"Give me children, or else I die."

Just a few notes before I actually start some semblance of a "review": I read this book on my own accord (not for a class). This is the first "classic" I've read on my own. Therefore, I almost certainly missed a bunch of themes and nuances, and I apologize if something went over my head. Additionally, I thought my decision to read this on my own time would make me enjoy it more (as I have a tendency to initially dislike books that were assigned to me), but honestly, the experience was about the same; it just felt less academic, and my annotations - which I will include below - aren't very intelligent.

So, The Handmaid's Tale itself. I chose this as my first "on my own" classic to read, given the current circumstances involving reproductive rights for women, and while I am satisfied with it, I will admit that I think has fallen into the trap of Abby's Extremely High Expectations. And, as it seems to be with most classics I read, I like the concepts but not the execution.

"One detaches oneself. One describes."

This quote right here sums up the narration style for the novel, and something I struggled with. Almost the entire story is a series of observations, some of which have what I perceived to be little meaning in relation to the story as a whole. Do I understand why? Yes. Complacency is one of the themes of the novel, and by observing rather than analyzing or acting, Offred is protecting herself. She says at one point, "If it’s a story I’m telling, then I have control over the ending. Then there will be an ending, to the story, and real life will come after it. I can pick up where I left off." The narration is the only thing in this world that Offred has control of, and I really like that idea. While it's an interesting concept, it's not a super interesting read and the narration style was part of the reason I had to require myself to read a certain page amount each day.
That being said, I really did enjoy the themes and messages that this book expressed, especially regarding bodily autonomy. I'll include some of the quotes I bookmarked below:

"There is more than one kind of freedom, said Aunt Lydia. Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from."

"We were a society dying, said Aunt Lydia, of too much choice."

"Maybe none of this is about control. Maybe it isn’t really about who can own whom, who can do what to whom and get away with it, even as far as death. Maybe it isn’t about who can sit and who has to kneel or stand or lie down, legs spread open. Maybe it’s about who can do what to whom and be forgiven for it. Never tell me it amounts to the same thing."

"We are two-legged wombs, that’s all: sacred vessels, ambulatory chalices."

"You are a transitional generation, said Aunt Lydia. It is the hardest for you. We know the sacrifices you are being expected to make."

I won't ramble on for much longer, as I know there's nothing about this book I could say that hasn't already been said. This is one of the few classics I've read that I have relatively few issues with, and, especially in our current age, I think it deserves the recognition it gets.
I'm not going to give The Handmaid's Tale a number rating, as I feel like it's not fair to rate books of this kind for how much (or little) I enjoyed them, but all I'll say is that it's one of the few classics that I hope to reread some day.
Link to Libby Annotations