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The Testaments
(The Handmaid's Tale #2)
by
When the van door slammed on Offred's future at the end of The Handmaid's Tale, readers had no way of telling what lay ahead for her--freedom, prison or death.
With The Testaments, the wait is over.
Margaret Atwood's sequel picks up the story more than fifteen years after Offred stepped into the unknown, with the explosive testaments of three female narrators from Gilead.
In ...more
With The Testaments, the wait is over.
Margaret Atwood's sequel picks up the story more than fifteen years after Offred stepped into the unknown, with the explosive testaments of three female narrators from Gilead.
In ...more
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Start your review of The Testaments (The Handmaid's Tale, #2)
I guess I'll have to be the one who says what nobody else is willing to say. This novel is terrible, and Booker judges are starstruck, hype-driven sellouts. And that no professional literary critic has the guts to tell the truth about how poorly conceived and written The Testaments is, is a true shame.
I can't decide which work Atwood should be embarrassed for more - Angel Catbird, Vol. 1 or The Testaments. The book doesn't read like a novel written by one of the most lauded authors of the 20st ...more
I can't decide which work Atwood should be embarrassed for more - Angel Catbird, Vol. 1 or The Testaments. The book doesn't read like a novel written by one of the most lauded authors of the 20st ...more
I can sum it up simply: this book is not needed.
I hoped that wouldn't be the case. I really really hoped Atwood had something important to add to the world of Gilead with this book, but she honestly doesn't. If anything, The Testaments serves only to weaken the power of The Handmaid's Tale.
In the past, I have spoken highly of authors who are not afraid to "be evil" with their books. This may give the impression that they are doing something particularly nefarious, but, in fact, it’s not so much ...more
I hoped that wouldn't be the case. I really really hoped Atwood had something important to add to the world of Gilead with this book, but she honestly doesn't. If anything, The Testaments serves only to weaken the power of The Handmaid's Tale.
In the past, I have spoken highly of authors who are not afraid to "be evil" with their books. This may give the impression that they are doing something particularly nefarious, but, in fact, it’s not so much ...more
Return to Gilead
Check your expectations at the door: The Testaments is a highly entertaining page turner, but it is also probably quite different from whatever you were anticipating.
It differs from its 1985 antecedent, The Handmaid's Tale, in tone, voice and literary heft. That earlier book had a power and a gravitas that is not recaptured here. For me the most striking thing about The Handmaid’s Tale has always been Atwood’s choice of narrator. Offred (in the book she has no other name) is so ...more
Check your expectations at the door: The Testaments is a highly entertaining page turner, but it is also probably quite different from whatever you were anticipating.
It differs from its 1985 antecedent, The Handmaid's Tale, in tone, voice and literary heft. That earlier book had a power and a gravitas that is not recaptured here. For me the most striking thing about The Handmaid’s Tale has always been Atwood’s choice of narrator. Offred (in the book she has no other name) is so ...more
Winner of best fiction category but it’s not my winner. That’s my opinion and I respect fans’ opinions
Two stars for the love of Aunt Lydia! If she wasn’t in this book, I could do something first by giving minus five stars to a book! See how I disliked and how I felt frustrated about this hope stealing, time wasting, one of the biggest failures of the year!!!! One of the tasteless testament you could ever have!
2019 could be one of this year I got really disappointed by movies, series books. ...more
Two stars for the love of Aunt Lydia! If she wasn’t in this book, I could do something first by giving minus five stars to a book! See how I disliked and how I felt frustrated about this hope stealing, time wasting, one of the biggest failures of the year!!!! One of the tasteless testament you could ever have!
2019 could be one of this year I got really disappointed by movies, series books. ...more
I haven't even finished season 2 of the tv show since it was so emotionally draining but here I am reading this!!
Nov 28, 2018
Sean Barrs the Bookdragon
rated it
did not like it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
my-most-anticipated-reads-of-2019
A review in 5 words:
Unnecessary. Pointless. Ruining. Bland. Spoilers.
Unnecessary. Pointless. Ruining. Bland. Spoilers.
