A review by caroline_mclaughlin
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

challenging funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

At first I really enjoyed the premise and the quirky writing style, finding it easy to see how a society could form like this. The reasoning, although lacking severely in ethics, is understandable and after reading The Handmaid’s Tale, it feels like a society that would arise in direct contrast to theirs. However, I felt that the story quickly lost tangibility once they visited the US, and continued to meander following their return, verging on preachy by the end. While I understand this book was written almost 100 years ago, and characters like John are both far more recognizable as kin and also treated as the voice of reason, as a modern reader it is still incredibly uncomfortable to read about the “savages”. There is plenty of nuance to and obvious satirization of the negative view of this group, but it still didn’t work for me overall as the direction of the novel. I can see where this book further influenced the genre (Divergent, Gattaca, etc) but I can also see how the rampant racism and directionless plot has prevented this utopian/dystopian novel from having the same hold on society as many of its contemporaries (Fahrenheit 451, Handmaid’s Tale, even Hunger Games).