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'Animal Farm' rating:   
readability:
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This book is in a similar vein to '1984' (see below); it catalogues the dehumanising oppression of a totalitarian state. Although presented as a children's story, with farm animals as protagonists, it is a very harsh tale which closely parallels the emergence and unfolding of the Soviet state. There is also a smattering of Nazism - the main propagandist is modelled on Joseph Goebbels. What is outstanding about 'Animal Farm' is the poignancy which Orwell invests in the characters who suffer under the increasingly brutal regime. More than in '1984', they have real hope; so long under the yoke of the farmer, it seems that at last they can be free of slavery and fear. Slowly, however, their leaders fall into the old ways; in the end, the only difference lies in the propaganda which the animals' 'comrades' force them to swallow. Click
here to buy it in paperback ($4.76), or to read more reviews. |
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'1984' rating:
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This, probably deservedly, is the most famous book of the brilliant champion of social justice. It is a dead-on satire on the 'Big Brother' state; a measure of its incisiveness is that few books have insinuated so much vocabulary (i.e. "thought police", "doublethink", "newspeak") into the English language. The atmosphere is grey, oppressive and fearful; the protagonist, Winston Smith (excellently portrayed by John Hurt in the film version), is frail and mentally bludgeoned, but has a secret lust for freedom. The book describes the hope he feels when he meets and falls in love with Julia, a woman who shares his thoughts; the crushing denouement shows us with frightening clarity how decency can go out the window under totalitarianism. In spite of revisionist assessments of '1984' - which question its originality - I think this is a classic book and an excellent read. Click here
to buy it in paperback ($4.76), or to read more reviews. |
