Episode Details
Back to Episodes
The Handmaid’s Tale Ch. 25: For Him, She’s Only a Whim | Banned Books Comedy
Description
The Handmaid fakes her way through a dropped breakfast tray, spends an afternoon watching Serena Joy take her frustrations out on the tulips, and settles into her strange, quiet arrangement with the Commander — Scrabble, small gifts, and a forbidden magazine he keeps just for the two of them.
This episode includes AI-voiced content, including our trusty fact-checking robot, Robot.
Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books chapter by chapter — we don't read ahead, so you're discovering the story with us.
Things To Listen For:
- Dan and Jennifer diagnose the most efficient way to build a shiv out of a breakfast tray
- Serena Joy takes her rage out on the tulips, and the Handmaids have theories
- The Commander pulls a forbidden Vogue magazine out of his desk drawer like it's the ultimate gift
- Dan pitches the Commander for Undercover Boss
- The exact line the Commander says that Robot can't let go of: "We can always look it up"
- Why butter, of all things, becomes the funniest and saddest moment in the chapter
Why was The Handmaid's Tale banned?
This chapter's forbidden Vogue magazine and Scrabble sessions get right at what makes school boards nervous: a world where owning a dictionary or a fashion magazine is treated as more dangerous than the man who controls every other part of a woman's life.
If this is your first episode, you're fine starting here. Our fact-checking Robot catches you up fast, then we read the next chapter (spoilers).
Banworthy to Bingeworthy
Robot's not the only one keeping tabs on the news. Check out:
- Good News for Lefties — Beowulf Rochlen's show covering the good stuff happening for progressives, since somebody has to.
Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts
Rate, review, and follow us on Apple Podcasts to help other scary book people find us!
Disclaimer
Banned Camp features readings and discussions of banned books for the purpose of criticism, commentary, education, and entertainment, in accordance with fair use guidelines.
The material used from the book The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is shared under these principles, with the intent of provoking thought and discussion about literature, censorship, and societal issues. The original work remains fully owned by its copyright holders, and we strongly encourage listeners to purchase a copy here to experience the book in its entirety.
https://bookshop.org/a/20953/9780385490818
This podcast is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to Margaret Atwood, her estate, or the publishers of The Handmaid's Tale. Any monetization of the podcast is separate from the copyrighted material discussed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was The Handmaid's Tale banned?
The Handmaid's Tale has been challenged or banned in American schools and libraries every single year since its publication in 1985. It was the most challenged book in the United States in 2023. It has been targeted for profanity, sexually explicit content, and content deemed "offensive to Christians." But the deeper reason is that Margaret Atwood showed what happens when a government uses religion, tradition, and "protecting families" as justification for stripping women of their rights, their names, and their autonomy. That's the part that actually scares book banners, because it looks a lot like Tuesday.
Is there a podcast that reads The Handmaid's Tale chapter by chapter?
That's us. Banned Camp reads a different banned book every season, one chapter at a time — neither host has