Rating: 
Summary: The fight to find one's self.
Review: I sat here tonight reading a book that was assigned for my summer reading for my senior AP English class. I am a person who does not read books on a usual basis, and only does so when assigned, but never before have I read a book, an assigned book at that, which I have been more impressed and awed by. What started out as reading just because I had to because school is tomorrow, became reading because I wanted to, because, I was swept away in this world that Ayn Rand has created to show the importance of self. Now, that I have finished this book, just 7 hours before I will be sitting in the first class of AP english at my High School, I realize that this is a book that I will read again and again, for it is one of the best books that I have ever read.
Rating: 
Summary: How Much Government Is Enough?
Review: This little tome is not typical of Ayn Rand, who wrote long novels. "Anthem" can be read in a single afternoon. It is a political fairy tale, in the same genre as "Animal Farm" and "1984," i.e., enjoyable fiction about some nightmare world where individuals strive for freedom against a suffocating tyranny.The protagonist is a young man who lives in a fictional future where a highly regimented society is organized by a central committee, where careers are assigned by the state, where independent thought is repressed and even punished. But our hero begins to feel independent thoughts and ideas arising in his brain, which are accelerated by his discovery of a long-buried subway tunnel, a remnant from the ancient times before the glorious reformation of society. Our protagonist, who has no name, only a number, works secretly and on his own to recreate the lost science of electricity, only to find his discovery rejected in horror by the central science committee. Anything not discovered by committee or group-think, surely cannot exist. Facing severe punishment, our hero departs to the forbidden zone, the lands outside of the central committee's control, where people once lived in ancient times. He becomes a rebel, a revolutionary, against the entrenched power of the state. The theme of this fictional story is oversimplified, but it does express well the two major competing theories of government i.e., centralization versus decentralization, the argument over where the state ends and the individual begins. How much government is enough for an ordered and civilized society? How much government is too much, i.e., when does government become oppressive rather than protective? In that respect, it should be must-reading for school children, because it contains the heart of the debate in easily comprehensible form. It is also an enjoyable read, an adventure story that makes you think even while having fun. I highly recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: One childish dimension...
Review: I am a large opponent of Ayn Rand and her beliefs, for reasons too specific and complex to be summarized in this review. My purpose is to critique the book, and I shall evaluate the literature itself, not the ideas contained within (though some would say that the two are indivisible). Anthem is a simple work that creates a one dimensional world in which "collectivists" are "wrong" and the "individuals" (the protagonist and his beautiful female counterpart) are "right." This does not, in my opinion, make for a stimulating piece of literature. If one presents a conflict to the readers, the resolution of that conflict will be all the more satisfying if the struggle is one against a complex, multi-faceted obstacle, rather than a horde of feeble minded, caricatured "villains" that one may easily defeat by simply trustng in himself. The nameless protagonist is just as poorly constructed as his oppressors, for his voice exists only to spout a one dimensional philosophy that, while completely opposed to that which prevails in this communistic futureworld, is just as rigid. Rand's decision to write in first person allowed her to do so much with the thoughts and ideas of her characters, and she chose to ignore this potentially potent option, in favor of concentrating her energies on translating her ideology into metaphor. I would speak of the way in which she relates to other characters, but there are none of which to speak. The female protagonist is simply thrown into the novel to provide our "hero" with a heterosexual love interest, serving primarilly as a prop with which the hero can expand his own ego even further. The language of the book is quite minimalist, employing a style that others deem poetry but I take to be no more than ungilded exposition. In the tale's painfully didactic ending, the author, through Prometheus, tells us the "right" way to live, after showing us, for ninety pages, the horrors of the "wrong" way. Bereft of literary savvy, experimentation, artistry, complexity and realism (something none of her books contain), I could not, in good conscience, recommend this novel as anything more than what it is: pedantic propaganda to instill in children the evils of communism, the greatness of individualism (as long as one has a beautiful female counterpart with which to start a family) and the beauty of so called "productive work."