This was my most anticipated book for 2019.
Wait... I should amend that statement...
THIS WAS THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF MY MISERABLE FRIGGIN LIFE!
And much like my life, it was an epic disappointment.
The Handmaid's Tale is on my Top 10 shelf. It is, in my opinion, the greatest dystopian novel of all time. It is everything you expect from the genre and more. Shocking, terrifying, an unflinching account of a fucking nightmarish scenario that could actually happen.
At the end of The Handmaid's Tale ...more
Wait... I should amend that statement...
THIS WAS THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF MY MISERABLE FRIGGIN LIFE!
And much like my life, it was an epic disappointment.
The Handmaid's Tale is on my Top 10 shelf. It is, in my opinion, the greatest dystopian novel of all time. It is everything you expect from the genre and more. Shocking, terrifying, an unflinching account of a fucking nightmarish scenario that could actually happen.
At the end of The Handmaid's Tale ...more
"How tedious is a tyranny in the throes of enactment. It's always the same plot."
So why does Margaret Atwood choose to tell the story again? That question has haunted me since I heard the announcement of the project almost a year ago. WHY? I was convinced I would hate the hype and the gushing reviews and the book itself, and started reading with the attitude of someone who knew the story didn't need telling again.
To my surprise, I liked it from the start, and soon engaged in the thriller ...more
So why does Margaret Atwood choose to tell the story again? That question has haunted me since I heard the announcement of the project almost a year ago. WHY? I was convinced I would hate the hype and the gushing reviews and the book itself, and started reading with the attitude of someone who knew the story didn't need telling again.
To my surprise, I liked it from the start, and soon engaged in the thriller ...more
It's not easy being the most anticipated book of the year. I would argue that most of the negative reactions - including my own - are based largely on expectations. Since published in 1985, The Handmaid's Tale has become sacred ground in the literary world; a true modern classic further amplified by the successful show and current political tensions. Stakes for a sequel couldn't be higher and, even for the ever-talented Margaret Atwood, that's a tough performance to deliver. All in all, this is
...more
Oct 23, 2019
Ariel
added it
I liked this one more than A Handmaid's Tale! Call me crazy! But I loved that there was this exciting plot that was pushing the momentum forwards and that we were learning more about Gilead and the world outside and the way it came to be. I read this DIRECTLY after A Handmaid's Tale, like I read both of them in the span of a few days, and I felt this enriched the world so much more.
3.5 to 4 stars
I was going to go with 3 stars because while I liked it, it did not impress me as much as the first book. But, after discussing the book with my wife at dinner last night, I realized I got more from it than I thought, so I am upping my rating a bit.
In the afterword, Atwood hints at the fact that this was written in response to the recently renewed popularity of the first book and the current state of affairs in America. Because of this, it does kind of read like it was written to ...more
I was going to go with 3 stars because while I liked it, it did not impress me as much as the first book. But, after discussing the book with my wife at dinner last night, I realized I got more from it than I thought, so I am upping my rating a bit.
In the afterword, Atwood hints at the fact that this was written in response to the recently renewed popularity of the first book and the current state of affairs in America. Because of this, it does kind of read like it was written to ...more
“One mysterious box, when opened, so often conceals another.”
In relation to The Handmaid’s Tale Hulu series, I found The Testaments entertaining. As a follow up to the novel, I found it lacking.
I am holding off on a complete review until I have finished rereading The Handmaid's Tale.
More to come!
Winner of the Booker Prize 2019 (together with Girl, Woman, Other)
This is a flashy, placative, but also intelligent thriller, here to make some points about society and to entertain - it's certainly not the most layered or subtle literature ever written, but you know what? It's engaging, rather suspenseful and great fun to read, full of quips and commentary on the world we live in, and sometimes, that's more than enough. And honestly: The Handmaid's Tale wasn't particularly ambiguous or ...more
This is a flashy, placative, but also intelligent thriller, here to make some points about society and to entertain - it's certainly not the most layered or subtle literature ever written, but you know what? It's engaging, rather suspenseful and great fun to read, full of quips and commentary on the world we live in, and sometimes, that's more than enough. And honestly: The Handmaid's Tale wasn't particularly ambiguous or ...more
Library copy available for pick up
Why?
