Margaret Atwood pays homage to Shakespeare's The Tempest in her latest work, Hag-Seed. Atwood's main character, Felix, is a top theater director who was usurped by his assistant Tony. Tony teamed against Felix and orchestrated his dismissal in a very humiliating fashion.
At the time of Felix's embarrassing exit, he was just starting work on his production of The Tempest to honor his daughter, Miranda, who died at 3 years old. Felix doesn't leave in tears, he leaves in red-hot anger. He then sells his belongings and moves into an isolated country shack for the next nine years.
This is very different from what I've read in the past from Atwood. This is an entertaining clash between Atwood's amazing ability at character development and a well known Shakespearean classic. One of my favorite things about this book was that Felix's voice in my head while reading sounded like David Rakoff, and that delighted me.
If you are new to Atwood, I'm not sure that I would suggest this as your first experience. If you want to dip your toe into some fucking amazing books, check out The Handmaid's Tale or The Robber Bride.
Hag-Seed will be available for sale on October 11th!
