Rating: 
Summary: a challenging novel
Review: In a time when the literary world is becoming just as lazy as other branches of entertainment (film and music, for example), it's refreshing to be taken aback by a classic that stands convention on its head and disregards the rules of dull, refined storytelling. This is what I experienced with "A Clockwork Orange," which is part science-fiction, part comedy, and part social satire, and feels just as current (and relevant) today as it no doubt did during its initial publication (1963). It's essentially the tale of a young hoodlum named Alex who robs, rapes, and murders without remorse, until imprisonment introduces him to a strange medical technique designed to turn criminals into 'normal' citizens. The made-up slang writer Anthony Burgess uses here is very challenging (while you read, you pick up on certain words and are left to decipher the meanings) but ultimately may be too much for a casual reader; if you manage to make it past the first twenty pages, though, it's a safe bet you'll be set for the rest of the novel. Issues of Free Will, social disorder, and childhood merging into adulthood are addressed without Bible-pounding preachiness, topics that can easily be related to our own chaotic modern society.The much-ballyhooed final chapter, in which (SPOILER) Alex discovers that being a droog is a drag and adulthood is the next step in his life, struck me as syrupy--an ending that's been ripped off countless times since in film and books, among other places. The whole 'recovery' at the end of chapter 6 was far more satisfying, with the threat of the patient out at work in the real world again, raping and robbing as he had before. "A Clockwork Orange" was also the basis for a 1971 film adaptation by Stanley Kubrick, and I must say--in comparison to the book--the language had been softened up to no doubt make it more accessible to the audience. However, I believe both the novel and the film stand on their own as masterpieces of their respective medium.
Rating: 
Summary: A Clockwork Orange
Review: This book is not for the week of heart. However, it is a book for the strong of mind. This book is way out there, and I mean WAY OUT THERE. If you like such off the wall books as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, than this book is for you. Have fun, the book is real horrorshow, as Alex puts it! ;)
Rating:
Summary: Real horrorshow book.
Review: Fifteen-year-old Alex lives in a world where crime takes over at night. The government/police dont do much about it, and while Alex roams the streets, just looking for "fun" (yes, apparently it IS fun to bash peoples' heads in) he eventually kills an elderly lady and is arrested. In jail, he puts forth a false attitude that he wants to change, and so he is the first "victim" of a new government program to reverse the mentality of criminals. For a fortnight he is forced to watch gruesome videos of people being killed, of the German concentration camps, of a world of evil that he once took part of. When he was released, he went back home to find himself replaced by his own parents. He then saught shelter with a man that he once tried to kill, but instead gained respect for him. When he stayed in his house, the man put forth the attitude that something awful had been done to him, but he was really the man who pushed for it. Eventually, all the effects were reversed, but nonetheless Burgess has created a remarkable novel here. Throughout the story, Burgess tinges the plot with his own made-up slang such as you would "viddy" a movie or watch a movie. Its quite interesting at times and also through out is the line "So whats it going to be then, eh?" which is quite interesting. Overall, wondeful book and I loved it, had that 1984 feel, but that wasnt nearly as good. The slang can be difficult to get used to, but you do, and want to talk like it afterwards, really gets you in the feel for things.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic, But in a Class of its Own (5 STARS)
Review: "A Clockwork Orange" is not the book it seems to be. People often speak of it and the Kubric film in a way that makes it a blatant disregard for human emotion; a chance to tantalize the senses and fill our minds with senseless violence, rape, and murder. The antagonists of Mr. Burgess' classic tale fail to discover the meaning of this horrific novel, much the same as those who find the "relations" offending in "Brave New World," and those who banned "Catcher in the Rye" for its language. Censors miss true meanings of great literature because they are too busy dabbling over trite matters, while the big picture passes them by. Fortunately for Alex, in 1986 Anthony Burgess was able to reissue the book with its 21st chapter, left out of the original American version and out of Stanley Kubric's film. But even without Alex's remorse spelled out for the reader, one who pays attention can see that the novel is based strongly on the forces of good and evil and our glorious ability to choose. When Alex's free-agency is taken away from him and he is reformed to be a law-abiding man, the novel asks boldly, "Yes, but at what cost?" The brilliant language (nadsat) used by Alex and his droogies hints at the possibilites of his scenerios materializing in the future; in 30 years or tommorrow or 1,000 years. Frankly, it doesn't matter. The novel warns that any time a human's agency is stolen from them, it is the beginning of the downfall of governments, nations, and humanity. Think "Brave New World" and soma, or the thought police in "1984." Had Alex's fate reached the masses, the same rejection of the treatment would have occured, leaving us with thankfulness for the way life is, and warning us about the way life could be. Burgess captured brilliantly what the charlie tells the prison authorities, "When a man looses his ability to choose, his ceases to be a man." Very highly recommended...
