons. It’s terrifying, thought provoking and a must read for anyone into dystopian fiction.
The inclusion of the historical notes at the ending really drove the story home. Knowing the entire book is a transcript of tapes ‘Offred’ made after she escaped, realising that we’ve read a historical document about early Gilead.
I realise that the whole interview can be read differently from person to person, and I read it as distasteful and disrespectful. At times it sounded like the guy was annoyed that Offred used fake names, annoyed that she didn’t talk enough about the rules, the living conditions and the commander (cause he’s obviously the only interesting person here /s).
It’s like this historian couldn’t understand that she wasn’t documenting for the future, for him specifically. He couldn’t imagine that she simply told her story, as she had lived it and experienced it - the things most important for her to tell and possibly leave behind.
It upset me, and that was definitely the point. A fitting ending to a terribly sad story. It really pushed me to think about everything I had read again.
The inclusion of the historical notes at the ending really drove the story home. Knowing the entire book is a transcript of tapes ‘Offred’ made after she escaped, realising that we’ve read a historical document about early Gilead.
I realise that the whole interview can be read differently from person to person, and I read it as distasteful and disrespectful. At times it sounded like the guy was annoyed that Offred used fake names, annoyed that she didn’t talk enough about the rules, the living conditions and the commander (cause he’s obviously the only interesting person here /s).
It’s like this historian couldn’t understand that she wasn’t documenting for the future, for him specifically. He couldn’t imagine that she simply told her story, as she had lived it and experienced it - the things most important for her to tell and possibly leave behind.
It upset me, and that was definitely the point. A fitting ending to a terribly sad story. It really pushed me to think about everything I had read again.