A review by strwbrrymlklvr
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Really liked it, despite how hard it could be to read emotionally. It is sad how relatable the content could be, yet also eye-opening. It was easy enough to read technically even though it was text dense and moved from one idea to the next without much of a transition. Some pages took me a couple of reads in order to fully grasp what was being said, but I feel that it didn’t take away from the experience. The final chapter felt like a true kick in the gut for our dear Offred. Every time she believed one thing or another, there was always a man to pull his power over her. 

There were things I wish could’ve been answered or done, but I realize that the way it was written was intentional and purposeful, yet my reader’s heart wants tidy ends. What happens to Offred, truly? And to her daughter, to Luke, to Nick? Why was Gilead really put in place?  

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