I'd be interested to read a 'positive' review from someone who hasn't read Oryx and Crake - if there's any out there?! Be forewarned about the awful hymns! They would be readable as straightforward text, but are unbearable as 'sincere' performed works. It also works to balance out the masculine perspective of the earlier work. I wondered whether it made a difference as to whether one had read Oryx and Crake, as this book is something akin to a sequel. Perhaps (this is just a suggestion!) some male readers can't relate to the experience of most of the earth's women as sexual commodities. As for the characters, I found them believable, engaging and sympathetic. Atwood has always been great at problematising the relationships between religion, science and society, and this could be the real triumph of the book. The production decision to arrange and perform the hymns was COMPLETELY wrong - bad idea, bad arrangements, bad performances! Fortunately, my audio-book reader meant I could listen to them at x2 speed, with the added bonus of making them sound like they were underwater! Aside from that, I loved the book and the reading.

Part of what changed my mind was the striking division in customer reviews: female readers loved it, male readers hated it. But the negative reviews meant I didn't buy it immediately. I do like Margaret Atwood, and had read and loved Oryx and Crake. I was both curious and dubious about this book after reading the reviews.

The flood margaret atwood