Margaret Atwood was born in 1939 in Ottawa, but grew up in Northern Ontario and Quebec. She was the second of three children and was born to a entomologist. Her childhood was greatly influenced by her father’s occupation. Margaret spent countless hours in the woods behind her house and traveled back and forth between the major cities of Canada. She didn’t officially begin school until the age of eight, and because of this, she starting writing literature at only the age of six. Atwood attended Victoria College, followed by the University of Toronto, and later went to Radcliff College for her master’s degree.
She is best known for her novels The Edible Woman (1969), The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), The Robber Bride (1994); however, she is the author of more than forty volumes of poetry, children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction. Atwoods’s work has been published in more than forty languages, including Farsi, Japanese, Turkish, Finnish, Korean, Icelandic and Estonian.
In addition to being an author, Atwood is an environmental activist. She was President of International P.E.N., Canadian Centre from 1984-1986. She and Graeme Gibson are the Joint Honourary Presidents of the Rare Bird Society within BirdLife International. Ms. Atwood is also a current Vice-President of PEN International.
She often writes about feminism, however doesn’t consider herself to be one. Her books often portray women dominated by men in a patriarchal society. She denies that her book, The Edible Woman, is feminist even though it was published coinciding with the early second wave of the feminist movement.
Margaret Atwood currently resides in Toronto where she continues to write and publish novels and poems. Her most recent novel, the non-fiction book, Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth was adapted for the screen in 2012.
She is best known for her novels The Edible Woman (1969), The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), The Robber Bride (1994); however, she is the author of more than forty volumes of poetry, children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction. Atwoods’s work has been published in more than forty languages, including Farsi, Japanese, Turkish, Finnish, Korean, Icelandic and Estonian.
In addition to being an author, Atwood is an environmental activist. She was President of International P.E.N., Canadian Centre from 1984-1986. She and Graeme Gibson are the Joint Honourary Presidents of the Rare Bird Society within BirdLife International. Ms. Atwood is also a current Vice-President of PEN International.
She often writes about feminism, however doesn’t consider herself to be one. Her books often portray women dominated by men in a patriarchal society. She denies that her book, The Edible Woman, is feminist even though it was published coinciding with the early second wave of the feminist movement.
Margaret Atwood currently resides in Toronto where she continues to write and publish novels and poems. Her most recent novel, the non-fiction book, Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth was adapted for the screen in 2012.