Rating: Summary: Viddy well, my little droogies! Review: This book, though looked at by some as impossible to read and looked at by others as glorifying violence, really does have a point: a person can change. While the movie and the original American version of the book don't have this redeeming quality, this new version does, mostly because of the inclusion of a new chapter that should have been included in the movie and original American version of the book. Those who say that this book isn't thought-provoking don't know what they're talking about.I would recommend this book to anyone who has the patience to work through the very difficult dialogue. Even after having read greats like Shakespeare and Dostoevsky, "A Clockwork Orange" is even harder to read, but like the works of the great authors I mentioned above, "A Clockwork Orange" has a greater point than it seems on the surface. Read this book with an open mind and your opinion will definitely be changed.
Rating: Summary: Whatever you do, DO NOT STOP reading this book! Review: After reading the first few pages of Clockwork Orange, I thought it would be too painful to continue, but the word substitutions gradually became clear, and the story evolved into a powerful and-surprisingly-humorous narrative. Gang leader Alex rebels against society in every way, rejecting decency, work, and even language. His mischief eventually leads him to prison at age 15, and mishaps there result in his being selected for criminal rehab by association. The rest is what turns the novel into a classic--the criminal becomes victim, grows more charming in the process, and learns how to grow up.
Rating: Summary: Brilliant use of Language and Satire Review: This book is an amazing trip. Through the narration of Alex, a young miscreant, we see his transformation from free-roaming criminal to a thing, the botched result of a government experiment. The book is really good in the philosophical arguments it brings up: Can people be changed from bad to good without choice? What will society sacrifice to feel safe? Is humanity in the choice to be right? It is one of the most provocative novels I have ever read. And that's just half of it. Burgess writes with an original prose that is used by Alex and his criminal buddies. This helps immensely to portray the graphic implications of their activities without actually being graphic. Even though we see the bad things he does, we still feel a connection with him and share in his pain in his treatment. Maybe it is his childlike glee or the fact that the people that are supposed to protect the public are far more insidious. A brilliant book, read it even if you've seen the film, because this book has another chapter which changes the end of the story and gives it a more hopeful tone.
Rating: Summary: Violence Review: This is a book I had to buy 3 times before my mom stopped throwing it away, and she threw away the DVD I bought of it too. It's trash, she said. I thought it was a good commentary on what's wrong and what's right with the world. I read the book in school, because I _wanted_ my teachers to see I was reading it, because I wanted to wear my mind on my sleeve to some extent, by showing them a book that meant something to me. Much to my surprise and chagrin, they did not respond as my mother did. In fact, they would ask me why I found it engaging (and believe me, I did), and they would talk to me about the characters and the story. It was a book that made me re-evaluate a lot of things in my world, and to a large degree, it helped me (indirectly) gain some valuable insight into myself and the people around me. To say this book didn't change my life would be a lie. In fact, I'm sure this book changed in one way or another the life of everyone who's read it. Lately, in America especially, people will hide behind the veil of decency and what's right and good to repress and take away freedom. ACWO indeed gives a deep insight into this sort of action, and the deadly and terrible consequences it may have. It dares to ask the question of if good is good because of intentions or because of instinct. In a more direct way of saying it, it says "does society act civil because it wants to or because it is somehow forced to by an influence other than its own". Like "Mother Night" by Vonnegut, this book points out that the individual, no matter how much you might not like them, or how much you might not believe who they really are, is defined by their actions and their words, and that the world around them forces who they appear to be onto them, or forces its views of who they are onto them.
Rating: Summary: A Good Lesson in Reading Review: Often as readers we like to stay within our comfort zone of understanding disguised as a genre or favorite Author. It's when we break from our solace that we learn something new and expand our thoughts. With it's futuristic slang and disturbing, yet sometimes comical satire, this book is an enjoyable yet challenging (to finish at a normal pace) read. Although first published in the early 1960's, A Clockwork Orange is timeless.
Rating: Summary: Gruesome, and Excellent all in one Review: This is my favorite book of all time. It has a good, solid message, and the unusual dialect keeps you looking in a russin dictionary, forcing you to keep reading, and focusing in on the story. It's a gruesome book, and I wouldn't recommend it for the squeamish. Then again, I'm squeamish, but for some reason...I just had to keep reading, and I'm glad I did. Great book. A must read, soon.
Rating: Summary: A clockwork orange Review: An incredible, violent and almost surrealistic dream (or should I say nightmare?) about the future. A mechanical and dehumanized society where Alexander De Large has become a sort of evil creature of it and ironically its sacrificial lamb. A superb description of how the opportunity of choosing between good and evil must be considered as a gift of God.
Rating: Summary: Awesome Review: Well i never really wrote a review before so its not that great. but yeah, this book is great, it took a while to learn what some of the english words meant translated to american slang, but it really makes you think. this is my current favorite book.
Rating: Summary: disturbing and ingenius; in a class by itself Review: 'A Clockwork Orange' is the fourth Anthony Burgess novel I've read (after 'One Hand Clapping', 'The Doctor is Sick', and 'The Wanting Seed'), which is strange since 'A Clockwork Orange' is undoubtedly Burgess's most famous novel (thanks in no small part to the film adaptation). I was hesitent in tackling 'A Clockwork Orange' because I knew it contained many invented expressions by the author and, I feared, it would make for difficult reading. Thankfully my fears were unjustified. Firstly, as most everyone knows 'A Clockwork Orange' is a futuristic story about a sadistic teenager causing havoc with his equally disturbing mates. His behaviour is vile, with this futuristic society being portrayed as an ultra-violent hell. Fortunately he is caught, imprisoned, then undergoes 'treatment' to cure him of his violent obsessions. The story flows well, with both the characterizations and the description of this future world being very believable. However it is Burgess's creative use of inventive gang-land slang which makes this book most memorable. Of course initially it is all rather confusing, but after a bit it is rather easy to follow. One is simply left over-awed at the author's ability to get away with such creativity - I imagine his publishers (back in the early 1960s) were rather disturbed at Burgess's creation. Bottom line: violent, shocking and unforgettable. While not for the squeamish, most everyone will be impressed with 'A Clockwork Orange' - regardless if they've seen the film.
Rating: Summary: The best book ever written Review: A Clockwork Orange in my opinion is by far the best book ever written. Anthony Burgess did a tremendous job of writing about the frightening future and all the violence it brings. But, evil becomes good at the end, and that is great.
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