George Orwell

"First published in 1939, Coming Up for Air is a novel written by George Orwell shortly before the outbreak of World War II. Set in 1938 London, the story revolves around a middle-aged insurance salesman George Bowling who lives in a suburban row-house with his wife and two children. As the years roll by, he feels like a hostage to his own wife and children and himself as a prisoner. One day, after winning some money from a bet, George steals away from his family to visit the village where he grew up, to fish for carp in a pool he remembers thirty years before. The pool, alas, is gone, the village has changed beyond recognition, and the principal event of his holiday is an accidental bombing by the RAF. In this novel, Orwell has portrayed a character who seeks to escape in order to come up for air. It is a poignant account of one man's attempt to recapture childhood innocence as war looms on the horizon."

Homage to Catalonia is George Orwell's personal account of his experiences and observations fighting in the Spanish Civil War for the POUM militia of the Republican army. Published in 1938 (about a year before the war ended) with little commercial success, it gained more attention in the 1950s following the success of Orwell's better-known works Animal Farm (1945) and Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949). Covering the period between December 1936 and June 1937, Orwell recounts Catalonia's revolutionary fervor during his training in Barcelona, his boredom on the front lines in Aragon, his involvement in the interfactional May Days conflict back in Barcelona on leave, his getting shot in the throat back on the front lines, and his escape to France after the POUM was declared an illegal organization. The war was one of the defining events of his political outlook and a significant part of what led him to write in 1946, ""Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand it.""

Keep the Aspidistra Flying is a compassionate satire on the 1930's society. Written by George Orwell, the book was first published in 1936 when the western world was still reeling from the devastation of the Great Depression and the Second World War was looming on the horizon. Gordon Comstock is the main character in the novel, and his main goal is to defy the main things that society is doing - glorifying money and status. Trying to keep himself hidden from this selfish world, several bad things subsequently happen to him, leading to the major conflicts of the story. The book is yet another of Orwell's great takes on literature and the world. Enlivened with vivid autobiographical detail, the novel explores materialism, respectability and the class system - themes which remain relevant even today. Through the character of Gordon Comstock, Orwell reveals his own disaffection with the society he once himself renounced.

A new and definitive edition of Burmese Days introduced and annotated by Orwell's prize-winning biographer.

A new and definitive edition of Burmese Days introduced and annotated by Orwell's prize-winning biographer.

HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics. ‘When I was about sixteen I suddenly discovered the joy of mere words’ Best known for his remarkable novels Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell’s essay writings throughout the 1930s and 40s are just as compelling. From ‘Why I Write’ to ‘Shooting an Elephant’ and ‘A Hanging’, his observations offer contemporary readers a snapshot of Britain during some of its most turbulent decades. This collection, ranging from Orwell’s experiences as a police officer in South-East Asia to opinion pieces on British political unrest and the horrors of war, is a selection of his most acclaimed essays, which continue to be revered today for their originality and insight.

Klassikkokirjailijan oivaltavimmat pohdinnat.” Hyvin varhaisesta iästä, ehkä viisi- tai seitsemänvuotiaasta tiesin, että aikuisena minusta tulisi kirjailija.” George Orwell tunnetaan parhaiten romaaneistaan, mutta hän oli myös terävä esseisti ja kriitikko. Hänen vaiheikas elämänsä inspiroi useita pohdiskelevia tekstejä; tässä kokoelmassa käydään läpi aiheita norsun ampumisesta nationalismiin, Henry Milleriin ja englantilaiseen keittotaitoon. Suomentaja Jukka Kemppisen valikoimat esseet ovat kielenkäytön ja kirkkaan asiaproosan taidonnäytteitä, jotka haastavat, liikuttavat ja viihdyttävät. George Orwell (1903–1950) oli englantilainen kirjailija, lehtimies ja kriitikko. Hän syntyi brittiläisessä Intiassa, kävi koulunsa Englannin eliittisisäoppilaitoksissa, asui Pariisin ja Lontoon köyhissä kaupunginosissa ja taisteli Espanjan sisällissodassa vapaaehtoisena ennen varhaista menehtymistään tuberkuloosiin. Orwellin tyylissä yhdistyivät poliittisuus, kriittisyys ja satiiri niin osuvalla tavalla, että hänen nimestään tuli adjektiivi: orwellilainen kuvaa painajaismaisen autoritääristä yhteiskuntaa.

