Margaret Atwood

The Handmaid's Tale (Bound for Schools and Librarie) Margaret Atwood

Brief Description: For use in schools and libraries only. A look at the near future presents the story of Offred, a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead, once the United States, an oppressive world where women are no longer allowed to read and are valued only as long as they are viable for reproduction. Publisher Marketing: First published in 1985, The Handmaid's Tale is a novel of such power that the reader is unable to forget its images and its forecast. With more than two million copies in print, it is Margaret Atwood's most popular and compelling novel. Set in the near future, it describes life in what once was the United States, now called the Republic of Gilead. Reacting to social unrest, and a sharply declining birthrate, the new regime has reverted to -- even gone beyond -- the repressive tolerance of the original Puritans. Offred is a Handmaid who 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 she is only valued as long as her 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. Funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing, The Handmaid's Tale is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and tour de force. Publisher Marketing: 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. Deserves the highest praise. -- "San Francisco Chronicle" Review Citations:

Booklist 01/01/2001 pg. 976 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2002 pg. 587 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

Entertainment Weekly 06/27/2008 pg. 98 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

Entertainment Weekly 07/09/2010 pg. 81 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

Entertainment Weekly 06/28/2013 pg. 28 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

Entertainment Weekly 07/05/2013 pg. 98 (EAN 9780385490818, Paperback)

New York Review of Books 11/02/2006 pg. 18 (EAN 9780307264602, Hardcover)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2007 pg. 721 (EAN 9780307264602, Hardcover)

Wilson Fiction Catalog 01/01/2010 pg. 22 (EAN 9780307264602, Hardcover)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2011 pg. 876 (EAN 9780307264602, Hardcover)

Wilson Fiction Catalog 01/01/2014 pg. 26 (EAN 9780307264602, Hardcover)

Library Journal 06/01/2005 pg. 188 (EAN 9780563524632, Compact Disc)

Audio File 12/01/2012 pg. 51 (EAN 9780563524632, Compact Disc) - *Starred Review

Library Journal 06/01/2005 pg. 188 (EAN 9780563524588, Analog Audio Cassette)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/1997 pg. 617 (EAN 9780449911532, Paperback)

Contributor Bio:  Atwood, Margaret Margaret Atwood is the internationally renowned author of such novels as "Oryx and Crake, Alias Grace", and "The Edible Woman". She is a novelist and a poet, and has also authored short story collections, critical studies, screenplays, radio scripts, and books.