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The Handmaid's Tale  By  cover art

The Handmaid's Tale

By: Margaret Atwood
Narrated by: Claire Danes
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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)

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What listeners say about The Handmaid's Tale

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    27,368
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  • 3 Stars
    4,053
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    1,225
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  • 3 Stars
    3,824
  • 2 Stars
    1,382
  • 1 Stars
    1,110

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Darkly Insightful into a Grim Future

A bit depressing overall but still a fascinating world crafted and played out for you a little piece at a time.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • 12-12-17

Thought provoking

I liked the book overall despite the author's tendency towards long winded descriptive narrative. The narrator was chosen well for this book and helped to keep the book interesting through the previously mentioned descriptive sections. I would bet much recommend this book to any socially conscious reader.

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  • Overall
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Captivating and not just a little frightening

This story, though written more than 30 years ago, is a cautionary tale for today's American society.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Great story, great narration by Claire Danes

This story is still timely, particularly in light of current political and world events! Great.

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A must read!

This book really resonated with me. I throughly enjoyed it and could hardly put it down.

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A timeless and masterful story

This audiobook was an amazing narration of a beautiful, yet heartwrenching tale. I loved it.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

I wanted to like it. I tried to like it.

The narration was fantastic. I rated the book 3 stars based solely on that. I usually enjoy dystopian novels. Unfortunately besides the narration I didn't enjoy this book at all. I did not like how the protagonist was constantly analyzing the miniscule details that brought absolutely nothing to the story. To be honest the way it "read" absolutely annoyed me. I felt the overall story was very bland, it barely held my attention and I struggled to listen through it.

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Thought-provoking

Atwood’s language is beautiful and the story Is deep and the way is questions social norms is thought-provoking to say the least.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

good story

I have been watching the show and was expecting more from this book. I recommend that you read the book first, before watching the show.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

1984 Redux

Narration was excellent but the story had far too many similarities to 1984 to not be noticed.

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