Why did Atwood write this more than thirty years after The Handmaid’s Tale (see my review HERE), when she’d already written sequels to that for the TV series? Because “we started moving towards Gilead instead of away from it – particularly in the United States” and more specifically, to answer “How did Gilead fall?” and “How do you get to be such a person [as Aunt Lydia]?”.
Why read it? Hype, a heavy discount, and morbid curiosity. It’s an easy read and enough of a page-turner to finish ...more
Why did Atwood write this more than thirty years after The Handmaid’s Tale (see my review HERE), when she’d already written sequels to that for the TV series? Because “we started moving towards Gilead instead of away from it – particularly in the United States” and more specifically, to answer “How did Gilead fall?” and “How do you get to be such a person [as Aunt Lydia]?”.
Why read it? Hype, a heavy discount, and morbid curiosity. It’s an easy read and enough of a page-turner to finish ...more
Joint Winner of the 2019 Booker Prize - which I captured in this photo.
I was fortunate enough to attend one of the live cinema screenings of the readings and author Q&A from the National Theatre on the evening of the book's official publication, managing to complete my first read of the book just as the event started.
The event was excellent - and I think only reinforced my view that Handmaid's Tale is ...more
You’ll labour over this manuscript of mine, reading and rereading, picking nits as you go.
I was fortunate enough to attend one of the live cinema screenings of the readings and author Q&A from the National Theatre on the evening of the book's official publication, managing to complete my first read of the book just as the event started.
The event was excellent - and I think only reinforced my view that Handmaid's Tale is ...more
Sep 03, 2019
Ron Charles
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
political-fiction
“The Testaments” opens in Gilead about 15 years after “The Handmaid’s Tale,” but it’s an entirely different novel in form and tone. Inevitably, the details are less shocking — at least in part because the horrors of Gilead’s male-centered theocracy are already so well known. When Offred first told her “sad and mutilated story,” we were hearing about the hangings, the Unbabies and the Sons of Jacob for the first time. But by now, Gildead’s breeding Ceremony is a creepy cultural touchstone.
Atwood ...more
Atwood ...more
3.5 stars.
It pains me to write this, because I love The Handmaid's Tale, but this book just felt incredibly unnecessary. The plot is predictable, with ‘revelations’ that are glaringly obvious, and characters that just don’t have the same level of depth of emotion that Offred had. With The Handmaid’s Tale, we have a novel that leaves a lot to the reader’s imagination. The ending is ambiguous and interesting, with a story that features an incredibly narrowed view of a world by a woman so ...more
It pains me to write this, because I love The Handmaid's Tale, but this book just felt incredibly unnecessary. The plot is predictable, with ‘revelations’ that are glaringly obvious, and characters that just don’t have the same level of depth of emotion that Offred had. With The Handmaid’s Tale, we have a novel that leaves a lot to the reader’s imagination. The ending is ambiguous and interesting, with a story that features an incredibly narrowed view of a world by a woman so ...more
Here I also keep another set of files, accessible only to a very few; I think of them as the secret histories of Gilead. All that festers is not gold, but it can be made profitable in non-monetary ways: knowledge is power.
Aunt Lydia
It was an “extraordinarily complicated process” to get copies of the manuscript, which is protected by a “ferocious” non-disclosure agreement.
Chair of Booker Judges as told to the Guardian
When, in 2197, the Thirteenth Symposium on Amazonian Studies takes place, the ...more
Aunt Lydia
It was an “extraordinarily complicated process” to get copies of the manuscript, which is protected by a “ferocious” non-disclosure agreement.
Chair of Booker Judges as told to the Guardian
When, in 2197, the Thirteenth Symposium on Amazonian Studies takes place, the ...more
Dec 04, 2019
Paula
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Paula by:
Booker
Co-winner of the Booker prize 2019
Brilliant! Absolutely phenomenal!
