Take a photo of a barcode or cover
jochem_wessel 's review for:
The Road to Wigan Pier
by George Orwell
informative
reflective
slow-paced
The sole reason I started reading this book is because I found it in a shop for only two pounds. Knowing Orwell from having read his famous works, 1984 and Animal Farm, I decided this book was worth two quid.
In the first half of the book Orwell explains, in great detail, the life of people in poverty. It's insane to me that he voluntarily emerged himself in the lives of these people just to get more information and a better view on how they live. Most authors wouldn't spend hours crawling through a mine just to write a chapter on it.
The second half is partly autobiographical and gives interesting insights into Orwell's (early) life. Together with the entire first half of the book, the autobiographical part gives invaluable context to the socialistic analysis that is to follow.
A specific aspect of the book that's most interesting to me is the part where Orwell states the influence machines have on society. While 1984 is more a warning than a prediction, the remarks made here are full predictions which are scarily accurate. This is beyond unique for a book written in the 1930s.
I recommend this book to anyone interested in the cultural and sociopolitical part of British history written from the perspective of a well-renowned writer who experienced being both oppressor and oppressed first-hand.
In the first half of the book Orwell explains, in great detail, the life of people in poverty. It's insane to me that he voluntarily emerged himself in the lives of these people just to get more information and a better view on how they live. Most authors wouldn't spend hours crawling through a mine just to write a chapter on it.
The second half is partly autobiographical and gives interesting insights into Orwell's (early) life. Together with the entire first half of the book, the autobiographical part gives invaluable context to the socialistic analysis that is to follow.
A specific aspect of the book that's most interesting to me is the part where Orwell states the influence machines have on society. While 1984 is more a warning than a prediction, the remarks made here are full predictions which are scarily accurate. This is beyond unique for a book written in the 1930s.
I recommend this book to anyone interested in the cultural and sociopolitical part of British history written from the perspective of a well-renowned writer who experienced being both oppressor and oppressed first-hand.