I re-read Animal Farm this year. For those of us in high school in the 1980s in the US, Animal Farm was a standard part of our English curriculum. I always cynically considered this was because it is such a short novel, but now I realize that this economy of words is an aspect of the book’s brilliance. The prose is plain, sharp, and efficient. Orwell was able to transform the complex geopolitical conflicts of his time into a simple and entertaining allegory about farm animals. He was a master storyteller!
The perfect edition for any Orwell enthusiasts' collection, discover Orwell's classic dystopian masterpiece beautifully reimagined by renowned street artist Shepard Fairey
'All animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than others.'
Mr Jones of Manor Farm is so lazy and drunken that one day he forgets to feed his livestock. The ensuing rebellion under the leadership of the pigs Napoleon and Snowball leads to the animals taking over the farm. Vowing to eliminate the terrible inequities of the farmyard, the renamed Animal Farm is organised to benefit all who walk on four legs. But as time passes, the…
I hated reading 1984 and I loved hating it! What a chilling and coherent vision of an impossibly totalitarian society that seems all too possible and all too prescient more and more each day now. Orwell explores the foundations of truth as the government of Big Brother uses their control of language and information to manipulate the thoughts of their populace and thus the fundamental realities experienced by all. The novel was published over 75 years ago, and sadly is more relevant today than ever.
1984 is the year in which it happens. The world is divided into three superstates. In Oceania, the Party's power is absolute. Every action, word, gesture and thought is monitored under the watchful eye of Big Brother and the Thought Police. In the Ministry of Truth, the Party's department for propaganda, Winston Smith's job is to edit the past. Over time, the impulse to escape the machine and live independently takes hold of him and he embarks on a secret and forbidden love affair. As he writes the words 'DOWN WITH BIG…
Brave New World is perhaps the little brother to the more famous dystopian novel 1984. I reread this book now at age 57 after last reading it at age 17. As a teenager, I was intrigued by the cool world building and inventive use of eugenics and hypnopaedia. As a mature adult, I was immediately struck by how much the book is a polemic on traditional sexual and romantic morays and also on consumerism and technology. Huxley’s society is focused on comfort, entertainment, pleasure, and immediate gratification. But happiness without suffering has no meaning! Art, pain, love, and other struggles make our human lives hard, but they also give our human lives their meaning.
**One of the BBC's 100 Novels That Shaped Our World**
EVERYONE BELONGS TO EVERYONE ELSE. Read the dystopian classic that inspired the hit Sky TV series.
'A masterpiece of speculation... As vibrant, fresh, and somehow shocking as it was when I first read it' Margaret Atwood, bestselling author of The Handmaid's Tale.
Welcome to New London. Everybody is happy here. Our perfect society achieved peace and stability through the prohibition of monogamy, privacy, money, family and history itself. Now everyone belongs.
You can be happy too. All you need to do is take your Soma pills.
December on 5C4 is a vibrant tale of magical realism set during the Christmas season, weaving together threads of Jewish folklore, New Testament narratives, and Santa Claus legends. This story unfolds in the unique environment of an urban psychiatric hospital, where the boundaries between reality and the supernatural blur. As the winter holidays progress, Josh and Nick—two very different patients, one with similarities to Jesus and the other Santa—find themselves on an unexpected journey of self-discovery and transformation. Their evolving friendship and shared experiences challenge them to reconcile their pasts, embrace their identities, and navigate the complexities of mental illness. December on 5C4 is a compelling exploration of belief, identity, and the magic that can emerge in the most unexpected of friendships.
