I have been keeping an eye on this series over in !BannedBooks@literature.cafe and was intending to link the discussions for SF titles that I saw. The Handmaid's Tale is definitely an SF title that has seen it's share of fans and detractors. It has been banned or attempted to be banned in many jurisdictions including Western ones.
What is the communities thoughts on this book, does it unfairly extend Christian philosophy into questionable territory or does it not go far enough? Is it pornography, and if so, why? Let's hear your thoughts.
The main problem with this book is in how it is applied by various people to Christianity in general (as opposed to a fringe cult), or used as an analogy of events today. It might apply in some cases, but those are so rare and unusual (back woods polygamist cults and the like), that they really don't deserve to be discussed in context of current politics.