The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale is a 1985 book by Canadian novelist Margaret Atwood about a dystopian future. It takes place in a near-future New England, under a fiercely patriarchal, totalitarian theocracy called the Republic of Gilead, which has deposed the United States government. The principal character and narrator is a woman called Offred, who is one of a group known as "handmaids", who are forced assigned to bear offspring for the "commanders", Gilead's ruling class of males.

The novel delves into the topics of oppressed women in patriarchal societies, the loss of female agency and uniqueness, the restriction of women's reproductive rights, and the different ways in which women fight and strive to gain individuality and independence. The title alludes to Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, which is a collection of interconnected stories. It is also a reference to the fairy tale tradition in which the principal character relates their story.

Detailed information:

Author: Margaret Atwood

Language: English
Genre: Dystopian novel, Speculative fiction

Link to read: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38447