Title: The Handmaid’s Tale
Author: Margaret Atwood
Publisher: Vintage
Rating; 5/5
Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she lived and made love with her husband, Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now…
Well damn. I heard about this book and thought it’d be an interesting read. I wasn’t prepared for how raw and frightening this book would be. I was immediately drawn to this book from the first page. The writing style just seemed so bleak and hopeless while also straight to the point. I was immediately hooked and wanted to know more about the society Offred alluded to and how it worked.
This was a harsh awakening to the fact that rights aren’t always permanent. It’s scary how quickly they can be stripped from you. It was scarily relevant in today’s society, especially with what’s going on in the White House. In some countries, women still don’t have the right to vote and countries such as Saudi Arabia only legalized it a couple of years ago.
I watched a couple interviews with Margaret Atwood and she’s quite adamant about not taking our rights for granted. She talks about how a bunch of new generations are born with the rights and see them as given to them, and she wrote the book to remind people that things aren’t always secure. She’s right, in a way. I grew up barely thinking twice about, but really, decades ago, women were still fighting against gender descrimination in the workspace, and it’s still not exactly equal yet.
This book taught me to value my rights, to not take them for granted, and to continue to fight for women’s rights around the world.
It served as a warning to me, and to others of how things can become, if we allow things to progress as they did in the book.
In short, this book was eye-opening and raw. A definite must-read.
SPOILERS:
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson: Oh my god, I loved this book. It was a really quick read for me and I loved every second of it. I really enjoyed the way Jandy illustrated grief–it was raw and real and didn’t feel romanticized. I used to play in a band, and I loved seeing Lennie play the clarinet and interacting with the band and I enjoyed the musical aspect of the book.
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck: I recently read Of Mice and Men for school and I quite enjoyed it. I had The Grapes of Wrath lying around my house and I’d been putting off reading it and decided to just go for it. I was pleasantly surprised. I really liked this book and found it interesting to read into the lives of migrant workers and families during the Great Depression.
4. Jojo Moyes: Y’all know how much I love Me Before You and if I ever had the chance to meet Jojo Moyes, I’d never pass on that. Me Before You was just so incredible and I’d love to see her and have her sign my copy and for me to be able to tell her how much her book resonated with me.
3. Cassandra Clare: I’ve read so many of her books and loved all of them. My favorites are, of course, The Infernal Devices. I’d just love to meet her and fangirl about Will and Tessa.
2. J.K. Rowling: This one doesn’t really need any explaining. She’s some sort of childhood hero in my mind and meeting her would be a dream come true. Her books formed the basis of my love for reading and I’d just love to talk to her.
1.Markus Zusak: Again, not surprising. His books have completely changed my life. I can’t even put to words how much I loved The Book Thief and I am the Messenger. I’d just love the chance to meet him and tell him how amazing I thought his books were and how much I love his writing style.
All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven: Oh my god, this book was beautiful. I wish I’d done a full review on this book but I forgot and then somehow a month had gone by. I read this book in a sitting and was constantly amazed by the beauty of it. I loved the theme of discovering new things and doing things that scare you. It was absolutely brilliant and if you ever get the chance, you should most definitely check this book out.
The Evil We Love by Cassandra Clare and Robin Wasserman: I’m slowly but surely making my way through this series of novellas.
World War Z by Max Brooks: The format was really interesting and really helped to make it seem as if these events had actually taken place. While it may have been a bit boring at times, it made all the events that much more real and never ceased to give me chills.
