The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

These excerpts from Margaret Atwood’s novel The Blind Assassin showcase a complex, multi-layered narrative built through fictional newspaper clippings, personal memoirs, and a story-within-a-story. The text follows the Chase family, specifically sisters Iris and Laura, as they navigate a life marked by industrial decline, social scandal, and tragic deaths. Central to the plot is a posthumously published book attributed to Laura, which details a clandestine affair and a pulp science fiction tale about the city of Sakiel-Norn. Through the elderly Iris’s reflections, the reader encounters themes of betrayal, class conflict, and the manipulation of truth across different decades. Ultimately, the collected fragments explore how memory and silence shape the legacy of a prominent but crumbling Canadian dynasty.