Tuesday, July 19, 2011

The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale
The Handmaid's Tale
by Margaret Atwood

Paperback, 309 pages
Published March 16th 1998 by Anchor  
(first published 1985) 
 
ISBN 038549081X (ISBN13: 9780385490818)


Finished Book:  January 1, 2011

My Rating: 3 Stars

About the Book
(Goodreads)

It is the world of the near future, and Offred is a Handmaid in the home of the Commander and his wife. She is allowed out once a day to the food market, she is not permitted to read, and she is hoping the Commander makes her pregnant, because she is only valued if her ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she was an independent woman, had a job of her own, a husband and child. But all of that is gone now...everything has changed.

My Thoughts on This Book

I found this book to be an odd one at first.  It was a book club selection and was a college classic at best.  I'd heard of it, but never really knew anything about the storyline.  Imagine going to work one day to find the government has taken over EVERYTHING.  They take your credit cards and cash, leaving you an allotted amount of money on a government issued money card.  The government now owns you and determines what class of people you are to be put into for your own protection.  If you really sit and think about it, it isn't that far fetched.  Think about our government for a minute.  If they really wanted to, they could trace everything about you...where you shop, where you work, what you spend your money on, where you vacation.  I can only imagine how this book was perceived when it first was written.  I'm sure it was a little far fetched.  What about now?  Not so much in my opinion.

No comments:

Post a Comment