Rating: 
Summary: Pseudo-Intellectuals Unite!
Review: I have only one minor question about the works of Ayn Rand, and especially Atlas Shrugged: Has anybody ever read this book and NOT immediately identified with the heros Gault, Rearden or Taggart? I, like the majority of others who have read this book, was immediately sucked in by the prospect of comparing myself to John Gault and that desire was intentionally fed by Rand's ability to craft a world so biased and unrealistic that I had no other choice. Every person I have ever known who has read this book, and judging by the reviews here on Amazon, nearly every person who ever read it, inevtiably finds themselves so much like the heros that it is essentially a life changing experience. But that fact that EVERYBODY who reads this book comes to the same conclusion, the conclusion that they (the reader) are like John Gault or Dagny Taggart, while the rest of the world is made up of nothing but unproductived, weak-willed saps, seems to me to undermine Rand's basic theory that the world is split into such factions. Has anybody ever read this book and found themselves relating to the characters who are portrayed as incompetent louts? No. Thus, according to Rand and her followers, everybody who sees the heroism and greatness of Gault et al. is a member of that most treasured class simply by the fact that they realize it. I am willing to bet that most fans of this book would probably be despised by Rand herself who, short of creating the pseudo-philosophy of Objectivism and writing lengthy fictionalized dissertations on it, did little worthwhile in her lifetime and probably deserves to be despised herself. And so, those who love this book do so because it allows them to pretend they have original thoughts and something to offer this world, when in reality, they have simply stolen someone else's philsophy and attempted to profit from it. Thus, they are no different than those characters in Rand's books who believe themselves to be making valuable contributions to society though, in reality, they do little but coast along on the genius of John Gault, Hank Rearden or Dagny Taggart.
Rating: 
Summary: Better Late Than Never
Review: I've just finished reading this book over five days when I "should" have been doing a lot of other work. The first two nights it cut my sleep time to 3-4 hours. The book is an epic journey of ideas that I found compelling to finish though I have known in broad outline her philosophy for many years.It is a book to celebrate thought, rationality, honest effort and individual authority and independence. It put words to fundamental beliefs and feelings that I have had for many years. It disposed finally of the guilt-trip mentality that I have always challenged. It cemented my rejection of brainless authority. It made me proud that I help own and direct an innovative, independent software company with high values and the best staff. It is not a perfect novel. It will be far too long for many people - even those who should read it. But it has more original and courageous thought per page than any other book I have read. If you want to add value to your life don't wait as long as I have to read it.
Rating:
Summary: masterpiece
Review: If you are a person who is often times frustrated by the direction our society is going you will find this book very gratifying. It is reassuring to here someone express feelings that you share and do so in such a powerful and convincing way. Amazingly contemporary for a work which is over 40 years old. Apply it to the current tax cut debate. By the way it is also a very engrossing story from the perspective of pure fiction, regardless of philosophy. It would be interesting if the ratings that this book received were broken down to reveal whether or not the reader considered themself to be "conservative" or "liberal". I suspect their would be a dramatic difference.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth Reading - once.
Review: Ayn Rand is not as great a writer as her worshippers make out, but she is not as poor a writer as her detractors would have you believe. In fact, I think she tells a pretty good story. The thing with Rand is, that she had no subtlety whatsoever. To her, there were no negotiables, everything, and to her that meant EVERYTHING, was black and white. While I certainly believe that there is absolute truth, we humans can't know everything at all times, so in some areas at least, one must realize that different points of view can be as valid as ones own. Rand did not believe this so her writing gets very preachy and heavy handed. However, I think that many of her ideas are like a breath of fresh air in our increasingly socialistic culture. We are fast giving away our individual freedoms and I for one believe that is a tragedy in the making.
Rating:
Summary: Read the book.
Review: A philisophically challenging, life-changing work, Atlas Shrugged seems to elicit polarized responses. I hope the two reviewers below do not deter anyone from reading this book. When you read an idea, and everything within you screams "this is true!" do not let a modern anti-intellectual convince you that it is not. This book is based on individualism, hardly what nazism or communism are based upon (see previous review). It also takes the view that your identity and self-worth are not derived from others but from your own integrity and accomplishment. Sure, work at a soup kitchen if you wish, but don't let that be the definition of your life. This is indeed a book written in the Romantic tradition. It's heroes are idealized versions of what men should be, and it's villains are more blatantly evil than what you encounter every day. But this doesn't mean that good and evil do not exist, just that they are often beneath the surface.
