The Blind Assassin : A Novel

Margaret Atwood takes the art of storytelling to new heights in a dazzling novel that unfolds layer by astonishing layer and concludes in a brilliant and wonderfully satisfying twist. Told in a style that magnificently captures the colloquialisms and clichés of the 1930s and 1940s, The Blind Assassin is a richly layered and uniquely rewarding experience.It opens with these simple, resonant words: "Ten days after the war ended, my sister drove a car off the bridge." They are spoken by Iris, whose terse account of her sister Laura's death in 1945 is followed by an inquest report proclaiming the death accidental. But just as the reader expects to settle into Laura's story, Atwood introduces a novel-within-a-novel. Entitled The Blind Assassin, it is a science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in dingy backstreet rooms. When we return to Iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist.For the past twenty-five years, Margaret Atwood has written works of striking originality and imagination. In The Blind Assassin, she stretches the limits of her accomplishments as never before, creating a novel that is entertaining and profoundly serious. The Blind Assassin proves once again that Atwood is one of the most talented, daring, and exciting writers of our time. Like The Handmaid's Tale, it is destined to become a classic. Told In The Story Within A Story Fashion, The Reader Learns About The Mysterious Death Of One Sister From Her Surviving Sister. The Bridge -- The Toronto Star, 1945 -- The Blind Assassin : Perennials For The Rock Garden -- The Hard-boiled Egg -- The Globe And Mail -- The Park Bench -- The Toronto Star, 1975 -- The Carpets -- The Globe And Mail -- The Lipstick Heart -- The Colonel Henry Parkman High School Home And School And Alumni Association Bulletin, 1998 -- The Presentation -- The Silver Box -- The Button Factory -- Avilion -- The Trousseau -- The Gramaphone -- Bread Day -- Black Ribbons -- The Soda -- The Cafe -- The Port Ticonderoga Herald And Banner, 1933 -- The Chenille Spread -- The Mail And Empire, 1934 -- The Messenger -- The Mail And Empire, 1934 -- Horses Of The Night -- Mayfair, 1935 -- The Bronze Bell -- The Fur Coat -- The Weary Soldier -- Miss Violence -- Ovid's Metamorphoses -- The Button Factory Picnic -- Loaf Givers -- Hand-tinting -- The Cold Cellar -- The Attic -- The Imperial Room -- The Arcadian Court -- The Tango -- The Houndstooth Suit -- Red Brocade -- The Toronto Star, 1935 -- Street Walk -- The Janitor -- Mayfair, 1936 -- Alien On Ice -- The Steamer Trunk -- The Fire Pit -- Postcards From Europe -- The Eggshell Hat -- Besotted -- Sunnyside -- Xanadu -- Carnivore Stories -- Mayfair, 1936 -- Peach Women Of Aa'a -- The Mail And Empire, 1936 -- The Top Hat Grill -- The Laundry -- The Ashtray -- The Man With His Head On Fire -- The Water Nixie -- The Chestnut Tree -- Lizard Men Of Xenor -- Mayfair, 1937 -- Letter From Bellavista -- The Tower -- The Globe And Mail, 1937 -- Union Station -- The Cubicle -- The Kitten -- Beautiful View -- Brightly Shone The Moon -- Betty's Lunchonette -- The Message -- The Globe And Mail, 1938 -- Mayfair, 1939 -- The Be Rage Room -- Yellow Curtains -- The Telegram -- The Destruction Of Sakiel-norn -- Gloves -- Home Fires -- Diana Sweets -- Escarpment -- The Golden Lock -- Victory Comes And Goes -- The Heap Of Rubble -- The Blind Assassin, Epilogue : The Other Hand -- The Port Ticonderoga Herald And Banner, 1999 -- The Threshold. Margaret Atwood. Originally Published By Nan A. Talese ... In 2000--t.p. Verso. Winner Of The Booker Prize, 2000. SUMMARY: The Blind Assassin opens with these simple, resonant words: "Ten days after the war ended, my sister Laura drove a car off a bridge." They are spoken by Iris, whose terse account of her sister's death in 1945 is followed by an inquest report proclaiming the death accidental. But just as the reader expects to settle into Laura?s story, Atwood introduces a novel-within-a-novel. Entitled The Blind Assassin, it is a science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in dingy backstreet rooms. When we return to Iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist. Brilliantly weaving together such seemingly disparate elements, Atwood creates a world of astonishing vision and unforgettable impact. SUMMARY: The Blind Assassin opens with these simple, resonant words: "Ten days after the war ended, my sister Laura drove a car off a bridge." They are spoken by Iris, whose terse account of her sister's death in 1945 is followed by an inquest report proclaiming the death accidental. But just as the reader expects to settle into Laura?s story, Atwood introduces a novel-within-a-novel. Entitled The Blind Assassin, it is a science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in dingy backstreet rooms. When we return to Iris, it is through a 1947 newspaper article announcing the discovery of a sailboat carrying the dead body of her husband, a distinguished industrialist. Brilliantly weaving together such seemingly disparate elements, Atwood creates a world of astonishing vision and unforgettable impact. Literary,Fiction,General,Fiction - General,Romance,Psychological fiction,Sisters,Widows,Domestic fiction,Reading Group Guide,Women novelists,Older women,Sisters - Death,Aged women,Fiction - Authorship The bestselling author of The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments weaves together strands of gothic suspense, romance, and science fiction into one utterly spellbinding narrative, beginning with the mysterious death of a young woman named Laura Chase in 1945. Decades later, Laura's sister Iris recounts her memories of their childhood, and of the dramatic deaths that have punctuated their wealthy, eccentric family's history. Intertwined with Iris's account are chapters from the scandalous novel that made Laura famous, in which two illicit lovers amuse each other by spinning a tale of a blind killer on a distant planet. These richly layered stories-within-stories gradually illuminate the secrets that have long haunted the Chase family, coming together in a brilliant and astonishing final twist. More than fifty years on, Iris Chase is remembering Laura's mysterious death. And so begins an extraordinary and compelling story of two sisters and their secrets. Set against a panoramic backdrop of twentieth-century history, The Blind Assassin is an epic tale of memory, intrigue and betrayal... A science fiction story told by two unnamed lovers who meet in a dingy backstreet room. Set in a multi-layered story of the death of a woman's sister and husband in the 1940's, with a novel-within-a novel as a background