The handmaid's tale / Margaret Atwood.

Atwood, Margaret, 1939- (Author).

Summary:

The Handmaid's Tale is not only a radical and brilliant departure for Margaret Atwood, it is a novel of such power that the reader will be unable to forget its images and its forecast. Set in the near future, it describes life in what was once the United States, now called the Republic of Gilead, a monotheocracy that has reacted to social unrest and a sharply declining birthrate by reverting to, and going beyond, the repressive intolerance of the original Puritans. The regime takes the Book of Genesis absolutely at its word, with bizarre consequences for the women and men of its population. The story is told through the eyes of Offred, one of the unfortunate Handmaids under the new social order. In condensed but eloquent prose, by turns cool-eyed, tender, despairing, passionate, and wry, she reveals to us the dark corners behind the establishment's calm façade, as certain tendencies now in existence are carried to their logical conclusions. The Handmaid's Tale is funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing. It is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and tour de force. It is Margaret Atwood at her best."-- Book jacket.

Record details

ISBN: 9780385490818
ISBN: 038549081X
ISBN: 9780808598299
ISBN: 0808598295
ISBN: 9780606181242
ISBN: 0606181245
ISBN: 9781328879943
ISBN: 1328879941
ISBN: 9781984899668
Physical Description: 311 pages ; 21 cm
Edition: 1st Anchor Books edition.
Publisher: New York : Anchor Books, 1998.
Copyright: ©1986

Content descriptions

General Note:	Includes historical notes (p. 299-311)
Target Audience Note:	750L Lexile
Study Program Information Note:	Accelerated Reader AR UG 5.4 14 8109.