What a fantastic ride coming back to the world of Gilead 15 years later. The sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale is written very different from Margaret Atwood’s dystopian classic, but in no way does it suffer as a follow-up. The Testaments is superbly narrated by three women- two young women with one who escaped to Canada as a child, the other raised in Gilead, and, last but not least, the very powerful and dangerous, Aunt Lydia. I am ...more
Brilliant! Absolutely phenomenal!
What a fantastic ride coming back to the world of Gilead 15 years later. The sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale is written very different from Margaret Atwood’s dystopian classic, but in no way does it suffer as a follow-up. The Testaments is superbly narrated by three women- two young women with one who escaped to Canada as a child, the other raised in Gilead, and, last but not least, the very powerful and dangerous, Aunt Lydia. I am ...more
I've had less than good experiences in my last few Atwood reads - first I spent money on the novella series that was then removed from my Kindle with no renumeration. Then I held off and finally read The Heart Goes Last and ended up sorely disappointed in it. You can read my 2-star review but part of my complaint had to do with a feeling of author laziness on some level. Claiming it was an all new book, but to me half of it being very familiar since I'd already read it in the novella version.
...more
UPDATE OCTOBER 2019 The Coode Street Podcast goes into the SFnal roots of this title.
My hold came in today!! The librarians saw my name on the holds list and our library bought one, instead of relying on the system's many multiple copies. That way I got my hold immediately instead of being wherever I was, deep in the triple digits.
They like me. They really like me.
***
All three stars are for Aunt Lydia's sections. Agnes is annoying, a lump of nothing as required by her upbringing; it didn't make ...more
My hold came in today!! The librarians saw my name on the holds list and our library bought one, instead of relying on the system's many multiple copies. That way I got my hold immediately instead of being wherever I was, deep in the triple digits.
They like me. They really like me.
***
All three stars are for Aunt Lydia's sections. Agnes is annoying, a lump of nothing as required by her upbringing; it didn't make ...more
At the opening of The Testaments, a statue is unveiled. This is a statue of the infamous, puppet-master, Aunt Lydia. Readers of The Handmaid’s Tale will know her well.
The Testaments is narrated by three narrators, but Aunt Lydia is the dominant of the three. Through her secretive writings, we learn of her history, and how she rose to power to become the mastermind that sets in motion the destruction of Gilead. Again readers of The Handmaid’s Tale will recognise the diary style of writing that ...more
The Testaments is narrated by three narrators, but Aunt Lydia is the dominant of the three. Through her secretive writings, we learn of her history, and how she rose to power to become the mastermind that sets in motion the destruction of Gilead. Again readers of The Handmaid’s Tale will recognise the diary style of writing that ...more
In The Testaments, Margaret Atwood brings a thrilling conclusion to the story she started with The Handmaid's Tale about the dystopian Gilead. It does not contradict the previous novel and is not inconsistent with the television series starting the amazing Elisabeth Moss.
One of the key differences between this book and its predecessor is that rather than being narrated by June/Offred, this book has multiple narratives: Aunt Lydia (the same one from before), Agnes (a Commander's daughter inside ...more
One of the key differences between this book and its predecessor is that rather than being narrated by June/Offred, this book has multiple narratives: Aunt Lydia (the same one from before), Agnes (a Commander's daughter inside ...more
Joint Winner of the Booker Prize 2019
I can't help but be a little disappointed with this book. In my view The Handmaid's Tale didn't need a sequel, but I suppose we can't begrudge Atwood the opportunity to cash in on the popularity of the TV version. In my view this book is not worthy of a Booker shortlisting, and is possibly the weakest of the Atwood novels I have read.
There are two main problems - firstly by alternating the accounts of three narrators, the distinctive voices are lost, and ...more
I can't help but be a little disappointed with this book. In my view The Handmaid's Tale didn't need a sequel, but I suppose we can't begrudge Atwood the opportunity to cash in on the popularity of the TV version. In my view this book is not worthy of a Booker shortlisting, and is possibly the weakest of the Atwood novels I have read.
