Helpful Score: 3
This wasn't my favorite Atwood book but it was still a decent read. Essentially set in a dystopian future similar to Oryx And Crake except with a lighter, more satirical tone. Some of the satire and parody in here could get a little heavy-handed at times and I thought the last third of the book was less interesting in terms of setting and plot development than the earlier sections, but any book that gets people to consider the ethics of issues like prison privatization is probably worth the read regardless of smaller issues. This isn't her best work but then I feel like very few books come close to Oryx or Handmaid's Tale.
This is the first book that I've read by Margaret Atwood and I don't know... I maybe should have read some of her earlier work first. It is not bad writing by any means. It is easy to see why she is so well known. Her writing was great but just a little too far out for me I guess. There were sex-bots and brain reprogramming to name a couple things and I was expecting it to be a little more realistic. So I'm saying 3 stars because she is a wonderful writer but I just didn't like the science-fiction aspect of it. I'm going to give Cat's Eye a try though
Margaret Atwood is the queen of dystopia, and with this book she doesn't disappoint.
I could hardly put the book down. I agree with other reviewers, it was similar to the world of Oryx and Crake, but a little less dark.
The setting is America, with an utterly collapsed economy. The protagonists are a young married couple, recently jobless, homeless, living in their car on very unsafe streets. Very little family - and none they can rely on.
When they see a commercial for a new utopian way of life, they sign up and begin to live in a revitalized prison/town. They move in and are happy - they have jobs, a home, food, a safe community. The community is a success for everyone initially.
But eventually, power corrupts, and the young couple is caught in the crosshairs.
I could hardly put the book down. I agree with other reviewers, it was similar to the world of Oryx and Crake, but a little less dark.
The setting is America, with an utterly collapsed economy. The protagonists are a young married couple, recently jobless, homeless, living in their car on very unsafe streets. Very little family - and none they can rely on.
When they see a commercial for a new utopian way of life, they sign up and begin to live in a revitalized prison/town. They move in and are happy - they have jobs, a home, food, a safe community. The community is a success for everyone initially.
But eventually, power corrupts, and the young couple is caught in the crosshairs.
I love this author and though isn't one of my favorite Margaret Atwood books, I still enjoyed it. It has an interesting contrast. A futuristic story with a very depressing setting, yet it is done with humor and heart. Very easy read, lots of fun.
