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getoffmyface's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
alex2teeuw's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.75
The first half of the book is wonderful, an intriguing and intimate account of the conditions, lives and livelihoods of the working class in Northern England in the second quarter of the 20th century.
The second half is only half as engaging - Orwell presents a series of essays on class, technology and socialism. It felt like a lecture, though not a bad one. If this is what you expect and desire, then it there is more chance of enjoying it.
The second half is only half as engaging - Orwell presents a series of essays on class, technology and socialism. It felt like a lecture, though not a bad one. If this is what you expect and desire, then it there is more chance of enjoying it.
fishface's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
Orwell is just so readable, especially his non-fiction. The latter half of this book, especially the diatribe against the machinisation of life was particularly interesting... a lot of it feels very prescient to ai threatening creative work, as the line between work and play is so blurred.
mconniff's review against another edition
1.0
This book was brutal, sorry to say but don’t waste your time. Stick to Animal Farm and 1984. This book had a few interesting chapters but that’s it. The rest was so hard to get through. Absolute struggle to read. I was very disappointed.
alexisrt's review against another edition
5.0
The Road to Wigan Pier (Penguin Modern Classics) by George Orwell (2001)
jon288's review against another edition
4.0
A bleak look at the lives of the northern working poor of the 1930s. It was powerful and compelling, and makes a strong case for socialism. An important part of my political education. I was really impressed with what coal miners used to have to do
seclement's review against another edition
5.0
I expected to feel depressed from this book's depiction of life in 1930s Britain, but what I didn't expect was that Orwell would so eloquently describe and analyse so many of the problems that Britain faces to this day. In this book, which I think originated as a serial journalistic piece, Orwell writes compassionately about the working classes and the challenges they face, as well as the lives they lead. He is clearly a fan of socialism, and feels it is the obvious choice for addressing the almost intractable social problems Britain was facing, but he writes much less compassionately about socialists. He clearly has a lot of disdain for the bourgeoisie who fancy themselves as enlightened, but also recognises that he holds a privileged position himself. He is the sort of person who does not suffer fools gladly, and in this book that tone is very clear. But at the same time, he is entitled to a bit of that feeling of superiority because he was, quite frankly, quite right about where the country was headed. And sadly, so many of the problems he described - and the ineffectual and often downright disastrous policy responses - are still those that are most prominent today, especially relating to class, housing, and social benefits. At times he quotes the erroneous and sometimes ridiculous arguments people pose in response to these issues, and it is almost as if he was reading a letter to the Daily Mail from last week. The book is shocking at times, if you are a compassionate person, but I think it feels so much worse because this isn't just about things that happened in the past. Even if the pay is marginally better now and housing a slight step up, Orwell was quite a savvy observer of social problems and their causes.