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A review by shay_talksbooks
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
challenging
dark
4.75
Borrowed from my local library.
A classic of dystopian fiction that somehow I hadn't read before! It took me a while to get into the story and the writing, but once I did I enjoyed it.
Don't get me wrong, this is a heavy read, and one I had to take my time with so I had some space to process. I tend to avoid books that include talk ofpregnancy, birth and fertility as they're a big trigger for me, so I went into this knowing they would come up & that I would need time to take breaks from the story.
It made me feel a lot of things: rage, a whole load of frustration, sadness and fear, but some hope was peppered in there too. The hardest thing about this book is just how plausible it is. This could totally happen, and we're seeing it happen across parts of the world right now, and that brought a lot of reflection on my own standing in soceity as a woman. My own fears and concerns. My own knowledge of how fragile my rights and freedom perhaps are.
The purposeful altering of names stood out to me in this book too, and made me think about the power of a name for self-identity, but also for ownership and power (especially when that's held by someone else)
On the whole, an incredible book. One I may bump up to 5☆ if it sticks with me like I think it will, and one I would encourage everyone to read at least once (even if dysopian isn't your thing)
Note: I didn't love the final chapter, Historical Notes. I can see what it added to the story and why it was included, but the story felt like it ended for me when Offred stopped speaking.
A classic of dystopian fiction that somehow I hadn't read before! It took me a while to get into the story and the writing, but once I did I enjoyed it.
Don't get me wrong, this is a heavy read, and one I had to take my time with so I had some space to process. I tend to avoid books that include talk of
It made me feel a lot of things: rage, a whole load of frustration, sadness and fear, but some hope was peppered in there too. The hardest thing about this book is just how plausible it is. This could totally happen, and we're seeing it happen across parts of the world right now, and that brought a lot of reflection on my own standing in soceity as a woman. My own fears and concerns. My own knowledge of how fragile my rights and freedom perhaps are.
The purposeful altering of names stood out to me in this book too, and made me think about the power of a name for self-identity, but also for ownership and power (especially when that's held by someone else)
On the whole, an incredible book. One I may bump up to 5☆ if it sticks with me like I think it will, and one I would encourage everyone to read at least once (even if dysopian isn't your thing)
Note: I didn't love the final chapter, Historical Notes. I can see what it added to the story and why it was included, but the story felt like it ended for me when Offred stopped speaking.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Slavery, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide