You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
evelyncore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Misogyny and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Pregnancy
aubsends's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and War
florenceassetto's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Pregnancy
Minor: Antisemitism
latoyareadsdaily's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I read the introduction by Atwood and that alone made me salivate for the story. I really liked the writing style because I was immediately transported to Offred's world and I saw some glimpses into "June's" world before she became a nameless womb for the system. I didn't know what to expect each time I had interaction with the book which was over a few weeks as I really took my time on the only part of the book I didn't like: the academic presentation that I understood but did not feel like it was necessary. It just seemed like an afterthought that made me angry because it spoiled the story for me.
I believe June's story.
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, and Pregnancy
ryleee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Self harm and Suicide
Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, and Abortion
Minor: Slavery, Forced institutionalization, and Religious bigotry
lhorner06's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Moderate: Genocide, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, and Pregnancy
kileyjojo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
The pacing does struggle every now and then and the ending feels abrupt.
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy
apatheticastronaut13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Colonisation, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic
kayjezza's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
The story is sort of based around the concept of sort of mandatory sex with a random person assigned to you. And that person is treated like Harry Potter in his broom cupboard, except they go to school for child bearing not magic and aren’t allowed to have friends.pokecol's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
It is hard to say much about this book as a story because I feel fundamentally there isn't one. A good deal of the design of the plot layout is to inform us and to educate us in this frame of reference so that we might interpret the smaller actions within the bounds of this set-up. This is very good at doing its intended job, making us uncomfortable, question and abhorred by such a possible interpretation of the future.
However, as a narrative, the amount of content could make perhaps 3 or 4 chapters maximum. All that is told occurs as: part of the collective, Moira vanishes, meet a man, eventually find a zone of comfort in the horror, find Moira again and "escape". But also not really, because some of the events aren't true at all, a lot of the story ends up having been a fantasy of the Main Character derived to display a measure of comfort compared to what she is known in the identity of telling the story herself.
I do think there is of course a lot of power in this whole way of telling The Handmaid's Tale, but it makes for an admittedly very dull experience besides the deeper reflective context of the book.
Fundamentally the divined idea of the society proposed is disgusting and the hyper subjugation tickles a sore-point for me in a way I do not enjoy. I feel there is required reading in the intent of the novel but it only explores so much through the idea of our Main Character and provides little in the expansive meaning or identity of these change beyond hierarchy. As a story the snippets we flashback to and compare the lives before and after, is excellent and made for compelling hope in drawing our Main Character out from this world eventually.
But the fact of the matter is we do not really have any progress to the story, at all, for the first entire two thirds of the book, and then the last third ends up not even necessarily being true. I do not fault the MC for her choices and attitude, considering the circumstances she is very much doing better than one might expect - yet as having just finished it, I do not at all recall her name.
The fact that some points of reference are used to describe the horrific nature of the set-up but we skip over the "really bad" parts near the end seems to be a really weird choice. I have no interest in abuse topics at the best of times but I have to say that it seems a backwards idea to avoid that harshest dichotomy to near the conclusion in the failure to escape - even if it is to help frame the whole scenario as a more positive outcome.
Unlike other deeply dystopian outlooks on modernity, I do not feel I got so much a good a grasp on things that allowed me to live the experiences, or understand character perspective. I feel a little trite in critiquing The Handmaid's Tale for solely it's story content, because there is more message to it than that, however, such a message can be conveyed by many means and Margaret Atwood chose for it to be a fiction novel - and in many respects the fiction novel part is where it fails the most in my reading experience.
I do think though, the world is revoltingly plausible, and in many ways these smaller accumulating elements are no stranger to a 21st century world already. In predictive, and cautionary, writings such as this I think The Handmaid's Tale does do its job providing the subject matter to a reader.
Graphic: Misogyny and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Colonisation