The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

This is a futuristic story that takes place after something has happened to the United States as we know it. It is the diary of a young woman who lived in a strict society that lasted only a short duration of time in history. The society was based on pro-creating, as the Caucasian birth rate had been drastically declining in the time period directly before this.
     The woman, known as Offred, is eventually arrested to be trained as a handmaid, because she was in a second marriage and was known to have recently had a child. Her child was taken from her and given to a family in the upper echelons of this society. She was then selected to perform the duties of handmaid for a particular family, just as in biblical times.
     In her diary she tells of her daily experience and emotions, which were stifling and scary. At the end she is taken away... hopefully to safety. We will never know because this is one of those open ended stories that leaves you no answers. It is up to you to imagine what might have happened as the author never tells you where Offred went or what happened to her.
     This title is also on the list of 100 Great American Reads.