Rating: 
Summary: Most American book ever written.
Review: Big things sometimes come in small packages and this book is one of those things. It reads as quickly and as well as the best poetry. However, while you can easily tear through this book within a couple of hours, the impact it will have on you will be felt years later. There is no praise which I can lend to this book which will do it justice. Read it for yourself. Read it and understand why I consider it the Altoid of the book world even as I continue to hope that it is never locked in a metal box.
Rating: 
Summary: Consequences of true meritocracy
Review: This is the pivotal novel where Ayn Rand stops writing for intellectual equals and starts writing to children. The novella itself is not significant enough to warrant a lengthy review but - it simply is more of the same.The fundamental problem with all Rand's books is that the story breaks down if you juxtaposition the lead character with someone brighter. If someone is a wiser engineer than Galt, Galt no longer has any power. If someone builds better than Roark, Roark life is wasted. If 7-2521 enters the forest and finds the previous runaways that start showing him around, his life is no longer climactic or significant. It would have been interesting if Ayn explored the consequences of true meritocracy. However for her to do this she would have to "objectively" look at the situation. (sorry, cheap shot)
Rating: 
Summary: Short but Sweet Introduction to Objectivism
Review: "Anthem," the first of Ayn Rand's four works of fiction (the others being "We the Living," "The Fountainhead," and "Atlas Shrugged), "Anthem" is a beginner's guide to Rand's philosophy, Objectivism. For those of you who already know what the tenets of Objectivism are, this is a mildly entertaining story with a predictable ending, predictible dialogue (though it takes a few moments to get used to the use of "we" instead of "I"), and little action. For those of you who couldn't care less about Objectivism, don't bother reading this (see above). But for a half-hour to an hour introduction to Ayn Rand's controversial beliefs, this isn't bad.
Rating:
Summary: Anthem
Review: Personally I liked this book. Although it was relatively short, it gave good characters, plots and interesting events. The characters in this book faced a futuristic reality of the society of today. More and more, people are being reluctant to change. As in the Anthem, Rand shows how to much control can alter the minds of many. I liked this book because it has a sense of realism and it also warns people about the danger of complete control. To many, the community in the book may seem as an utopia but it has many flaws. Technological growth of the world is suppressed. Rand really shows how wrong communism is for the future of our world. Although Rand's vision of communism appears very impossible, it may happen. The attitude of people is that if something doesn't work, try something else. However, this is not always the way to go. In the book, they are afraid of returning to the "Unmentionable Times", so they completely steer clear of anything that might remotely come close to returning to those ages. Instead, they should try and fix what exactly went wrong. Above all, I felt that this is a great book for anyone that would like a stimulating book that can be read in less than 2 hours.
Rating: 
Summary: Ayn Rand for the Complete Idiot
Review: Anthem compactly expresses Ayn Rand's plusses & minusses. If you like her philosophy & style, you'll like this book; if you don't, you won't. Read this book before you try Atlas Shrugged or The Fountainhead, so you know whether or not to invest your time. As for the book itself: at the time, it may or ay not have been revolutionary, but today it is pedestrian. Like Edward Bellamy's utopian "Looking Backward" and Moore's original "Utopia" it has been replaced by works of greater plot, characterization and (... unless you're an Objectivist ...) thoughtfulness, such as "1984" and of course the great "Minority Report". The weakness (or strength) of Rand's philosophy is most glaringly evident in the end "Anthem", when the protagonist throws off the shackles of collectivism (yay!) and goes to live in a house built by another (huh? what happened to individualism?) It's a characteristic found in her other works, but at least "Anthem" gets you there faster.
Rating:
Summary: Has Ayn Rand found the Anthem to individuality?
Review: With its 50th anniversary just celebrated,
Ayn Rand's Anthem has become a
masterpiece of her time. Released around
the time of the Red Scare, Rand tackles
the, then, touchy subject of communism
and complete equality. She explores the
idea of a great city where everyone is the
same in every aspect of life. Each child is
raised in a school and given equal
opportunity in both education and lifestyle.
The curriculum is taught on a level that
anyone can accomodate to but what is considered challenging to some, is a
simple-minded task to Equality 7-2521.
Excelling from the "norm" from the start,
Equality 7-2521 is pegged a vexatious
being who is bound for trouble and failure.
Rand's rendition of communism
takes place in a Rennaisance time where it
is a sin to speak of the past world called
the Unmentionable Times. However, this
society does not represent the past but
rather the possible future dark age of the
great "we".
This mindless world of stagnant zombies who aren't allowed to smile for
no reason or be alone for long periods of
time is restricting Equality 7-2521. He
soon begins to feel held back and curuois-
a feeling that is considered dangerous and
sinful. Upon excavation of an old sewer,
Equality 7-2521 realizes "hundreds of
years ago men knew secrets which we have
lost" and comes to the conclusion that his society is that of regression rather than its
perceived progression.