Rating:
Summary: An Excuse
Review: The longest excuse you have ever read. People who claim that this novel changed their lives are just using it as a convenient, critically lauded excuse to use the "virtues of capitalism" to thier advantage. People who place financial and emotional well-being before all other aspects of life are completely missing the point of living. The most rewarding actions that we as people embark on in our lives involve compromising our safe, comfortable environments to experience new things, whether this means experiencing a new social situation for the first time (helping out at a soup kitchen, going to a club, feeling so real, etc.) or taking on a new resoponsibility (having a family, giving time to a charity, among other things). It is not the inherent acts of selfishness that give our lives meaning, but it is the acts of giving, that we do conciously or otherwise, that give us a reason to live. This book promotes gaining satifaction through taking rather than giving. If everyone followed that gospel, then we would be in real trouble. Donate the time you would have spent reading this book to a charity or cause that means a lot to you. Then you will realize that the giving of ones self is tbe best way to grow as a person.
Rating: 
Summary: Hey retardboy
Review: This book was good. Its premises are weak at times, but its message is an important and applicable one. But retardboy is missing the point and reminds me of the self-righteous teenagers that end up as bitter middle managers in some company in Suburbia, USA. Learn some humility there, bud.
Rating:
Summary: A Feat of Integration
Review: "Atlas Shrugged" is stunningly direct and wonderfully complete. One of the most impressive aspects of the book is its amazing conceptual integration...not only does the entire book proceed logically from the philosophical premises, but the premises are woven so deftly into the plot that the reader is left with a sense of wonder. How many other books can successfully combine a story of epic proportions with the presentation of the fundamentals of an entire philosophical system? Probably the most common criticisms of the book attack its length and its characters. As for the length, what else does anyone expect from a book dealing with so much material? At least "Atlas Shrugged" has its phenomenal complexity as the reason behind its length...so many other books are just long for the sake of being long. I hate to even mention it in the same review, but Melville's story "Billy Budd" is only seventy-something pages long, and should have been about ten. "Waiting for Godot", which is something like the literary antithesis of "Atlas Shrugged", would have done the world a favor by not being written at all. These are far worse crimes against literary art than the few extraneous speeches found in "Atlas Shrugged". I see the length as a non-issue, unless you are one of those people for whom the value of a book is determined by the number of pages. As for the characters, it always amazes me when people complain about all of Ayn Rand's characters being "one-dimensional". She writes some of the best minor characters in literary history, and I honestly don't think that's an overstatement. She is at her best when dramatizing a concept by painting it in details. It's amazing how many analogues of real-life people I can find in the more minor characters - Lillian Rearden, Eddie Willers, Cherryl Brooks, Dave Mitchum, Dr. Stadler, the men and women in the train...I could go on and on. These are the characters that really flesh out the book as a whole, and add meaning to the activities of the protagonists. This point has been made many times before, but just for good measure: The main characters are not supposed to be real people! They are philosophical abstractions, not the neighbors next door. They are meant to dramatize philosophical perspectives and concepts. Those who like extremely naturalistic writing will probably find them unidimensional, but extremely naturalistic writing gets old fast. How many times can we read about the couple next door or the old man down the street? How many times must we be subjected to the same overdone plot of boy-meets-girl, with the same overused characters? "Atlas Shrugged" is a refreshing change from the relentless redundancy with which literary naturalism assails the modern reader. I will admit, the book can get a little preachy at times. The dissertations on philosophical concepts, such as the meaning of money, are incredible essays in their own right, and I highly recommend them - they just interrupt the flow of the novel. I think Rand was at her best as a fiction writer, so I would have preferred it if she had stuck to fiction in this book, and saved the philosophy for separate publication. The events of the book are all the examples she needed to communicate her philosophy...the essays could have been published separately. But in my opinion, that's really the only major flaw in the novel's structure. And I'll add that the first thing I thought when I was this book was, "That's a great title!" Love it or hate it, "Atlas Shrugged" is a stunning literary and philosophical achievement. Whether or not you agree with it, it will make you think long and hard, and hopefully you'll follow Fransisco d'Anconia's advice: Check your premises. You never know what hidden assumptions you'll find lurking in the recesses of your mind.
Rating:
Summary: Fire Up The Dome (Use your head)
Review: You are going to have to do alot of thinking if you are going to read this book. Think very hard about Ayn Rand's premises. If you are going to take the time to read this book take the time to learn how Capitalism works and what some of its problems are (if you don't already know). If you don't then you have to take for granted that what Rand tells you about economics is true. This makes for a weak premise. What one must especially be careful of is taking what is true for Rand's world as true for our world. Our world and her world have very different settings and very different people. For instance feeling that it is ok for common people and politicians to die in a train wreak because they are the same as the people in the novel would be a big mistake. This is an obvious one but some are not so obvious. I found that Rand had some good and important things to say but that most of what she said was wrong and unfortunate. But to each his own. This is definetely an important book if only to make people look at what they believe and why they believe it. P.S. Remember that while selfishness may be a virtue in economics it isn't neccisarily a virtue in other aspects of one's life.
Rating:
Summary: Important Read
Review: This book engaged me from the beginning to the end. Ann Rynd gave a voice to many thoughts i already believed. it is quite simply the best book i have ever read. $
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