- Paperback
- Publisher: Anchor (1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0385491085
- ISBN-13: 978-0385491082
- Product Dimensions: 13.1 x 1.8 x 20.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 281 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Engrossing,
By A Customer
This review is from: Lady Oracle (Paperback)
Well I went to Canada and figured trying out a Margaret Atwood would be appropriate. This novel reminds me of good John Irving. It combines a healthy amount of plot to keep things moving, along with quirky / interesting characters that remain just normal and developed enough to avoid becoming farcical. Moreover, the narrator is a strong central figure that ties things together and keeps the book focused. Finally, the narrator goes through introspection and change, and Atwood gently guides the reader there via use of a "story within a story" that is never overbearing. I know I didn't pick up on all of the symbolism and "deeper meanings" of Joan, but I know I enjoyed being along for the ride with her. Very much recommended for the thoughtful reader.
4.0 out of 5 stars
I enjoyed it. Years ago!!,
By
This review is from: Lady Oracle (Paperback)
In my early 20s I was regularly reading Atwood's books. Her characters were so surly and had such 'attitude'. Fun!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.4 out of 5 stars (23 customer reviews) 46 of 48 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Atwood's funniest book has a lot more than laughs to offer,
By Clare Wilson - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Lady Oracle (Paperback)
"Lady Oracle"'s Joan is one of my favorite of Margaret Atwood's heroines. She overcomes the problem of her body image and an unhealthy relationship with her mother with a great sense of humor and a definite mind of her own. My favorite thing about this book is the way Joan weaves her own story into the historical romances she churns out for money. I also love the cynical depiction of the literary world which creates her accidental cult hit "Lady Oracle" out of an experiment in Automatic Writing. The men in Joan's life don't know what to make of her, and their attempts to fit her into their predetermined roles never fail to backfire with hilarious results. As always, Margaret Atwood is right on target.
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fantastic Satire!,
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Lady Oracle (Paperback)
This is most definately one of my all time favourite books. The way Margaret Atwood examines how pre-occupied our society is about body image is both halirious, sad and unbelievably realistic. She is able to demonstrate how we all struggle to find our identity while at the same time are terrified to come to terms with our true selves, past and present. Despite the fact, the protagonist went to ridiculous extremes to hide her past, I felt I could relate to her situation. This is a wonderful book for anyone who has struggled with their self image. It is also a great read for anyone who loves to laugh!
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
A must for any Atwood fan,
By Jason Argentum - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Lady Oracle (Paperback)
_Lady Oracle_ is, essentially, a novel told mostly as a huge flashback. That said, it was quite enjoyable, even if the plot didn't make complete sense. The main character, Joan Foster, fakes her own death to escape the stresses of her current life, and moves to Italy, from where she tells us the majority of the story. After a traumatic childhood, and having grown dangerously overweight (which she did as a psychological weapon against her mother), Joan's Aunt Lou dies, leaving her a substantial amount of money on the condition that Joan lose 100 pounds. Joan loses the weight, ultimately causing more problems with her mother (because her mother wanted to be the one to get Joan to slim down), ultimately culminating with her mother attempting (and failing) to stab her. Joan moves to England and winds up mistress to an exiled, reactionary Polish count. From here she begins writing trashy Gothic romances for a living under the pseudonym of L. Delacourt. She later meets and marries Arthur, a manic socialist (or something) activist. Eventually she has a book published under her own name, a collection of poetry entitled (coincidentally enough) Lady Oracle, which becomes an immediate cult classic. This book eventually leads to her faked death, as her celebrity leads her to (among other things) an affair with an avante-garde artist who calls himself the Royal Porcupine, and an ex-CBC anchor intent on blackmailing her.It struck me, though, that Joan doesn't really seem to believe in much of anything. She goes through the motions for people to make them happy. She is whatever those around her want her to be. In fact, the only thing she ever seems to do of her own volition is fake her death. Initiative is not on Joan Foster's agenda. Neither is truth. One wonders a bit if anything is. In any case, _Lady Oracle_ is good, but it's nowhere near as good as _The Handmaid's Tale_. If you haven't read the latter already, I highly recommend it. |
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