Equality 7-2521 soon finds peace in
solitude and makes nightly visits to the
tunnel. Throwing away his inhabitions, he
begins to conduct studies for his own sheer
enjoyment. He collects garbage from the
House of Scholars and random objects of
interest so he can better understand the
world he lives in.
Equality 7-2521's love for
knowlege and quest for self betterment
cause him to break the rules that restrict
him. His experiments lead him to the
discovery of electricity and banishment
from the great city.
Rand exposes her transcendentalist
roots when Equality 7-2521 takes to the
Uncharted Forest as refuge from an unjust
world. It is here that he finds the concept
of "I" instead of "we" and names himself
Prometheus. The process of naming
himself is symbolic in the sense that he has
differentiated himself from his society. He
decides he is "neither friend nor foe to
[his] brothers, but such as each of them
shall deserve of [him]".
Through her novels, Rand forms
her philosophy of Objectivism which is "the concept of man as a heroic being, with
his own happiness as the moral purpose of
his life, with productive achievement as his
noblest activity, and reason as his only
absolute."
This philosophy is evident in
Anthem . This book is a wonderful
example of expression of individuality
and the effects society can have on the
progression of man. The reading is
simple enough for a junior high student
and complex enough for an adult. The
simplicity of it, however, makes the
novel one that can not be read numerous
times. Reading this, at times, can be
comparable to talking to a young child
but as Equality 7-2521's sense of self
intensifies, his vocabulary and diction
grows as well. This is a book for all ages
and all different types of people.
Rating:
Summary: Book review that I did for school
Review: I did this book review as if i was writing for cosmo girl magazine, this is no where near how I would write this review, but here ya go anyways: Hey Girl! Are you looking for a quick book to keep you entertained while your soaking up some rays this summer?? Well, I've got just the book for you! At 105 pages, Anthem by Ayn Rand, can be read before you have to turn over to your backside!
Can you imagine not being able to wear whatever clothes you want? Or date who ever you want? Or say whatever you want? Well, in Anthem, the main character, Equality 7-2521 faces such a dilemma. His society totally takes away his individuality and makes him conform to everyone else. No one is allowed to be prettier, smarter or funnier then the next guy. They can't even have their own name!! Everyone is an equal!
Of course, Equality 7-2521 hates this way lame situation. He is totally an individual and does not like being oppressed. He is totally unlike anyone else in his society. He tries to conform to the standards the others set but no matter how hard he tries he is always smarter and quicker than they are. Whenever he stands out from the crowd, the ruling Council punishes him and condemns his individuality as a sin against the "brother hood" (The Council kinda sounds like your parents would if you secretly got your belly button pierced or something.... how lame!) So, anyways, Equality 7-2521 decides to break free and chill out in a hidden tunnel for a while. While he's down there, he discovers electricity. This stinks for Equality 7-2521 because he isn't allowed to make discoveries! Eeek!! So what's gonna happen to Equality 7-2521? Will he get caught? Will he get punished?? You'll just have to buy the book and see!!
So you're probably thinking.. "So why would I wanna read a book that's like soo unrealistic??" Well, because communism is very real. It was especially real to Ayn Rand, who lived in communist Russia. She said in an interview once that the conditions in Russia inspired her story. She said " My feeling toward Russia at the time was simply an intensified feeling that I've had from childhood and from before the revolutions. I felt that this was so mystical, depraved, rotten a country that I wasn't surprised that they got a communist ideology-and I felt that one has to get out and find the civilized world". Rand doesn't like communism and she does like a really super good job of emphasizing the importance of individualism. Take her character Equality 7-2521 for example; He was like the one person who went out and found the civilized world that Ayn Rand was talking about. He broke free from communism by defying the society that held him captive and allowing his individual achievements and ideas to flourish. I think that's probably the point this Rand chick is trying to make. Rand wants to prove to all of us that the individual can't be limited by society.
Not to get all patriotic or anything, but this book kinda makes you grateful to be an American. We can like totally be individuals here. I mean, yeah, society does kinda limit us, but we've got it really good here. You might have felt that you didn't have enough freedom or your school dress code was an infringement on your personal rights, but this book and Equality 7-2521's life will change your mind. It'll make you appreciate the freedoms you have.
Communism stinks, so take advantage of democracy this summer! Like Equality 7-2521 said "For the coming of that day I shall fight, I and my sons and my chosen friends. For the freedom of Man. For his rights. For his life. For his honor". (104) Appreciate the right to sit out by the pool in your new bathing suit with your new hair do, reading your cosmo girl mag...cause people like Equality 7-2521 couldn't do that kinda stuff.
So if you are ready for some deep thinking and some quick reading: Sneak a peek at Anthem this summer. I loved it and I am sure you will too! Enjoy your individuality and don't get sunburn!
