The Handmaids tale

[DumbledoresArmy]

Anyone else planning on watching this at 9pm on channel 4?

That is beyond cruel and inhuman and so fucking disturbingly creative

I know.

Me too, I'll re read. I still have my book.
I suspect I read it (before) with with more innocent eyes.

I've read Cats Eye (theme: female childhood friendship/emnity), Orxy & Crake (theme: post apocalytic world, male protagonist) and After the Flood (O&C retold from one of the female character's perspective). I've also started The Heart Goes Last. They're all good. A bit weird (in that unique Margaret Atwood way) but undeniably good. Friends have read her other stuff & I'm not aware of any duds.

I know it's not the important part of that final scene with Emily - but the dressing they'd put on is clinically inaccurate - she won't be able to pee without someone taking the dressing off. She would probably be catheterised (based on my experience as a nurse on a gynae ward and in theatre).

The differences between the book and the programme are beginning to grate a bit too - though I do like the way they are fleshing out what happened before and during the establishment of Gilead. I have in no way contradicted myself there, either!

super thanks, I'll give the short stories a go be a better holiday read. I have to say I live in NI and know all about the DUP, they've always irritated me but what's happening now actually scares the crap out of me.

lets Alias Grace is gripping, I preferred that myself...

Ktown, I think that is part of MA's point: that this stuff is happening/has happened somewhere in the world.
It is simply all condensed in to one 'world'.

God that was grim, and shocking. But brilliant.

Very disturbing.

Lets. I read " the heart goes last"recently which is excellent, and in last 48 hrs devoured" the year after the flood "... Which links into " oryx and crake "... It was seriously disturbing and I am having a very odd visceral reaction to eating meat now...I am actually thinking I might have to become vegetarian... I couldn't eat my fish and chips last night...well ate the chips.
I think you have to read the book to understand why.
If you like dystopian future type books I woukd also recommend " the ship" cannot recall the author and " only ever yours " by Louise O'Neil...
I go through phases with this genre...Might need a bit of respite from it for a while....

Just watched on +1 and cried all the way through

I've just read Only Ever Yours (was recommended on this thread).

Of MA's books, I recommend Cats Eye (about bullying within a friendship group), Alias Grace, Lady Oracle, The Robber Bride and The Blind Assassin.

I haven't read any of her books after The Blind Assassin - I think that I will start as soon as I've finished my current book.

I presumed it was like female circumcision, they'd taken her clitoris away.Ive not read the book since it came out so can't remember.

I don't think there's any mention of her once she's replaced, in the book.

Thete is no fgm in the book

No there isn't, the adaptation has been modernised. The practice FGM wasn't common knowledge more than 10/15 years ago though.

It wasn't a criticism, I was responding to Dame who said she couldn't remember if there was mention of fgm in the book

Oh I know, I didn't read your post a critisicm and wasn't responding with a tone. I was just musing, it's hard to imagine now not being aware of FGM, but when MA wrote the novel it would have been little, if at all, heard of.

So it's interesting seeing the silences in the novel being filled with our current knowledge.

I've just caught up on the series and think it's excellent. I couldn't finish the book because I found it too disturbing and the TV series contains the same core elements of suffocating lack of freedom, distrust of others and dehumanisation of women. Very, very good.

there is a book thread here

I thought last nights was great-in a very grim way. The scene in the van with Offglens partner sobbing was very impactful-i couldn't stop thinking about it.
Very resonant with current world events-and I thought that when I read the book-without the updating and fleshing out that the TV series has done.
Am watching slightly behind through and fast forwarding the ads which ruin the tension a bit.

First time I remember it it was 27 years ago and there was a big article in Marie Clare ( which everyone bought at the time) there were also at least 3 documentaries on telly I remember watching with dh but there wasn't the outrage there is now. I still remember the really graphic pictures.

The last scene was indeed grim,she is an amazing actress.

wow,
It is hard to know what to say isn't it?
I think I actually found the most chilling scene last night the flashback scene in the flat, where they had just realised that all women had had their bank accounts frozen and all women had lost their jobs.

It would be so easy wouldn't it? They mentioned that they were under martial law and June said something about "Yeah but that is just until they have found the terrorists" It is moments like that when it seems so close to home, so current.
Remember all the armed police on the streets last week when the terror level was at critical after Manchester? What if those running the police were not as nice as they seem?

It just makes you realise how fragile our freedoms are.

I found that so real too steppemum and utterly chilling.

I watched it last night hugging a cushion & would probably have been behind the sofa if there was enough space. It's on a completely different level from the pleasurable fear of a horror film.

When I swiped my debit card in Costa this morning I had this brief flash of "What if..."