The Republic of Gilead offers Offred only one function: to breed. If she deviates, she will, like dissenters, be hanged at the wall or sent out to die slowly of radiation sickness. But even a repressive state cannot obliterate desire - neither Offred's nor that of the two men on which her future hangs.
Discover the dystopian novel that started a phenomenon before you read the Booker Prize-winning sequel The Testaments
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Offred is a Handmaid in The Republic of Gilead, a religious totalitarian state in what was formerly known as the United States. She is placed in the household of The Commander, Fred Waterford - her assigned name, Offred, means 'of Fred'. She has only one function: to breed. If Offred refuses to enter into sexual servitude to repopulate a devastated world, she will be hanged. Yet even a repressive state cannot eradicate hope and desire. As she recalls her pre-revolution life in flashbacks, Offred must navigate through the terrifying landscape of torture and persecution in the present day, and between two men upon which her future hangs.
Masterfully conceived and executed, this haunting vision of the future places Margaret Atwood at the forefront of dystopian fiction.
'A fantastic, chilling story. And so powerfully feminist' Bernadine Evaristo, author of GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER
'This novel seems ever more vital in the present day' Observer
Includes exclusive content: In The 'Backstory' you can read Margaret Atwood's account of how she came to write this landmark dystopian novel.
The Handmaid's Tale is both a superlative exercise in science fiction and a profoundly felt moral story -- Angela Carter Out of a narrative shadowed by terror, gleam sharp perceptions, brilliant intense images and sardonic wit -- Peter Kemp Independent
The images of brilliant emptiness are one of the most striking aspects of this novel about totalitarian blindness...the effect is chilling -- Linda Taylor Sunday Times
Powerful...admirable -- Robert Irwin Time Out Fiercely political and bleak, yet witting and wise...this novel seems ever more vital in the present day Observer
Author
About Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood is the author of more than 30 books of fiction, poetry and critical essays. In addition to the classic The Handmaid’s Tale, her novels include Cat’s Eye, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy, and The Blind Assassin, winner of the 2000 Booker Prize. Oryx and Crake was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2003. Her other books for children include Bashful Bob and Doleful Dorinda and Rude Ramsay and the Roaring Radishes. She lives in Toronto, Canada.