Rating:
Summary: Individualism @ Its Best
Review: Imagine a world without individualism. A world where anybody is everybody. Nobody can express themselves; it is forbidden. Everything done by the people is for the good of society. Your name is a number, you are a statistic. From birth, your entire life will be layed out for you. You may not have friends or feelings; these allow you to distinguish between people. All are equal. The story takes place far in the future. A type of World War has pushed the human race into a primitive form. To prevent any sort of war, high councils decided everybody would be the same. If everybody does not agree, it will not be. The main character is in a struggle of independance. He has a strong urge to be different, to stand out. He defies the council and thier wishes. He embarks on a quest of love, truth, and curiosity. The character learns the true potential of man, discovers what it is to love, and experiences a world of new feelings on his journey. The book takes you through his endeavors as he discovers what it means to be the master of his own destiny.
Rating:
Summary: loved it
Review: In Ayn Rand's futuristic tale of the dark ages, society has lost all concepts of individualism, values, and leadership. It gets to the point where people are unfamiliar with the word "I" and refer to themselves as "We." Rand uses her knowledge on philosophy to portray the concepts in Anthem, "I had to originate a philosophical framework of my own, because my basic view of man and of existence was in conflict with most of the existing philosophical theories. In order to define, explain and present my concept of man, I had to become a philosopher in the specific meaning of the term." In other words, Rand wanted to show how people hate change and only live their lives going by the philosophical theories that they already know.
This novel is one of the most unique ones ever written. There is essentially no plot. There is just one main idea spread throughout the entire book-that idea being having a society where everyone and everything is exactly the same. The novel helps portray how important it is now to have freedoms and independence. Some of the concepts and ideas brought upon the society are so ridiculous that it makes one consider how lucky they are now to have their own vales and independence. It is a little hard to understand the book at first by the way its written in terms of "we" and "our" instead of "I" and "mine." But this method that Rand uses in writing this helps the reader better understand the ideas on individualism. It is a great novel for all audiences who care to see the importance of freedom and independence that we have today. In the beginning of the novel, the protagonist of the novel is introduced. He goes by the name of Equality 7-2521. Everybody in the society has names such as these-where they are referred to as numbers rather than just normal human names. The reason for this is to make sure that no one has anything unique to himself or herself, that numbers alone can classify each person.
The society's names are probably the only thing that somewhat differs among people. Everyone is to learn at the same pace, eat at the same time, sleep at the same time, and allow others to make decisions for him or her. A career is picked out for each person in which they are forced to be, and if they for some reason cannot fulfill the tasks of that career. They have no choices for themselves whatsoever, "dare not choose in your minds the work you would like to do when you leave the Home of the Students. You shall do that which the Council of Vocations shall prescribe for you. For the Council of Vocations knows in its great wisdom where by your brother men, better than you can know it in your unworthy little mind"(22). They do not feel that anyone is capable of knowing whom they really are in order to choose their path in life.
At one point in the novel, Equality 7-2521 finds out that he is smarter than another student, Union 5-3992. He has to try to do less than he is capable of just because it would be a sin to have greater knowledge than any of their brothers or even to know less than their brothers. Everyone must always be exactly the same.
Equality 7-2521 discovers a tunnel in which he secretly explores. He ends up learning more on his own in that tunnel than all of his years of schooling in the House of Students where everyone in society gets his or her education. He eventually discovers electricity, which he feels is the greatest gift that could ever be given to man. He finds out that it is from the Unmentionable Times, which were the times when there was equality and freedom and technology. But now in these dark ages of the future, these times are to never be spoken of.
Equality 7-2521 finally decides to confess everything about his tunnel and his discovery of electricity, and he is immediately thought of as evil and sinful to the world. He ends up running away into the Uncharted Forest. There he is able to learn more and eventually regains his individuality.
But the most important discovery that Equality 7-2521 makes, is his final understanding of the word "We." He figures out how that word came to corrupt all of society. It took away all possible individual freedoms. He decides to never use it again seeing as it symbolizes terrible things, "'We,' the word of serfdom, of plunder, of misery, falsehood and shame"(97). He then understands the importance of the word "I" to replace "We", "...will grant them joy and peace and pride. This god, this one word: 'I'"(97). This is all proving the symbolism of no independence within the word "We", and the freedom within the word "I."
Anthem is one of the most unique novels written yet. Ayn Rand has a way of expressing values of independence and freedom by showing them in extreme measures. Anthem shows an amazing prediction of what the future could be like if those values were taken away from civilization.
Rating:
Summary: Ayn is Great
Review: Ayn Rand is a great storyteller. I absolutely loved this book, it's very sad and beautiful. I remember I borrowed this book from my teacher, and gave it back the next day. I could not put it down. This is a lovely book, and I adored it so much.
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