Nineteen-Eighty Four is George Orwell's profound dystopian novel that sets forth a surveillance state far ahead of its time, featuring an introduction by writer and journalist Dorian Lynskey.
Eric Arthur Blair (George Orwell) was born in 1903 in India where his father was a civil servant. After studying at Eton, he served with the Indian Imperial Police in Burma for several years which inspired his first novel, Burmese Days. After two years in Paris, he returned to England to work as a teacher and then in a bookshop. In 1936 he travelled to Spain to fight for the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War, where he was badly wounded. During the Second World War he worked for the BBC. A prolific journalist and essayist, Orwell wrote some of the most influential books in English literature, including the dystopian Nineteen Eighty-Four and his political allegory Animal Farm. He died from tuberculosis in 1950.
While it's tempting to hold the present moment up beside Orwell's
Nineteen-Eighty Four, the book is more than a political
totem, and overlooking its profound expressions of emotion
robs it of most of its real power. * New Yorker *
Probably the definitive novel of the 20th century, a story
that remains eternally fresh and contemporary . . . Nineteen
Eighty-Four has been translated into more than 65 languages and
sold millions of copies worldwide, giving George Orwell a unique
place in world literature. -- Robert McCrum * Guardian *
It's almost impossible to talk about propaganda, surveillance,
authoritarian politics, or perversions of truth without dropping a
reference to 1984 . . . It is both a profound political
essay and a shocking, heartbreaking work of art. And in the
Trump era, it's a best seller. -- Atlantic * George Packer *
Orwell effectively explores the themes of mass media control,
government surveillance, totalitarianism and how a dictator can
manipulate and control history, thoughts, and lives in such a way
that no one can escape it . . . Orwell's novella is a warning
for the human race. * Guardian *
[1984] does what every novel in the genre should do -
combining the illumination of an intriguing idea and the telling of
a cracking story . . . The book succeeds because it is no
manifesto, but an absorbing, deeply affecting story. *
Independent *
I read it and found myself absolutely astonished at what I read. --
Isaac Asimov
1984 is a political statement. It contains no prophetic
declaration, only a simple warning to mankind . . . the warnings
of George Orwell are more than ever relevant. * New York Times
*
Narrated with infinite precision, 1984 is one of the most famous
dystopian satires in the English language . . . Winston Smith's
quest for freedom under the gaze of all-seeing, all-knowing Big
Brother still resonates strongly today, when privacy is hard to
come by and governments adopt intrusive policies, supposedly to
keep their citizens safe. * Common Sense Media *
Nineteen Eighty-Four is a work of pure horror, and its
horror is crushingly immediate. * New York Times (original review)
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