How Strange

Some books simply are not cut out to have back of the book descriptions. I think these are two good examples.

The first, Orlando, by Virginia Woolf, according to the back of the book, is about a 16th century nobleman, who over the course of the story will become a 20th century woman. Indeed.

The second, The Blind Assassin, starts out describing the suicide of a young woman in the 1950s in Canada, before jumping to the alien planet Zycron. Yep.

That said, I actually enjoyed both a great deal. I have some issues with Woolf, but I found Orlando to be her most readable and enjoyable. This may be due to it being less melancholy than your average Woolf. It is strange, but overall it works surprisingly well, and it raises some interesting questions about gender, sexuality, and identity (fluidity is sort of the theme).

Similarly, I found The Blind Assassin to be one of the more enjoyable Atwood's that I have read (though I confess the aliens didn't due too much for me). It's an interesting one structurally, certainly, and the twists work. I think Iris is a bit of a polarizing character, and your enjoyment likely will depend on how well you can take her.