Margaret Atwood

18 November 1939

Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian novelist, poet, literary critic, and inventor. Since 1961, she has published more than 50 books of fiction, poetry, and critical essays, including 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of nonfiction, nine collections of short fiction, eight children's books, two graphic novels, and a number of small press editions of both poetry and fiction. Her work has been published in over 40 countries, and a number of her works have been adapted for film and television. Her best-known work is the 1985 dystopian novel *The Handmaid's Tale,* and her novels also include *Cat's Eye,* shortlisted for the Booker Prize; Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy; *The Blind Assassin,* winner of the 2000 Booker Prize; *Oryx and Crake,* shortlisted for the 2003 Booker Prize; *The Penelopiad; The Heart Goes Last;* *Hag-seed;* and *The Testaments,* a sequel to *The Handmaid's Tale.*