There are two main problems - firstly by alternating the accounts of three narrators, the distinctive voices are lost, and ...more
[3.5 stars] So I'm finally getting around to reviewing this. I finished it about 2 weeks ago, and didn't really mean to wait that long to write a proper review of it—but I'm glad I did. As I've sat with this book after finishing it, I think my initial feelings have faded a tiny bit. I will say first and foremost, reading this was incredibly enjoyable. It affirmed my love of Atwood's writing, at a sentence level, and storytelling. Her ability to weave plots and deliver complex themes in a very
...more
“You don’t believe the sky is falling until a chunk of it falls on you.”
In the highly anticipated sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood answers some of the questions that have tantalised readers for decades.
I’m not gonna lie... I could read about Gilead until the cows come home. I find this dystopian world absolutely fascinating - and equally terrifying, given our current climate. Combine this with Atwood’s sharp, insightful commentary and her stunning prose, and you have all the ...more
In the highly anticipated sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood answers some of the questions that have tantalised readers for decades.
I’m not gonna lie... I could read about Gilead until the cows come home. I find this dystopian world absolutely fascinating - and equally terrifying, given our current climate. Combine this with Atwood’s sharp, insightful commentary and her stunning prose, and you have all the ...more
Well, it’s written by Margaret Atwood who pens a very good read in all her books, so I added another *. Or it would have been 2.75*
The book itself in MHO is that it should have been left as it was.
So why did I buy it?
Because I was hoping it lead on from the previous book The Handmaids Tale.
For over 60% of this read it focused on the children. Nothing wrong with that, it was written really well.
On the whole I enjoyed it but it was slow moving, tedious at times.
Lydia is still around and as in the ...more
The book itself in MHO is that it should have been left as it was.
So why did I buy it?
Because I was hoping it lead on from the previous book The Handmaids Tale.
For over 60% of this read it focused on the children. Nothing wrong with that, it was written really well.
On the whole I enjoyed it but it was slow moving, tedious at times.
Lydia is still around and as in the ...more
In the stunning and much anticipated sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood sheds light on the dystopia she created all those years ago and which resonates on televisions even today. Welcome back to Gilead, which has been running as its own theocratic dictatorship for over fifteen years. Life has been interesting, though the almighty power of the Commanders seems to have developed cracks—just don’t tell them that. Agnes is a girl who has lived her entire life under Gilead, knowing no
...more
When it comes to highly anticipated books, assuming it's one I actually want to read, I like to get hold of a copy early on and read it before the hype gets started. In this case, I re-read Handmaid's Tale a few months ago to get a fresh take, then put a hold on this one at the library to ensure being at the head of the line. I did watch the first season of the Hulu series, since I had been told that followed the first book very closely, but stopped there until the book was published.
My opinion ...more
My opinion ...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bailey's/Orange W...: * January 2020 The Testaments | 10 | 32 | Jan 17, 2020 02:17PM | |
| Tournament of Books: The Testaments | 9 | 94 | Jan 17, 2020 01:04PM | |
| Overdue Podcast: Ep 396 - The Testaments by Margaret Atwood | 1 | 31 | Jan 13, 2020 12:30PM | |
| The Little Book t...: Folder # 1 The Testaments by Margaret Atwood | 2 | 3 | Jan 07, 2020 02:48PM |
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Margaret Atwood was born in 1939 in Ottawa and grew up in northern Ontario, Quebec, and Toronto. She received her undergraduate degree from Victoria College at the University of Toronto and her master's degree from Radcliffe College.
Throughout her writing career, Margaret Atwood has received numerous awards and honourary degrees. She is the author of more than thirty-five volumes of poetry, ...more
Throughout her writing career, Margaret Atwood has received numerous awards and honourary degrees. She is the author of more than thirty-five volumes of poetry, ...more
Other books in the series
The Handmaid's Tale
(2 books)
1 trivia question
More quizzes & trivia...
“You don’t believe the sky is falling until a chunk of it falls on you.”
—
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“As they say, history does not repeat itself, but it rhymes.”
—
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Jan 16, 2020 09:47AM
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