The Handmaid's Tale

By: Margaret Atwood

Narrated by: Claire Danes

Length: 11 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Audie Award, Fiction, 2013

Margaret Atwood's popular dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale explores a broad range of issues relating to power, gender, and religious politics. Multiple Golden Globe award-winner Claire Danes (Romeo and Juliet, The Hours) gives a stirring performance of this classic in speculative fiction, one of the most powerful and widely read novels of our time.

After a staged terrorist attack kills the President and most of Congress, the government is deposed and taken over by the oppressive and all-controlling Republic of Gilead. Offred, now a Handmaid serving in the household of the enigmatic Commander and his bitter wife, can remember a time when she lived with her husband and daughter and had a job, before she lost even her own name. Despite the danger, Offred learns to navigate the intimate secrets of those who control her every move, risking her life in breaking the rules in hopes of ending this oppression.

Cover Art by Fred Marcellino. Used with permission of Pippin Properties, Inc.

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©1985 Margaret Atwood (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Claire Danes sparkles in this performance…Danes’s Offred is complex, and her flashes of intense strength highlight her vulnerability. This is a consuming listen, thanks to Danes’s emotional subtleties.” (AudioFile)

Haunting story, phenomenal narration

Claire Danes' narration took this book to a completely new level for me. She was an excellent choice to bring the right emotion to this story. The tale is chilling and extremely interesting. It's incredibly easy to lose yourself in the world and feel overwhelmed by Offred's situation. I thoroughly enjoyed the ending and listened to it 3 times in a row. I think this is a story that deserves multiple listens.

Hard to follow at times but generally good

I generally liked this book and would be interested in reading similar books. I am glad I bought and read this one!

didn't like the narration, but love the book

I had read this book many years ago, and love it, so I was looking forward to reliving it through an audiobook. Unfortunately, I found Claire Danes' narration to be wooden and rather unemotional, and that really hindered the effect of the great story and writing. My sister also listened to this book and had a very different reaction to the narration - she though it was great and that there was a lot of emotion in her reading. Go figure. It turns out we also have very different reactions to Claire Danes' acting - I think she's rather wooden there too and think she's the weak link actor in movies and TV shows (why didn't I think of that sooner?)

So, while The Handmaid's Tale is a great book, my guess as to whether you'll like this audiobook will depend on whether you like the (acting) work of Claire Danes. If you think she's a great (or even "really good" actress) then listen to this, because the story and writing by Margaret Atwood are terrific. If you don't like her other work, then buy the printed book instead.

Interesting in Parts!

Read/Listened for Fun (Audible/Library)
Overall Rating: 3.50
Story Rating: 3.50
Character Rating: 3.50

Audio Rating: 3.50 (not part of the overall rating)

Quick Thoughts: It is really hard for me to put into words how I feel about this book. I thought it was fascinating and there were parts of the story that I was really absorbed by. However, the ending didn't really work for me and there were other parts that just didn't work for me either. Overall I am looking forward to the TV Series and I am glad that I read the book first.

Audio Thoughts:

Narrated by: Claire Danes /Length: 11 hrs


So I love Claire Danes as an actress but her performance was just OK. I felt there needed to more there even though it was a very strict setting. Overall it wasn't a bad performance just wasn't my favorite.

Part of my Read It, Rate It, File It, DONE! Reviews

Had my attention from beginning to end

Claire Danes was a great narrator for this story that was all too believable. Our very existence teeters on the edge and I was able to envision that this could actually be a reality.

Good read.

Picked it up because I saw it on Great American read on public television. It was well worth it, don’t wanna spoil anything you’ll like it!

Outstanding!

Claire Danes does an incredible job bringing Margaret Atwood's story to life. I enjoyed the audio version even more than reading the book because the experience of listening to Claire Danes tell and enact the story lured me in as Atwood intended -- I got lost in the words, going off on tangents, examining words in a deeper way. This is not a story to be gobbled up like popcorn at a movie -- it's a 20 course feast to be savored and examined and reveled in every step of the way.

Book then TV Series

I listened to this book because I enjoyed the Hulu series so much, but wish I had read it before watching the series. The book and season one are so similar that I almost felt it was a waste of an Audible credit. If you haven't watched the series, then definitely read, but if you have, then I'd recommend a different Margaret Atwood book.

Good story but sort of monotone narration

The story was interesting, especially how it all came together at the end. I did not care for the narration, it was almost boring to listen to. But that may have been intentional since most of the story was what the main character was thinking, not conversations between characters.

Interesting setting and great performance

The Handmaid's Tale is definitely worth a read. The world development is outstanding, and the struggles of the characters are made very real. My only complaint is that the book felt like it was building up to some sort of adventure in the current time, but it just doesn't really happen. In the end, the way the story unfolds and ends is very fitting to the bleak dystopian scenario that is developed throughout the book. I loved how the epilogue was done - it was a great way to end a book that could have been unsatisfying without some sort of tie-up.

Claire Danes' performance was top-notch - it's hard to imagine a better actress to read the story as the main character.