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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Clearly ground-breaking for its time and surely classic, I had trouble finishing it. The writing style (short, incomplete sentences) made the plot feel a bit jumpy and disconnected. Although interesting to read from someone's "diary," it felt more meandering than cliff hanging.
Read even just a little bit and you will see the parallels to later works of distopian fiction. I appreciated that element, but would not read the book again.
Read even just a little bit and you will see the parallels to later works of distopian fiction. I appreciated that element, but would not read the book again.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What an extraordinary book! The direct precursor to 1984 and to the dystopian genre it created, We ought to be studied on the same level as the books that followed it. It is a rich, deeply serious look at a society that was dealing with the direct aftermath of the Revolution. The fate of the nation was not yet completely clear in the early 20s, but Zamyatin could perceive many of the possible outcomes. It creates a powerful narrative, one where the narrator, through his science-based, analytical approach, creates a distance that resonates even more today, but which can be daunting to many readers (and which took me a while to get into).
I had never heard of We and I think that's a shame. This novel has a lot to say about the world, both for the early 20th Century and for today. A must-read.
I had never heard of We and I think that's a shame. This novel has a lot to say about the world, both for the early 20th Century and for today. A must-read.
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
This was a very good book. The writing style put me off quite a bit at first (and that could have a lot to do with the translation), but if you can get past it the underlying story is definitely worth it. I am glad to have read this so shortly after Limbo, they are very similar in many ways. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just say that they compliment each other very well. I wonder if Wolfe was aware of this book when writing Limbo...
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I often find it difficult to rate older books. We, in particular, is a challenge because it's impossible to separate the book itself from its context.
This book is over 100 years old. It was written almost at the same time as Brave New World and has been credited by Orwell as an influence for 1984.
The description of an anti-utopia is amazing. The ideas and concepts explored in this book feel ahead of their time.
However.
It was also quite a confusing read at times, the narrator was prone to waffling and I wasn't entirely sure what was going on a lot of the time. As with all books of a certain age the descriptions of women and black people were deeply problematic. Zamyatin's obsession with lips was quite repetitive and offputting (his friend seemed entirely defined by his 'Afeican Lips'). I recognise that this has to be taken within the context of the time it was written but it did detract from my overall enjoyment.
Reading 'We' feels like seeing a foundational stone being placed: I can absolutely see its influence on subsequent sci-fi and, for that, I am grateful.
This book is over 100 years old. It was written almost at the same time as Brave New World and has been credited by Orwell as an influence for 1984.
The description of an anti-utopia is amazing. The ideas and concepts explored in this book feel ahead of their time.
However.
It was also quite a confusing read at times, the narrator was prone to waffling and I wasn't entirely sure what was going on a lot of the time. As with all books of a certain age the descriptions of women and black people were deeply problematic. Zamyatin's obsession with lips was quite repetitive and offputting (his friend seemed entirely defined by his 'Afeican Lips'). I recognise that this has to be taken within the context of the time it was written but it did detract from my overall enjoyment.
Reading 'We' feels like seeing a foundational stone being placed: I can absolutely see its influence on subsequent sci-fi and, for that, I am grateful.
Content Warnings
Minor: Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A thought-provoking read. I wish desperately that I had read it with a book club or a friend because there is so much about this book that I want to discuss with others.
Amazing, given when it was written. Perhaps my age, perhaps because it is in part propaganda written in defiance of propaganda, meant that it felt like required reading. It’s very erudite in comparison with so much modern literature. That everything was made of glass for maximum transparency is interesting given that technology today is having just that effect (as I write to the Benefactor - Goodreads…)
3.5 stars
This one-hundred-year-old dystopian novel still has teeth. Set in a future where the One State exercises total control over its citizens, known only by numbers, We highlights the suppression of individuality in favor of uniformity. D-503 is a mathematician and chief engineer, working on the construction of the INTEGRAL, a spaceship designed to spread the One State's ideology to other planets. Delivered via journal entries, there's a very interesting "dear reader" dynamic at play.
When D becomes entangled with a rebellious woman known as I-330, and a forbidden romance of sorts beings, Zamyatin noodles around for too long with D's sexual awakening, with blame and attribution landing on I-330. Then, like all well-behaving dystopians—there's a resistance organization, and D is forced to face several life-altering decisions.
The middle is a bit mired down, even when the sexual repression gives way to creativity and imagination, with D's synapses firing before a detour to an almost fetal state, as he sort of short circuits with all the newfound ways of being himself. Between this well-worn path we've seen in dystopian novels and the descriptive words-by-way-of-racist-underpinnings of another character, the entire middle section felt fairly weak and not a little off-putting.
But, if I bat away my 2024 lens, it's a startling piece of fiction and early foundational dystopian novel. What's really interesting, and certainly lit up that little lightbulb over my head, is how there’s a mirrored similarity when the resistance to the totalitarian government rises up and also takes on the singular voice of a "we" — the danger exists on both sides of losing yourself and your personal freedoms.
From the possible influence of two earlier dystopian stories, and the definite impact this had on two later dystopian stories, We holds its own among the heralding bells of danger ahead.
Audiobook, as narrated by [a:Toby Jones|979142|Toby Jones|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]: Jones did a great job, and this is one that I think definitely benefits from being delivered by an actor who can project emotions that are both intended to be known and those simmering beneath the surface of the character.
This one-hundred-year-old dystopian novel still has teeth. Set in a future where the One State exercises total control over its citizens, known only by numbers, We highlights the suppression of individuality in favor of uniformity. D-503 is a mathematician and chief engineer, working on the construction of the INTEGRAL, a spaceship designed to spread the One State's ideology to other planets. Delivered via journal entries, there's a very interesting "dear reader" dynamic at play.
When D becomes entangled with a rebellious woman known as I-330, and a forbidden romance of sorts beings, Zamyatin noodles around for too long with D's sexual awakening, with blame and attribution landing on I-330. Then, like all well-behaving dystopians—there's a resistance organization, and D is forced to face several life-altering decisions.
The middle is a bit mired down, even when the sexual repression gives way to creativity and imagination, with D's synapses firing before a detour to an almost fetal state, as he sort of short circuits with all the newfound ways of being himself. Between this well-worn path we've seen in dystopian novels and the descriptive words-by-way-of-racist-underpinnings of another character, the entire middle section felt fairly weak and not a little off-putting.
But, if I bat away my 2024 lens, it's a startling piece of fiction and early foundational dystopian novel. What's really interesting, and certainly lit up that little lightbulb over my head, is how there’s a mirrored similarity when the resistance to the totalitarian government rises up and also takes on the singular voice of a "we" — the danger exists on both sides of losing yourself and your personal freedoms.
From the possible influence of two earlier dystopian stories, and the definite impact this had on two later dystopian stories, We holds its own among the heralding bells of danger ahead.
Audiobook, as narrated by [a:Toby Jones|979142|Toby Jones|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]: Jones did a great job, and this is one that I think definitely benefits from being delivered by an actor who can project emotions that are both intended to be known and those simmering beneath the surface of the character.