Lady Oracle

I randomly stumbled across this book and I'm so glad. I'd never read any of Atwood's books before this, and was extremely impressed. Her book is a truly inspired blend of hilarious farcical elements combined with haunting, melancholy passages. Joan is an extremely well drawn and three dimensional character, easy to empathize with in spite of, and because of, her numerous quirks, neuroses, and personalities. Combined with Atwood's... Read Full Review

Like in "Cat's Eye," Atwood does an excellent job in this book of exploring female relationships---mother/daughter, husband/wife, and girlfriends. This book really spoke to me, and I encourage any woman hoping to make sense of strained relationships to read this book. Atwood captures the essence of such relationships and thus is able to put into written word the feelings that few of us are able to verbalize. After reading... Read Full Review

Hysterical. You can't help but laugh at Joan's childhood mishaps, dietary comments and exploration of the spiritual world. Her husband is a lout, her lover a kook, yet somehow, Joan evolves as a strong woman to be reckoned with. A must-have. Quite possibly Atwood's best novel.

"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... Read Full Review

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... Read Full Review