Anthem

Rating:
Summary: Subtle, no....fantastic...yes!
Review: Ayn Rand and Anthem in particular has been accused of not being subtle... this is true but Rand understood that the majority of the reading public needs to be brow beaten when it comes to issues. Anthem was originally an indictment against fascist Italy in the 30's..yet, this fantastic piece of literary art still rings true today, even in America. This should be required reading in high school classes.

Rating:
Summary: What if Roark and Galt never were?
Review: Anthem projects a man-made apocalypse caused by the refusal to think. It shows just what happens when there is no Galt or Roark in society. Anthem is what could have happened in Atlas Shrugged but for those who refused to surrender their lives to the parasites. Anthem is a more accurate book than Orwell's 1984 or Brave New World because there is no pretense that technological innovation could continue without the innovator. Ayn Rand knew better, thus her works are far more accurate and thus superior.

Rating:
Summary: Rand loves to talk, doesn't she.
Review: On first starting to read Rand's Atlas Shrugged, I was fairly interested. There was character development, there was passion, there were neato little trains that ran around the country and lots of cute guys who looked like ANIME (Japanese animation) characters. As the book wore on, of course, I learned the errors of my ways. There had still been, though, those enjoyable first few pages where Rand wasn't trying to beat communism out of our heads with a baseball bat.
Unfortunately, I had no such luck with Anthem. This lovely little romp skips all that 'character rubbish' and gets straight to the point- which I've already heard, thank you, Ms. Rand. The use of 'we' throughout the narrative was fairly interesting at first, but as soon as Equality 5-2721 discovered the word 'I' (as with all other Rand books) the story began sliding downhill quickly. If you want to read a good dystopian novel, read Brave New World. Don't read Anthem, even if it is shorter- your brain will feel the difference.

Rating:
Summary: A novel which is becoming all too timely
Review: This book can be whittled down to one explanatory sentence--the right of the individual to take control of his own destiny despite the attempts by the government or the masses to hamstring one's efforts in the name of total equality. It is becoming all the more timely, since we now live in a world where criminals are blameless, responsibility for your actions is a notion to be scoffed at, and it doesn't matter how smart or stupid you are, there's already a government agency or special interest group ready to make sure that you can get anywhere based on your sex, color, creed, or background. Never mind actually earning your way through life, everyone is equal no matter what you do or say. And if you don't like how things are going, you can start pointing fingers at whoever you want to blame, and maybe someone will pay you just to shut up. This book should be required reading for children, if only to give them some idea of what kind of sheep mentality the majority of people are conned into existing in.

Rating:
Summary: A fine piece of work
Review: I believe that Anthem is a piece of literature that does not come around very often. Then a gain Ayn Rand is not a type of author who comes around very often. This piece of literature is one that should both scare us and make us happy. It shows what a society can be in which we do not think for ourselves. This is a bad and evil thing because of the loss that it has and lack of individualism it contains. I believe that the best example of this is when everything is written in the plural. This symbolizes the lack of individualism that the society contains. We should feel happy that we do not live in a socirty like that. The other side and the scary side is that we are becoming like this society. We worship computers and televisions and they make the decisions in our lives for us. We need to take the lesson from not only this novelette but from every Ayn Rand book because she can help society.

Rating:
Summary: Not-so-subtle Rand
Review: Orwell used wit and a highly individualized writing style to argue against repression. Rand's Anthem, however, is witless and styleless. This overbearing book might just have finally made the convincing argument for the need of people to cooperate in its own blind, foolish rush to categorize any group of people as stupid. But she undermines her own argument because the Science officials, who do not pay heed to Equality's invention of the light bulb, are obviously not looking out for the best of everyone, so she really doesn't argue against utilitarianism. Why did she write a book when she could have simply written "I"?

Rating:
Summary: A short wonderful "I"
Review: I read this book for the first time when I was sixteen. Then my high school teacher who encouraged me to read Rand's work made it required reading for entire graduating class of 1984. Thirteen years later, this is still a wonderful small book that reminds us that we are individuals. As each generation wonders about its place and where they fit in, "Anthem" reminds us that we are individuals, with individual dreams shaped within us. I recommend this book to many friends, from tech-manual-only reading friends to bible-only reading friends.

Rating:
Summary: Intelligently powerful
Review: Ayn Rand has written a powerful book that will stand along side her other masterpieces. This book examines life through a almost fascist state, where an individual takes charge and questions authority. Our nameless hero challanges his superiors and finds individuality. The scary thing is this book runs parallel to the Japanesse school system. This exsists in the world today!

Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've ever read. Wonderful ! ! !
Review: Equality 7-2521 had an unbridled heart; his soul was free, and he was his own philosopher (as so many of us forget to be).

Rating:
Summary: A great short read
Review: Grand book, way ahead of the times, like so many of her books.

A great vision of why we need less collectivism, and what happens when We do things for (unspeakable).