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charlotteg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
5.0
Graphic: Torture
pupaebug's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I absolutely love the world-building of a totalitarian regime. It is why I loved the Handmaid's Tale so much, it was really cool to see a regime that seemed to spring out of our own society and our own history. After reading this, I realized that all the things I loved about the Handmaid's Tale were inspired by this book. Just like Winston, I wanted to know absolutely everything about the Party. Did the
I know that this book is going to stay with me for the rest of my life. What an incredible read.
P.S. Throughout reading this book I felt I could pinpoint the exact moments that inspired Margaret Atwood to write The Handmaid's Tale. The use of the word Unperson (Unwoman, in THT), The emergence of a new society in the wake of the old one, with the war effort always in the background to encourage patriotism and limit rationing of goods. The presence of a regular scheduled catharsis time for all of the citizens to get their rage out on the "enemy" (Two Minutes Hate in 1984, Particicutions in THT). I also really think Margaret Atwood read the Appendix in 1984 and was inspired to include the Historical Notes section in the Handmaid's Tale. It's just too similar. An essay written by an academic after the events of the story that suggest that things have gone back to normal and the totalitarian regime has ended. Newspeak is no longer used, the Party is spoken of as if it is a thing of the past, free thought is free again.
This review is so long. This book is amazing. The general consensus is always about how important a book this is, and it absolutely is important. However, I think a lot more people would choose to pick it up if they knew how genuinely enthralling this book is as a piece of psychological horror.
Graphic: Gaslighting, Body horror, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, and Death
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Death of parent and Antisemitism
gethin_burke's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Sexual content and Violence
meesh150's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
No but in all seriousness, I do understand the political relevance but I feel like what most people fail to remember or realize is that this was written as a satirical. The world that Orwell created was definitely promising plot wise & probably even more so in the 40s/50s. But I’d say the execution wasn’t perfect or even that interesting for that matter. Maybe I’m biased because of the blatant misogyny (ie. the fact that it sounds like Orwell has never spoken to a real life woman and therefore created a ridiculous fantasy of his in the character of Julia) and seeing as I am reading this in the 21st century but I believe readers can read the introduction or a summary of this book and understand it for it’s main purpose without having to put themselves through the entirety of this book.
Hope this helps.
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Alcoholism, Slavery, and War
Minor: Rape
rishankl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Physical abuse
Moderate: Torture and Sexual content
simplyv375's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: War, Violence, and Torture
Moderate: Misogyny
haiqanoor's review against another edition
Graphic: Violence, Sexism, and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcohol, Body shaming, Sexual harassment, and War
Minor: Colonisation, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Torture, and Classism
aayatisbooktok's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Torture and Violence
Minor: Rape
ziggers's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Hate crime, Torture, Police brutality, and War
taliare's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Physical abuse, and Gaslighting
Moderate: War