.Atwood brilliantly pulls off the caper in a short novel that should be assigned to high school students as a hilarious riff on one of Shakespeare.s more mystifying plays. It.s much more than a retelling; it.s an ingenious analysis and critique rolled into one.. .St. Louis Post-Dispatch
.Atwood has designed an ingenious doubling of the plot of .The Tempest.: Felix, the usurped director, finds himself cast by circumstances as a real-life version of Prospero, the usurped Duke. If you know the play well, these echoes grow stronger when Felix decides to exact his revenge by conjuring up a new version of .The Tempest. designed to overwhelm his enemies.. .The Washington Post
.A marvel of gorgeous yet economical prose, in the service of a story that.s utterly heartbreaking yet pierced by humor, with a plot that retains considerable subtlety even as the original.s back story falls neatly into place.. .New York Times Book Review
.What makes the book thrilling, and hugely pleasurable, is how closely Atwood hews to Shakespeare even as she casts her own potent charms, rap-composition included. Part Shakespeare, part Atwood, .Hag-Seed. is a most delicate monster . and that.s .delicate. in the 17th-century sense. It.s delightful.. . The Boston Globe
.Margaret Atwood.s modern retelling is an entertaining romp of revenge, redemption.. .Minneapolis Star-Tribune