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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
challenging
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
funny
informative
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
It's not perfect, and no allegory ever is, but there's a reason this is a classic. A timeless caution against totalitarianism, even if it can and often is misapplied by those on the right who want to use it as a proof text against socialism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Animal cruelty
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Absolutely perfect. I fucking loved everything about this. The pacing is incredible. The engagement factor is at a complete high throughout the entire book. There's not a single page where I'm not super invested in what's going on. I love how this shows the rise of a totalitarian dictatorship in detail and how something like this is able to happen, and by satirizing it using animals, it creates a really great and likable personality. Also, framing it around animals on a farm just simply creates a really entertaining to read story on its base level too. What happens to these characters could still work in a story if they were all people, and that's what makes this so great. The fact that he's using animals rather than humans and showing this totalitarian rise happen on a farm rather than a country makes each element hit with so much more clarity and power. The complete manipulation happening on so many levels is crazy to watch play out. Watching throughout the book as that the pigs completely rewrite history and convince the other animals through propaganda that their lives are actually great and better than they used to be, all while depriving them of food and making them work harder than they did under Jones is maddening in the most effective way. It reminds you of just how fucking cruel society can be when being ran by the wrong people, and the fact that this type of dictatorship isn't extinct is crazy to me. Like 1984, it's another Orwell story that hasn't aged whatsoever. Whereas 1984 was purely a cautionary tale (for the time at least), Animal Farm works both as a cautionary tale and an allegory and direct reference to Stalin, while also still holding a ton of power and relevance today. Overall, I don't have a single issue with this. Its themes and how it goes about presenting them are extremely effective, and work to make a super engaging narrative that gives you a ton to think about.
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An important read, now just as much as ever.
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes