The Handmaid's Tale - Any good?

[Flamesparrow]

Title says it all really.

Saw the film the other night, and was wondering if the book is any good (Borders vouchers burning a hole in my pocket )

yes.. infact I'm sure the book is much better than the film.

(i read it a long time ago tho)

it is absolutely brilliant. it is about my all time favourite book ever and about a million times better than the film. i found the film really disappointing . it doesn't have the same atmosphere as the book at all. buy and read. honestly. it is such a good story

i found it quite scary in a way because i could imagine it happening for real.

amazing
one of the few books I have read more than once

Yes, but the book is MUCH better than the film - aren't they always?

Shame you saw the film first, but well worth a read.

Agree, it's a great book. Love all of Margaret Atwood's even though they take me ages to get into. Have Oryx and Crake on my bedside table where it's been sitting, unopened for a year.

Yay! I get to spend

It must be A Level reading cos there's loads of them and York notes on ebay.

Saw the film but never read the book. Might just!

I'm annoyed that I saw the film first - started watching it when flicking channels, and got about half way through before realising that it seemed more book like than film like... so looked it up!

excellent book, i find it really scary. as its not that implausible... look at afghanistan!

i have heard the film is not so good though,

enjoy!

I first heard this a play on radio 4 which was brilliant. Not read the book tho.

DD1 did it for A level in 2000 and we bought her a second hand one in Oxfam then; I think it's still on the syllabus (DS1 is doing English now but I don't think his teacher chose it).

Agree that it is a fantastic story and that the book is better than the film.

It's a great book. Haven't seen the film.

Brilliant book, un-put-downable

I would say it's a woman's book but a man's film

It's on this year's A level syllabus but I seem to think it's being replaced next year - could be totally wrong of course!

It was on my A-level syllabus 11 years ago!

One of my top 10 fave books. I read it once a year. Probably Atwood's best. (Makes me proud to be a Canuck!)

Brilliant book, the film is dreadful in comparison. The film was too literal, for me the great thing about the book was the things that were unsaid, the film spelled them out for you.

yes, is a fab book, so much better than movie
is on so many school reading lists!

Read it yonks ago, but it still remains with me. Good

The book is 100 times better than the film Well worth the read. I read it years ago and still can remember it and sometimes find it eerily prophetic.

It's a dreadful book. Not even vaguely subtle. This is what happens when mainstream authors try to do science fiction ...

Really, Atwood has written much better books. The Edible Woman, for one.

Or if it's SF with a gendery theme, I'd read ... hmmm ... Unquenchable Fire by Rachel Pollack. Much much more interesting.

Or maybe some James Tiptree Jr (she was a woman) if that's still in print?

Ooh, and they've gone and named an award after James Tiptree for gender-related SF. And come out with an anthology of short stories by award winners!

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