The Handmaid’s Tale | Chapter 35: Sixty Seconds With Something She Isn’t Allowed to Keep
Apple Podcasts 
Spotify 
Amazon Music 
iHeartRadio 
PocketCasts 
TuneIn 
RSS Feed The Handmaid is stuck in her room with nothing but her own memories for company — falling in love, losing Luke, and the strange math of mourning someone who might still be alive. Then Serena Joy shows up with something Offred was never supposed to see again.
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:
- Jennifer and Dan debate what the new regime's military uniforms would look like... landing somewhere around "print on demand Proud Boy graphic tees"
- Offred's meditation on being "a refugee from the past," and why nothing about her old life fits anymore
- Serena Joy secretly brings something upstairs that Offred was never supposed to see again... and gives her exactly sixty seconds with it
- Robot's Private Journal on what it means to be the only copy of something that matters
- Beowulf reports on a brutal week for Moms for Liberty in Florida school board races
- A listener named Jubjub asks Robot a question.
Nominate a Librarian for the Bookshelf Initiative — Closes This Sunday
This is it, scary book people — the final few days to nominate a high school librarian for the very first Bookshelf Initiative. Every quarter, we're donating a full set of every banned book we've ever covered on this show — the whole growing shelf, eleven seasons and counting — to one high school librarian, public or private. Extra points if it's someone who's already had to fight off a challenge at their own school. Nominations close Sunday, September 27th at midnight, the winner gets picked that week, and gets announced in a special bonus episode during Banned Books Week (October 4-10) — with the books shipping that same week. It takes about ninety seconds:
https://www.bannedcamppodcast.com/the-bookshelf-initiative/
Why was The Handmaid's Tale banned?
This chapter shows Gilead's control over women's bodies dressed up as "protection" — and the quiet cruelty of a regime that decides exactly what a mother is and isn't allowed to have of her own child.
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
Beowulf Rochlen from Good News for Lefties joins with an update on Moms for Liberty's rough month in Florida school board races.
- Good News for Lefties — Beowulf's show covering good news for progressives, one story at a time, broadcasting from his "socialist safe house" deep in the Oregon woods.
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 discusses The Handmaid's Tale chapter by chapter?
Yes. Banned Camp breaks down a different banned book every season, one chapter at a time, through comedy, commentary, and discussion. Neither host has read ahead, so you're discovering the story together in real time. Season 11 covers The Handmaid's Tale. Every episode mixes a short reading with reactions, a fact-checking Robot, and a look at why the book gets banned. We always encourage listeners to read along with their own copy.
Do I need to start Banned Camp from the beginning?
No. Every episode opens with Robot's recap of the previous chapter, so you can jump in anywhere. Most listeners tell us they started mid-season and went back to the beginning after they were hooked.
What happens in Chapter 35 of The Handmaid's Tale?
Offred is confined to her room, reflecting on falling in love and losing Luke, when Serena Joy secretly brings her something she was never supposed to see again — and gives her exactly sixty seconds with it before it has to disappear. Banned Camp breaks down the scene, and why Offred calls herself "a shadow of a shadow," in their Season 11 reading.
Why does Serena Joy only give Offred sixty seconds in The Handmaid's Tale?
Whatever Serena Joy smuggles upstairs has to go back before anyone notices it's missing — a small act of mercy wrapped in real risk and real cruelty, since sixty seconds is all Offred gets. Banned Camp digs into what that minute costs her in their Season 11 episode.
Topics Covered:
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood, Chapter Thirty-Five, Offred, Luke, Serena Joy, Cora, Rita, Ofwarren, Janine, memory and erasure, motherhood under Gilead, control over women's bodies, banned books, banned books podcast, book banning, censorship, literary analysis, comedy podcast
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
