Reviews with content warning for Cursing - 1984

The beginning can be a bit difficult to understand and slow to get into. But once as you really get into it and appreciate the world building, it opens your eyes to why this is considered a classic. There is a deep examination on what it means to be human at the root of this book that I think is often overlooked in favor of the political debates. The characters are complex people in a complex world. It is a very dark read but not a "feels good" book if that's what you are looking for. I personally appreciate the seriousness and the depth of this book.

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izzydelaya's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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sadiaa's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated

4.5

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manu_k's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Beautifully horrifying, this book is a ride from start to finish. We know it has been a cornerstone for the dystopian fiction genre, but reading it makes me realize just how much this book has shaped this genre.

On the writing style: I thought it was very beautifully written, descriptive but not very much so, the exact kind of thing I like. The way it was written and the analogies and the non - linear storytelling in some parts came together so well, it was immersive in the best way.

On the story:

the first part was almost boring, which I thought was the point. It showed us how the regime worked, some background to Winston, but didn't actually contribute to advancing the story line as such. The second part was much more fast paced and actually exciting in regards to the advancement of the story, and by far some of the chapters in this part are my favorites. I didn't appreciate the whole 'I love you' debacle in the beginning, but I guess it shows how much sexually and emotionally repressed these people are. I believe it seems very fitting that Julia is introduced as a central character at the start of the second part and her role ends at the end of the second part. The third part was one of the most difficult parts to get through, despite me having experience with reading torture scenes (I read The Surgeon when I was 15, it still haunts me). It was brutal no holds barred kind of writing, with the descriptions, O'Brien's almost - almost - loving teacher like treatment of Winston, and then the change in the way of Winston's thinking, how different it was from the other two parts. The ending was surprising to me, despite knowing that it won't end happily as other dystopian books I have read.

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