content: In my opinion "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood is a rather annoying lecture if you are not interested in the issue of dystopias and totalitarian states.Lenghty and very detailed descriptions of the everyday life of the protagonist might force the bravest readers to surrender.The basic idea, however,is well chosen and the topic offers a lot of potential to create a disturbing and even horrific vision of the future. Atwood delivers with her novel a new aspect in the various dystopias of the 20th century: the tyranny of a fundamental christian sect.Considering all these aspects one could remark that the artistic realization leaves a lot to be desired.But the final question,if the handmaid's tale is really worth reading is difficult to answer.If you are interested in becoming acquainted with dystopian novels you will be more content with one of the classic dystopias, such as Orwell's "1984" or Huxley's "Brave New World".