Book Club with Margaret Atwood

For our February Book Club Atwood will revisit the first novel in her Maddaddam trilogy. A dystopian parable, Oryx and Crake (2003), was Atwood’s first return to the future since The Handmaid’s Tale, placing the reader in a world ravaged by a man-made plague. Atwood paints a stark warning about humanity’s impact on the natural world, in a novel she once described as a “fun-packed, joke-filled, rollicking adventure tale about the end of the human race.” She has said of her work, “I am not a prophet. Science fiction is really about now.”

Atwood’s novels include Alias Grace, The Robber Bride and the Booker-winning The Blind Assassin. When the hugely influential The Handmaid’s Tale was first adapted for TV it seemed alarmingly relevant to our political moment. The publication of its sequel, The Testaments, was the literary event of 2019.

Join us for this rare opportunity to hear from one of the most singular and influential voices in contemporary fiction.

This livestreamed event is part of our online Book Club series, in which The Guardian’s chief books writer, Lisa Allardice, talks to leading writers about their latest novels, creative process and isolation. They will also be answering your live questions.

Running time: 60 minutes

If you live in the UK, you can purchase a ticket with a paperback copy of Oryx and Crake at checkout for the special combined price of £14 including postage and packing (RRP £9.99)*.

This event will be hosted on a third-party live streaming platform BlueJeans, please refer to their privacy policy before purchasing a ticket to the event. After registering, you will receive a unique link in advance to access the event online.

If you require closed captions to be available on this event notify us on your booking form when making your purchase.

*Books will be dispatched early in 2021. Please note that in the current circumstances, some books may be delayed. If we experience any delay in getting your copy to you, we will contact you by email to let you know.

This event is being streamed globally.

7pm GMT | 8pm CET | 11am PST | 2pm EST

Or use this time zone converter to check your local live streaming time.