The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Set in a dystopian future, this novel presents a society where women are stripped of their rights and are classified into various roles based on their fertility and societal status. The protagonist is a handmaid, a class of women used solely for their reproductive capabilities by the ruling class. The story is a chilling exploration of the extreme end of misogyny, where women are reduced to their biological functions, and a critique of religious fundamentalism.
The 79th greatest book of all time
- Published
- 1985
- Nationality
- Canadian
- Type
- Fiction
- Pages
- 300-400
- Words
- 94,000
- Original Language
- English
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This book is on the following lists:
- 8th on The Greatest Books of All Time (Reader's Digest)
- 12th on The 50 best books of the past 100 years (The Times)
- 13th on Harvard Book Store Staff's Favorite 100 Books (Harvard Book Store)
- 16th on The New Classics - 100 Best Reads from 1983 to 2008 (Entertainment Weekly)
- 17th on Koen Book Distributors Top 100 Books of the Past Century (themodernnovel.com)
- 19th on 100 Best Books to Read by Women Authors (Good Housekeeping)
- 22nd on Top 100 Science-Fiction, Fantasy Books (NPR)
- 29th on Entertainment Weekly's Top 100 Novels (Entertainment Weekly)
- 46th on Top 100 World Literature Titles (Perfection Learning)
- 53rd on The Telegraph’s 100 Novels Everyone Should Read (Telegraph)
- 58th on Waterstone's Books of the Century (LibraryThing)
- 65th on Click If You Dare: 100 Favorite Horror Stories (NPR)
- 71st on The 100 Favorite Novels of Librarians (Bookman.com)
- 114th on The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time (The Novel 100)
- 131st on The Big Read (BBC)
- 156th on Our Users' Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 164th on The Complete 500: OCLC (OCLC)
- The New York Public Library's Books of the Century (New York Public Library)
- Arthur C. Clarke Award (Arthur C. Clarke Award)
- #ThisBook (#ThisBook)
- The Ultimate Book Bucket List: The 75 Best Books Of All Time (Refinery29)
- The Books You've Always Meant to Read (Waterstones)
- The Great American Read (PBS)
- 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime (Amazon.com (UK))
- The Booklist Century: 100 Books, 100 Years (BookList)
- A Hundred Novels to Change Your Life (The Daily Mail)
- Select 100 (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee)
- 40 Essential Feminist Books to Read for Women's History Month (Harpers Bazaar)
- From Zero to Well-Read in 100 Books (Jeff O'Neal at Bookriot.com)
- Latitude Festival's Top 20 Books by Women (Latitude Festival goers)
- 87 Books Written by Women That Are So Good, You Won't Be Able to Put Them Down (Pop Sugar)
- 50 Sci-Fi/Fantasy Novels That Everyone Should Read (Flavor Wire)
- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read (The Guardian)
- The 50 Books Everyone Needs to Read, 1963-2013 (Flavor Wire)
- The 100 Best Science Fiction Books of All Time (Tor)
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (The Book)
- 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime (Amazon.com (USA))