A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Photo from Goodreads.com

Summary Taken from Goodreads.com

A vicious fifteen-year-old "droog" is the central character of this 1963 classic, whose stark terror was captured in Stanley Kubrick's magnificent film of the same title.
In Anthony Burgess's nightmare vision of the future, where criminals take over after dark, the story is told by the central character, Alex, who talks in a brutal invented slang that brilliantly renders his and his friends' social pathology. A Clockwork Orange is a frightening fable about good and evil, and the meaning of human freedom. When the state undertakes to reform Alex—to "redeem" him—the novel asks, "At what cost?"
This edition includes the controversial last chapter not published in the first edition and Burgess's introduction "A Clockwork Orange Resucked"

My Thoughts

Rated 1 Star

I know this book is a classic and I knew very little when starting to read the book.  The only thing I did know was that friends kept telling me I should read it.  That is how I came to read it now.

Alex is very unlikable.  I know that's what Burgess is going for, given that he is only 15 and goes out on nights with his other "droogs" committing heinous crimes.  We're not supposed to like him and Burgess does a great job with making that happen.

The slang that was invented for this book is what's making it hard for me to read.  At first, I didn't know how I would even be able to get through the book.  But as I kept reading along the chapters, you start picking up on what the words are referring to.  However, to me it's not making the book any easier to read.  I feel that Burgess would've made this story easier to read had it been written with regular words, not this slang that Alex and the others speak.

Alex finally being put into jail was a part of the book I really saw me liking, because he deserved.  After what he did to innocent victims, he should've been put away a long time ago.  The question remains, will this make him change?

Burgess's telling of the story through Alex's I think gives the reader a real feeling of what is going on in his mind.  Yes he is crazy and there is no other reason for him to be doing these crimes other than there is something plain and simply wrong with him.  But you get a clear image of what is going on in his mind during his days and actions.

I really wanted to like this book, but it was hard for me to really get into it and enjoy reading it.  Most of the time my mind wandered and I skimmed most of the last chapter because I wanted to get it over with.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mostly Human by D.I. Jolly

Image
It's not your classic werewolf story in Mostly Human,  a fantasy novel by D.I. Jolly about a young boy who becomes a werewolf by accident and learns how to live with his new changes in life. Alex Harris is a famous rock star known from the band The Waterdogs.  While the world knows of him as an ordinary rock star, his life is anything but ordinary.  He has been hiding a secret since he was ten years old, a secret only his family knows and they do all they can to keep it that way.  In Mostly Human,  Jolly takes us through Alex's trials as a werewolf and all the changes he grows through in his life, from teenager to adult. Jolly gives us a new take on the classic werewolf story as we see how Alex is bitten by a werewolf, all because he thought he was saving a regular wolf.  Alex was only ten when we find out he was bitten, giving us more of an insight in what his life was like before the incident.  But at the beginning, Jolly brings us to Al...
Read more

Asylum by Madeleine Roux

Image
Let your mind wander and go crazy once you enter Asylum , a fantasy novel by Madeline Roux. Daniel Crawford is a 16-year-old high school student who is spending the summer in New Hampshire to attend a college prep program at New Hampshire College.  While the regular dorms are being renovated, students of this program are put up in Brookline, a former Asylum that holds many secrets.  Dan soon makes friends with Abby and Jordan while attending the program and together, they decide to go against campus rules and explore the hidden, forbidden ward of the building to find out what secrets it holds.  Is there a time when secrets should be kept quiet?  What is it about Brookline that people from the area don't want others to find out?  Roux takes you on an adventure of a lifetime with Dan and his friends as we spend the five weeks with them as they attend college prep in Brookline. Roux really brought these characters to life and you couldn't help but rela...
Read more

Awakened by James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth

Image
Title: Awakened Authors: James S. Murray                 Darren Wearmouth Published: June 26, 2018 Rating: 5/5 Stars You won't look at subways the same way again after reading Awakened  by James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth.  A horror, thriller book that will take you deep into the darkness of the New York City subways.   It's been a long time in the making.  A new expansion of the Z train, connecting not only the boroughs of NYC but also Jersey for an easy commute.  The shining jewel of this state-of-the-art line is a breathtaking visitors’ pavilion beneath the river.  This is a monumental event for the city bringing in the city's Mayor and the President of the United States Major dignitaries for the opening of the subway extension.  What no one knows is that deep below the streets of NYC a creature has been awakened by the construction of the subway.  That is, until the train co...
Read more