Reviews

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

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livimack's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

Hot take, but having read the book now, I think the film is an incredibly overhyped adaptation.

It was very fun to discover the presumed source of some of my teenage slang phrases though.

I can see why the book is as praised as it is. Not necessarily something I would generally choose to read for pleasure, though.

Content Warnings

jdouglas96's review against another edition

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3.0

eh.

some themes interested me - the ethics of making a person good against his nature -, while others - the whole politics stuff - didn't.

the nadsat got tiring, Alex was a remorseless POS the entire time who never really got his deserved comeuppance, his being a brutal rapist putting me off him for good, and the story felt kinda lost toward the end like it wasn't really sure how to finish.

an interesting read but ultimately not that great. kinda just... eh.

2.5/5

curatoriasol's review against another edition

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4.0

This story was thought-provoking, even though I'm certain Anthony Burgess and I have very different views, so maybe not thought-provoking in the way he'd intended.

Unlike a lot of other people, I actually enjoyed the writing style - it was like the narrator was chatting with an old friend.

However, I can't say I really got Alex. Even after a whole novel, it feels as though I only got a superficial picture of him.