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Summary: Good Message
Review: I read this book not too long ago in school in my tenth grade English class. I must say, this book is a great book. I admit I thought some of her views of egoism were a little strange and somewhat rebelious. However, I thought it was amazing and it gave a good message. We can't force people to be equal, we should let people live on their own. This book shows that Communism isn't as great as it seems. After all, Ayn Rand lived in the Soviet Union and she knew from living there that Socialism does not help individuals. When she came to the US, she thought life is better here. This book in a way also showed that we can still be equal as individuals and not as one. Ayn Rand qave a very good message.
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Summary: An interesting read, no matter your views
Review: I must admit that i find Rand's social and political views a bit extreme, but i think that no matter what kind of background you have or what you believe, it is definitely interesting to read something that comes from such an extreme. i definitely recommend reading it.
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Summary: Raging Individualism
Review: This book will make you consider the world around and the influence it has upon your life, both positive and negative. This book makes you want to expell your freedom of mental freedom. This is a must read for anyone who wants to think.
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Summary: Rand is genius.
Review: After reading The Fountainhead and just finishing Anthem I would have to say that Ayn Rand is one of the best authors I have ever read. I recommend this book very highly.
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Summary: Russian Communism
Review: Ayn Rand is a very intriguing character once you look a little closer at her life. Her most popular books include Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, We The Living, and Anthem which is the one I read. Anthem is a fictional book. The publisher is Pamphleteers, Inc. and was published in 1999. All these books reflect her very early childhood. Ayn Rand and her family ran away from Russia during the communist revolution. Her family lost everything, and thus this deeply imbedded malice towards communism, which is shown in every one of her books. This happened when Ayn Rand was very young, and she eventually immigrated to the United States. Although she is Russian by birth, I consider her very American because of her views. She reflected the views of most Americans of the time if not more radically. The book Anthem was a very well written book, which reflects the negative side of the Russian version of communism in a very extreme fashion. Although the story could have been expanded, it was a very touching and motivating piece of literature. It truly expresses her and the American public's emotions at that time. The greatest aspect of this book is how Ayn Rand expresses emotions of the character. I must make it clear that Ayn Rand is expressing her feelings towards the Russian or Stalin version of communism. Carl Marx had no intention of his government to turn out the way it did in Russia. In fact, if you read Marx's original philosophy of communism, not only is it much more appealing, but it is very logical. It is the perfect government in every way except in one. It did not take into account human emotions, in particular greed. Ayn Rand expresses this through mono-color, the use of only 'We' and not 'I', harsh rules guiding everyday life, the total loss of sexual pleasure with the opposite sex, and the total loss of the sciences and arts. As you can see, this is extreme but that was how she and the American public felt at that time. In Russia during the communist regime, there was sometimes a curfew and some jobs did have uniforms. While writing Anthem, I believe that she was very much into expressing her hate towards communism and succeeding in that, she slightly failed in making a story. She has been able to write great stories, which is obvious from her other books. I am not at all saying that it is anything but a great piece of literature, but according to her standards, more would be expected. More detail in the story and more personality to the characters would have greatly improved the feel of the book. Despite that, the story was very motivating because it promoted thinking different from the crowd and rebelling. Those are the trademarks of this generation. What added most to this book would have to be how Ayn Rand really puts you in the shoes of the character. You really feel the frustration of the main character with him. This is how she expresses her emotions towards communism. This is what the book is all about. When you read this book, while you are reading it, you feel this hate developing for the kinds of restrictions placed on the society in the book. Those restrictions are similar to the Russian communist government so in essence, if you were to be presented with the philosophy of Russian communism, you would truly hate it. This is even more amazing because I am a fan of Marx's philosophy. In conclusion, this book could have had a better story but the way it put you in the character's place was ingenious. She carries an agenda while writing, but as long as that agenda does not hurt her writing, she could write for the destruction of the world and it would still be great. Overall, her writing is very compelling and even though it was written many years ago, it carries the ideals of today.
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Summary: Ayn Rand at her best!
Review: Often times people see that a book was written by Ayn Rand and immediatly dismiss it as 'too philosophical'. While Anthem does hold true to Rand's form of writing, it also strays from her main theme of objectivism. This book uses characters that will tug your heart strings to show the importance of the individual soul. And after reading one finds themself with new definitions for the words 'I' and 'We'. Buy this book and redefine your self.
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Summary: A fascinating look into the mind of fascism and nazism
Review: This book shows clearly the inner mental workings of extreme right-wing fascist Nazi-esque philosophy. By elevating the ego and selfish interests above all else, it prevents anyone from cooperating together on a common cause -- the perfect society to be ruled by an iron-fisted "benevolent" fascist dictatorship, an idea which Ayn Rand quite openly embraced. It's no surprise that her works, including Anthem, Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, are extremely popular in militia/survivalist/skinhead/white supremacy circles, embraced as much as "The Turner Diaries" and other similar works.
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Summary: "Now That's Power!"
Review: As James Doohan might say in a Radio Shack® infomercial, "Now That's Power". I realize that "Anthem" has great symbolic value, but I am mostly amazed at her tremendous grasp of language and the intensity with which she conveys ideas and emotions. Although I do not sympathize with her collectivism-bashing rhetoric, I nonetheless admire Rand's expertise and "Anthem"'s intensity. Some might be confused by the plural pronouns ("we" for "I" and "they" for "he/she"), but after the first few pages I no longer noticed. The only problem was making the transition with Rand back to singular pronouns near the end! I recommend "Anthem" highly. Read it with an open mind from an intellectual stand-point and you WILL be enthralled.
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Summary: Been there, done that.
Review: When I was younger I thought that this book was amazing. Now I realize that it's just a cheap rip-off of Brave New World. Shame on you, Ayn.
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Summary: Slow, dull, and I think it deserves 0 stars
Review: To sum it up nicely, this book sucked. It had an OK concept, but the writing was boring, too intelectual, and long winded. Some phrases were powerful, but many of her sentences didn't hit me the way TALENTED writers, like Jane Yolen write. This book ANTHEM made no sense, and the way Ayn Rand used the "We" and the "They" confused me. As being an Advanced English ninth grader, I think I know what books are good, and what good writing is, and this is not it.
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