A review by elliya
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Despite beginning with a lot of ultraviolence and rape, I enjoyed this much more than I expected to! I believe that reading a narrated version made the nadsat vernacular much easier for me to parse, and therefore made for a much more pleasant reading experience. It reminded me strongly of Chabon’s Yiddish Policeman’s Union - strong soviet influences on culture and language in both, plus an array of generally dislikable male characters. I sort of felt bad for Alex in the middle section, and was rooting for him by the end! Unsurprisingly, I loved the way he related to music, found the correctional officer to be some needed comedy, and found the whole experimental results quite disturbing. All in all, I imagine those reactions are par. I’m glad to having finally read this classic, and I look forward to watching Kubrick’s film interpretation.
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