Never one to shy away from politically charged issues, Toronto’s beloved author Margaret Atwood jumped into the censorship debate south of the border with two feet by teaming up with her publisher to produce an entirely new version of her classic novel The Handmaid’s Tale. But this one is unburnable.
“I never thought I’d be trying to burn one of my own books… and failing,” said Atwood, in a statement.
“The Handmaid’s Tale has been banned many times — sometimes by whole countries, such as Portugal and Spain in the days of Salazar and the Francoists, sometimes by school boards, sometimes by libraries. Let’s hope we don’t reach the stage of wholesale book burnings, as in Fahrenheit 451. But if we do, let’s hope some books will prove unburnable — that they will travel underground, as prohibited books did in the Soviet Union.”
Atwood’s big move is in response to the increase in book banning in the United States and to raise money to support PEN America’s crucial work to counter this national crisis of censorship.
The fireproof edition of The Handmaid’s Tale serves as a powerful symbol against censorship.
In the video accompanying the launch, Atwood, a graduate of Toronto’s Leaside High School, and one of the country’s best-known and beloved authors actually does a little quality control test by trying to torch the book with a flamethrower.
This single-copy special edition of The Handmaid’s Tale was produced by creative agency Rethink, and fabricated in Toronto by the graphic arts specialty and bookbinding atelier The Gas Company Inc.
The Unburnable Book, unveiled on May 23 at the PEN America Literary Gala in New York City, is currently being presented for auction online by Sotheby’s until June 7.