Written by: Delaney Norris, Staff Writer
READ: Unqualified reviews on books I have read lately.
“A Clockwork Orange” By Anthony Burgess
Anthony Burgess, you pretentious little man! It’s not everyday that an author more or less creates a new language for their book. While this fictional, made-up language can come off pretentious, I believe the language “barrier” between the reader and the main character Alex is essential, as his violent thoughts and actions already create an uncomfortable unrelatability. The confusion the reader feels while trying to decipher this language he has adopted only adds to the madness of reading this book. The story opens with Alex, a troublemaker (to say the least) and his “droogs” (friends) as they commit various violent crimes for seemingly no reason. It’s truly unnerving to read about these boys committing such serious crimes without any amount of empathy. This book makes me believe the person who coined the saying that men are the more violent sex may have been on to something. Ultimately, Burgess does an excellent job portraying how Alex’s mind works and in his attempts to charm the reader into believing he is right. In conclusion, if you see someone walking down the street dressed in “the height of fashion” and who looks like a Beethoven stan, run!
“The Book Thief” By Markus Zusak
No. Justice for my girl Liesel. This is going to be all over the place because I can’t think straight when talking about this book. “The Book Thief” exceeds my expectations in almost every way. The story follows a young German girl as World War II rages, and it was interesting to me, as I personally have never read a book about World War II from an innocent German’s perspective. This perspective reminds the reader of the complete evilness of Hitler’s reign, and how all groups, even the German people, suffered greatly (not to invalidate the suffering Jewish people of course). The book is unique for multiple reasons, but the narrator really stood out to me. “The Book Thief” is told by death personified, and the reader only learns about the characters through the story Death is telling. Furthermore, each character is completely different from any other character I have personally come across in literature. I was easily able to connect to and become invested in the story. I also have a newfound appreciation for accordions.
“1984” By George Orwell