Rating:
Summary: My personal Favorite
Review: Although not as highly acclaimed as her other works, this is a fairly quick and light read that packes a potent message. It is my favorite of all her books.
Rating:
Summary: Short, Sweet, Thought Provoking Intro to Ayn Rand
Review: The novel is a tale of a time when the human race has lost all individuality, when people are reduced to numbers and have lost their freedom to make decisions for themselves. Through this novel, written and completed while Ayn Rand was working on Fountainhead, Ayn Rand introduces her philosophy concerning the individual. The novel really got me thinking and I couldn't put it down. At just over a hundred pages, i read it all in one setting, and thought about it the rest of the week. Though the world in Anthem is a very dark and depressed one indeed, it comments nonetheless on more subtle forms of control and losses of our individual freedom in today's world. An excellent read and a great intro to her philosophy. This book led me to purchase Atlas Shrugged, and I recommend these both to all my friends. Amazing and Powerful.
Rating:
Summary: A simple, excellent introduction to the work of Ayn Rand
Review: If you're legitimately interested in Ayn Rand's philosophy (or, like me, interested in the political movement heavily influenced by it, libertarianism), you'll love this book. It's simple and to the point in its plot. If you're not sure you're ready to tackle the Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged, read this first. While the other two books have a more robust plot (as it should, with both topping 1,000 pages), this book is clearer when it comes to ideology. It's a good story, and it's a Cliff's Notes version of Ayn Rand's philosophy. Enjoy!
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Summary: the little novella with big implications
Review: Narrated by Equality 7-2521, Ayn Rand's pithy Anthem contains enough egali-TERROR to ignite an abundance of thoughts in any cognizant reader, despite its repetition (scarcely permissible by its brevity) of many of the same ideas. Certainly, one can compare its communal society with Soviet Russia, Democratic Kampuchea, People's Republic of China, and so forth, but it is also shockingly easy to find relevance to modern America. As you read, beware; this is what the liberal elite is planning for us! One cannot read Anthem's description of education (pronounce "indoctrination") system and not consider America's public schools--dominated by such asinine "reforms" as OBE, School-to-Work, dumb-down-the-curriculum-to-raise-up-self-esteem, and, of course, cooperative learning. (Oh yeah, just for the record--in case any of pythia's teachers see this--not *all* educators are evil. . .) As is characteristic of any dystopia, Anthem relates the struggle of an individual against the juggernaut called society and exposes the dehumanizing effect of egalitarianism. Of all I've read, Ayn Rand's depiction of the future is nearest an ideal utopia, with total abolition of private property and with perfect equality in the absence of class distinctions or authoritative figures. True, occupational statuses differ, but, as in Ira Levin's This Perfect Day (I strongly recommend this novel as well; why is it out of print?), all are equal. When I read Anthem, it gave me the sense that its society, in the latest evolutionary stage of egalitarianism, has existed for a longer time than those of similar novels. Of course, they're all just fictional. . .right?! When compared to most of its genre, Anthem's most salient difference is its technological primitivity. I find this depiction of the future a fascinating and refreshing diversion from typical portrayals--as well as being, according to my own vaticination (keep in mind that I do call myself "pythia"), much more accurate. To maintain its stability, the communal society requires its members to abide with minimal comfort while engaging in continuous drudgery. Additionally, once the society has been established, its members are utterly incapable of producing technological advancement, perhaps even incapable of realizing the need. (On a similar note, check out Kurt Vonnegut's story "Harrison Bergeron," also revealing the stifling consequences of equality.) Tempting as it is to continue elaborate upon this topic, I dare not write more lest I reveal too much--that is, more than the too much I've already written. (Mea culpa for partially spoiling the analysis your own mind ought to initiate.) I'll conclude this segment with three words: House of Scholars! Anthem's only major shortcoming is its ending. After