The Year of the Flood is Margaret Atwood's novel to be released on September 22, 2009 in the United States, and September 7, 2009, in the United Kingdom.[1]The novel has also been listed with the title God's Gardeners,[2] though Atwood herself has said that this is not the final intended title. The novel has been mentioned in numerous newspaper review articles looking forward to notable fiction of 2009.[3][4]
The book focuses on a group called God's Gardeners, a small community of survivors of the same environmental catastrophe depicted in Atwood's earlier novelOryx and Crake. The earlier novel contained several brief references to the group. It answers some of the questions of Oryx and Crake and reveals who the three real human figures are who appear at the end of the earlier book.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Year_of_the_Flood
I like and respect enormously Margaret Atwood as extremely intelligent, enoromously well read and a truely great writer. Her novel Alias Grace is vivid and insightful, portraying the harsh life of Canada in the 1840s.
The story is about the notorious 1843 murders of Thomas Kinnear and his housekeeper Nancy Montgomery in Upper Canada. Two servants of the Kinnear household, Grace Marks and James McDermott, were convicted of the crime. McDermott was hanged and Marks was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Although the novel is based on factual events, Atwood constructs a narrative with a fictional doctor, Simon Jordan, who researches the case. Although ostensibly conducting research into criminal behaviour, he slowly becomes personally involved in the story of Grace Marks and seeks to reconcile the mild mannered woman he sees with the murder of which she has been convicted.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alias_Grace
I have also read one of her short novels, re-telling greek myth in "The Penelopiad"
The novella recaps Penelope’s life in hindsight from 21st century Hades; she recalls her family life in Sparta, her marriage to Odysseus, her dealing with suitors during his absence, and the aftermath of Odysseus' return. The relationship with her parents was challenging: her father became overly affectionate after attempting to murder her, and her mother was absent-minded and negligent. At fifteen, Penelope married Odysseus, who had rigged the contest that decided which suitor would marry her. Penelope was happy with him, even though he was mocked behind his back by Helen and some maids for his short stature and lesser developed home, Ithaca. The couple broke with tradition by moving to the husband’s kingdom. In Ithaca, neither Odysseus’ mother Anticleia, nor his nurseEurycleia, liked Penelope but eventually Eurycleia helped Penelope settle into her new role and became friendly, but often patronising. Shortly after the birth of their son, Telemachus, Odysseus was called to war, leaving Penelope to run the kingdom and raise Telemachus alone. News of the war and rumours of Odysseus’ journey back sporadically reached Ithaca and with the growing possibility that Odysseus was not returning an increasing number of suitors moved in to court Penelope. Convinced the suitors were more interested in controlling her kingdom than loving her, she stalled them. The suitors pressured her by consuming and wasting much of the kingdom's resources. She feared violence if she outright denied their offer of marriage so she announced she would make her decision on which to marry once she finished her father-in-law’s shroud. She enlisted twelve maids to help her unravel the shroud at night and spy on the suitors. Odysseus eventually returned but in disguise. Penelope recognised him immediately and instructed her maids not to reveal his identity. After the suitors were massacred, Odysseus instructed Telemachus to execute the maids who he believed were in league with them. Twelve were hanged while Penelope slept. Afterwards, Penelope and Odysseus told each other stories of their time apart, but on the issue of the maids Penelope remained silent to avoid the appearance of sympathy for those already judged and condemned as traitors.[3]
A liitle about Margaret Atwood:
Margaret Eleanor Atwood, CC, O.Ont, FRSC (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian author, poet, critic, feminist and social campaigner. She is among the most-honoured authors of fiction in recent history; she is a winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and Prince of Asturias award for Literature, has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize five times, winning once, and has been a finalist for the Governor General's Award seven times, winning twice.[1] While she may be best known for her work as a novelist, she is also an award winning poet, having published 15 books of poetry to date.[2][3] Many of her poems have been inspired by myths, and fairy tales, which were an interest of hers from an early age.[4] Atwood has also published short stories inTamarack Review, Alphabet, Harper's, CBC Anthology, Ms., Saturday Night, Playboy, and many other magazines.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Atwood
polemical adjective
of, relating to, or involving strongly critical, controversial, or disputatious writing or speech : a polemical essay.
polemic essays from the Vietnam era critical, hostile, bitter, polemic, virulent, vitriolic, venomous, caustic, trenchant, cutting, acerbic, sardonic, sarcastic, scathing, sharp, incisive, devastating.
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