Rating:
Summary: Really Good
Review: Although this book was hard to read initially, I was able to get into a flow reading "Clockwork Orange", and enjoyed it thoroughly. There were times when Burgess uses his invented language to describe things, and it turns out to be extremely funny. Along with this book I would also suggest George Orwell's "1984" and "Animal Farm".
Rating:
Summary: Section 3, Chapter 7
Review: First of all, I love the use of made-up slang (a mixture of Russian and English). After a page or two, it becomes easy (or at least easier) to read and the meaning is clear. It helps to create an other-time, other-world setting. I thought the philosophy behind the book was good, but I agreed with the publisher regarding the last chapter. After building up the issue and showing the evolution of Alex, the ending was much to neat and tidy and unrealistically simple. I see why Anthony Burgess wanted to show that people can change (he describes this quite clearly in the introduction), but perhaps this would have been better achieved with a fourth section that shows Alex's gradual change to the good rather than a short last chapter that seems to come out of nowhere.
Rating: 
Summary: A Step in the "right" direction
Review: "A Clockwork Orange" is a good book, maybe even great, but it falls short in a few areas. I guess the most major is language. The dialect of the boys, although entertaining, overshadows the story itself to some point, and is little more than a device to smooth over some of the rougher areas of the literature. Despite that, it was a good, even touching story despite the raw violence that seemed to jump off of every page. Yet despite their raping and beating and killing you manage to feel some compassion for the boys. I won't give away the ending, but in a mark of true fiction, you find the signs of a character who is dynamic both inside an dout in Alex, the leader of the boys. I think it is a good book because it takes a satrical look at the side of society that is too often ignored, although perhaps not so much satrical as just a magnified projection. However, the language (for me) and the violence (for others) prevent me from recommending this book to everyone.
Rating:
Summary: the greatest book ive ever read
Review: after seeing 'a clockwork orange' many times on film i thought i would try the novel.i have found it to be the best book i have ever read.Burgess completely captivates you with his use of innovative language and the way he tells the story through alex.even after alex's diabolical acts,the novel still calls for the reader to have symathy for him when he is being tortured by the state.very challenging in it's time but it has always been a fantastic novel.
Rating:
Summary: What a horrowshow of cal
Review: A teenage thug and his "droogs" wreak havoc on the streets. Using a street language that is easy to decipher, Burgess tells a tale of the not to distant future or is it the present? Alex the leader is captured by the police and is sent to prison where he is offered a controversial treatment. The tratment is a sort of brainwashing that makes Alex ill everytime he encounters violence. Alex is let out of prison and finds it very difficult to find his way in the world. He is cast out by his parents and brutalized by one of his droogs who has become a policeman. Finally the brainwashing wears off and Alex turns back into a street thug and he finally tires of his brutal life.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good book!
Review: I just finished reading this dark masterpiece by Burgess and I have to say it was pretty good and I'm probably gonna read it again.Alex is one of the most confused charachters ever printed(like De Niro in Taxi Driver)and I hated it when he beat people and raped women but I felt sorry when everyone beat the carp out of him later. Anyway this is a pretty good book and highly reccomended!(I'm really 14!)
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