the story's resolution (which is by no means the most emphatic), there follows two chapters (a relatively large chunk of this short work) didactically exalting the Objectivist philosophy of egotism. . .er, I guess that's egoism. . .oops. Because everything stated therein is a clear conclusion clear from the preceding chapters, these chapters are superfluous, serving only to lessen the impact of what the reader would otherwise cogitate himself. (Hypocritical pythia. . .you're one to talk.) In part because of the former, I do not rank Anthem at the top of its genre in strictly literary terms. Moreover, character and plot development are minimal and vague, as a direct result of the work's brevity, and the rhetorical style is simplistic. However, this cannot be held against the novella; rather, it is integral to the protagonist's character. As unadorned as the writing is, Rand actually took artistic liberties with Equality's rhetoric; a novel truly commensurate with what his education level must have been would be illegibly poor! Furthermore, the terse, simple sentences render the theme as powerfully and emphatically as complex, adorned language could have, probably more so. You have nothing to lose by reading Anthem. Although you can finish the novella in one evening, you will keep it in your thoughts long afterwards. . .but pray that in thoughts alone will it remain a reality. . . Alexis de Tocqueville once said that if even people were to attain equality, inequality of minds would still remain. Equality 7-2521 proves this point. Try as they might, no one can completely steal the mind--thus, is it not cruel and inhumane to force it into a state of conformity and mediocrity?! Listen, never believe anyone who tells you that equality is a good thing. Do you want to live in Anthem-land?? Egad! Long live Capitalism!! Long live freedom!! Long live inequality!!! ~pythia~
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Summary: ANTHEM VS. 1984
Review: Here is Leonard Peikoff, Ayn Rand's heir, on the relationship of _Anthem_ and _1984_: "No one can turn man into a cog of society; not into a _thinking_ cog. All that one can accomplish by the attempt is to destroy man. A collectivist system, therefore, like any form of irrationality, is necessarily self-defeating, no matter what its specific policies or leaders[....] "Ayn Rand is more realistic than the panicky anti-communists of the Cold War era, who trembled before the alleged practicality of dictatorship. The best symbol of this issue is the contrast between two projections of a collectivist future: George Orwell's _1984_ vs. Ayn Rand's _Anthem_ (which was published [in Britain] more than a decade earlier, in 1938). Orwell regards freedom as a luxury; he believes that one can wipe out every vestige of free thought, yet still maintain an industrial civilization. Whose mind is maintaining it? Blank out. _Anthem_, by contrast, shows us 'social cogs' who have retrogressed, both spiritually and materially, to the condition of primitives. When men lose the freedom to think, Ayn Rand understands, they lose the products of thought as well. "The historical evidence in support of Ayn Rand's position keeps piling up. The latest piece (1990) is the worldwide shambles of communism. The victims of Marx, without understanding or ideology, are fleeing for their lives to some form of market economy. Without freedom, even the Soviet leaders now admit, a country has no future but starvation." - from _Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand_ by Dr. Leonard Peikoff, p. 362; words in square brackets mine.
Rating:
Summary: Thought-provoking.
Review: A great argument for free-enterprise -- proving how it is possible for innovation to occur when individuals have the freedom to follow their own interests and passions. I can't say that I agree completely with Rand's "teachings," but I couldn't agree more with the sentiments in this book. The concluding chapter seemeed very weak, however. It attempted to portray a feeling of intellectual relevation, though it was arrogantly straight-forward.
Rating:
Summary: in a word - AMAZING!
Review: Ayn Rand proves to be most eloquent in this "non-book" about egoism and the triumph of the individual. Reading the first chapter leaves the reader a little confused but quickly becoming enthralled. I tell everyone who asks about Ayn Rand's writing style to check this one out before committing to her heavier pieces (Atlas Shrugged or Fountainhead). This to me was an introduction, a little taste, of what Rand has to offer her readers.
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