Write your own review!
Colleen T. (Lakewood, CO)
(08/24/09)
Year of the Flood
Margaret Atwood has given us both a terrifying and fascinating look at a possible future, one that seems more realistic than the many others that have been written. I could not put it down and the characters are especially endearing.
Patricia M. (Highland Heights, OH)
(08/18/09)
The Year of the Flood
The Year of the Flood is an interesting look at what would happen if there was a Flood that did not involve water and yet wiped out most of the people on earth. It looks at a variety of issues that would affect the future earth including bioengineering of plants and animals. It is an excellent portrayal of what might be. Science fiction fans will love the future world that is presented. The difficulty is that being able to picture in your mind the genetically spliced animals can become a problem with the way the reader “sees” what he or she is reading. This would be a great movie.
Julia H. (Excelsior, MN)
(08/17/09)
The years and years of the flood.
There is no doubt that this a sobering apocalyptic view of some unknown future time, but I think the title was a bit of a misnomer. There is way more than a year covered here and it took me a long time to get into the swing of the story. Both of our main characters, Toby and Ren are telling their tales back and forth throughout twenty-five years of dystopian life with the evil corporation, gene-mutating scientists and a ravaged environment all present. Although Atwood certainly worked hard--there are Adam One's sermons and hymns from the Gardener's Oral Hymnbook reproduced for us, it just wasn't the home run I was hoping for. Try The Handmaid's Tale for a better cautionary view of the future.
Lesley F. (San Diego, CA)
(08/15/09)
An Atwood Gardener Sings Praises
I loved The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. With The Year of the Flood I was hooked again by the strong women. A little science fiction, with its mystery and danger, and many Biblical references that are at turns dead on, ironic, or hilarious, made this great fun to read. I loved the references to Saints Jane, Terry, and Farley. I want the soundtrack from the Gardeners' Oral Hymnbook and the edition of "Lives of the Saints", both sure to come out as the following grows.
Donna M. (Plymouth, MN)
(08/09/09)
Dystopic Sci Fi that hits close too home
I enjoyed this book immensely. I would recommend reading "Oryx and Crake" before trying this book. When I first read "Oryx and Crake," for which "The Year of the Flood" is a sequel, I thought it was an appealingly silly vision of a dystopic future. But after reading "The Year of the Flood," it no longer sounds silly, it sounds like some of the events in the book could really happen. If you liked "Brave New World," "The Road," or "We," you would probably enjoy this book.
Vicki R. (York, PA)
(08/07/09)
Another great book by Atwood
The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood is an excellent read. I have enjoyed Atwood's books ever since first reading The Handmaid's Tale. This is another futuristic novel that follows the same time period as Atwood's previous novel Oryx and Crake. I found the book very interesting in the way Atwood used two characters to tell the story. Ren is a teenager/young adult through much of the story while Toby is a more mature responsible adult. You get to see events happen through both of these points of view. Overall I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading.
Kathy S. (Coral Gables, FL)
(08/06/09)
ended too early
This book has good character development, but I kept waiting for the story to get going, and then it ended. I would of liked more of the "current year", even if it meant a longer book. I felt like she wrapped things up too early and too neatly.
Donna N. (High Rolls, New Mexico)
(07/30/09)
disappointing futuristic story
the only thing I liked about Margaret Atwood's Year of the Flood, was the cover, which is beautiful. I am a great fan of her early works, Handmaid's Tale and Surfacing, which made my disappointment in this book even more surprising to me. I found the story trite and overloaded with religiosity. the main characters were one-dimensional and never fully developed. the pseudo-environmentalism was very heavy-handed. Sorry, Margaret,but you can do better.