January 2012 Guest Editor Simon Lelic selects Nineteen Eighty-Four...
Not exactly an original pick, I realise, and some (irrationally, in my mind) would dispute its literary merits. On the other hand, it has proved almost Shakespearean in its impact on the English psyche – and certainly on mine. I read it first for GCSE English, and I still have the copy I should probably have returned to my teacher at the end of the school year.
Which makes me worry now that perhaps I have deprived someone else of the pleasure. I’m including it here as penance, but also because I couldn’t not.
The Lovereading view...
Chosen by the public through a survey to coincide with the 10th birthday celebrations of World Book Day 2007, this title is one of ‘the ten books the nation can’t live without’. Have you read them all? Below are links to each title and position on the list.
1. Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings JRR Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë
4. Harry Potter JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
6. The Bible
7. Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations Charles Dickens
Big Brother is watching you...1984 is the year in which it happens.The world is divided into three great powers: Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia, each perpetually at war with the other. Throughout Oceania 'The Party' rules by the agency of four ministries whose power is absolute and where every action, word, gesture and thought is monitored. In The Ministry of Truth, which deals in propaganda, Winston Smith's job is to edit the past. Over time, the impulse to escape the machine and live independently takes a hold of him. In writing the words 'DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER' his personal rebellion begins...This is his story but it might also be yours. In our increasingly surveillance-governed world the story has strong resonance and displays some shocking parallels with modern-day society.Narrator Philip Glenister is a highly-acclaimed British actor, perhaps best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in popular BBC series Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.
| Primary Genre | Dystopian and utopian fiction |
| Other Genres: |
Big Brother is watching you...1984 is the year in which it happens.The world is divided into three great powers: Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia, each perpetually at war with the other. Throughout Oceania 'The Party' rules by the agency of four ministries whose power is absolute and where every action, word, gesture and thought is monitored.
Nineteen Eighty-Four features in the following genres: Dystopian and utopian fiction, Classic fiction: general and literary, Gift Books, Narrative theme: Politics, Speculative fiction, Fiction, General Fiction, Stationery and miscellaneous items, Lifestyle, Hobbies and Leisure, Fiction: narrative themes
Hardback, Paperback, Ebook, CD-Audio, Paperback (b Format). Not Available.
Nineteen Eighty-Four was written by George Orwell and published by Canongate an imprint of Canongate Books
Yes it is part of A CSA Word Recording series
