Review by elainarkk - A Clockwork Orange

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elainarkk 's review for:

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

4.0

challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book was so frustrating because Burgess managed to trick me into rooting for Alex, the violent, evil main character. The book is divided into 3 parts, the first part being an introduction to Alex and his daily life—where he spends his nights committing heinous crimes just for the fun of it. Part two is a dive into his punishment after being caught at the scene of one of his crimes and part three is the aftermath of the controversial punishment. I’m simply flabbergasted… how can I be so angry and desire justice, but also know that Alex has to be able to choose good for it to mean anything. Overall, this is a very great classic book, but it is also one of the most challenging books I’ve read in terms of content that covers hard questions.
My version also had the extra 21st chapter, which was removed from many editions. I truthfully cannot imagine the story without this ending—I would be beyond frustrated to have it end prematurely and I like that readers get a glimpse of Alex’s maturing mindset. It provides a bit of hope in an otherwise rather bleak dystopian story.

(Be mindful of the violence—it’s never graphic, but is dealt with in a very matter of fact manner).

Content Warnings