"Hvorfor er Orwell værd at læse? Fordi hans verden ikke kun er gårsdagens verden." – WeekendavisenGeorge Orwell var en af sin tids mest fremtrædende og indflydelsesrige forfattere med sine verdensberømte romaner 1984 og Dyregården og ikke mindst med en rig produktion af politiske og kulturelle essays, reportageromaner, erindringsromaner og journalistisk. Elefanten og andre essays indeholder i alt otte essays – meningsfyldte, kompromisløse, tankevækkende og enormt underholdende, viser de tilsammen Orwells unikke evne til at komme ind til kernen af ethvert emne. I det berømte titelessay Elefanten og det efterfølgende essay En henrettelse leverer Orwell en svidende kritik af det britiske koloniale styre. Baseret på egne oplevelser som officer i det koloniale politi i Burma kaster han et undersøgende blik på magt, magtudøvelse og underkastelse. Herefter følger klassikeren Sådan dør de fattige samt en række af de mesterlige indlæg, Orwell skrev til sin ugentlige klumme i Tribune i årene 1943-47 under overskriften As I please. Samlingen omfatter: Elefanten – En henrettelse – Sådan dør de fattige – En boganmelders bekendelser – Gode dårlige bøger – Sportsånd – Det engelske mords forfald – Nogle betragtninger over den almindelige tudse." Hvorfor er Orwell værd at læse? Fordi hans verden ikke kun er gårsdagens verden." – Weekendavisen"Alle der ønsker at forstå det tyvende århundrede er stadig nødt til at læse Orwell." – New York Review of Books"Orwell har fremfor alt en ærlig stemme – klar, ligefrem og passioneret." – The Guardian"(...) hver gang man dykker ned i Orwell, finder man en guldgrube af visdom." – New York Times Sunday Book Review "Den største forfatter i det tyvende århundrede." – The ObserverGeorge Orwell, pseudonym for Eric Arthur Blair (1903-1950), var en engelsk forfatter, essayist og journalist, født i Indien. Efter endt skolegang på Eton College, arbejde han fra 1922-27 i det koloniale politi i Burma. Han vendte herefter tilbage til Europa, hvor han oplevede forholdene på samfundets bund som opvasker i Paris og som vagabond og hjemløs i London. Senere deltog han som frivillig i den spanske borgerkrig i 1937. Efter hjemkomsten ernærede Orwell sig som journalist samtidig med, at han skrev sine romaner og politiske og kulturelle essays. Det gjorde ham til en af sin tids mest fremtrædende forfattere.

This book, first published in 1942, covers the whole field of wartime life and organization. Is the private ownership and control of industry holding up production? Are the burdens of war being shared equally by the whole community? How can individual liberty be reconciled with maximum efficiency? Are women taking their rightful share in the national effort? Does our literature and art reflect the spirit of an aroused and determined people? Have we a message which will win the oppressed peoples of Europe to our side? These questions are frankly discussed and positive suggestions are made.

Los animales de la granja deciden terminar con el dominio de los seres humanos y se toman el poder. En la nueva sociedad, todos los animales ser n iguales. Pero a medida que pasa el tiempo, van apareciendo caudillos, un l der, grupos excluidos... Y bajo el mandato de las nuevas autoridades, la mayor a va perdiendo poco a poco sus derechos y la libertad.

Animal Farm is a beast fable, in form of satirical allegorical novella, by George Orwell, first published in England on 17 August 1945. It tells the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer, hoping to create a society where the animals can be equal, free, and happy. Ultimately, the rebellion is betrayed, and the farm ends up in a state as bad as it was before, under the dictatorship of a pig named Napoleon.