1984 by George Orwell

Book: 1984

Author: George Orwell
Review Written by Ronan Payinda

This book is full of thought-provoking and chilling ideas and it paints a terrifying vision of the future. It features realistic and relatable characters, struggling to do the right thing in a world where free thought is oppressed. I would definitely recommend this classic to anyone who is comfortable reading fairly advanced stories, and anyone interested in science fiction and dystopias. It is a classic and everyone should read it at least once.

Nineteen Eighty-Four takes place in a superstate called Oceania, which includes the Americas and the British Empire. The world has been divided into three massive superstates after a world war.

Plot Outline:

Oceania is at war with two other states: Eurasia, which was created when the USSR conquered Europe and Eastasia, made up of the east of Asia.There are three classes in Oceania: the top class, the Inner Party, which make up a very small amount of the people in Oceania,

The middle class, the Outer Party, who make up more of the population,

And finally the working class Proles, who make up most of the population.

The main character, Winston Smith, lives in Airstrip One, a country once known as England. He lives in the ‘chief city’ of Airstrip One, which is covered with posters and propaganda: mainly of Big Brother, the party leader. Below the picture of his face is the words ‘Big Brother is watching you’. All citizens also have their whole lives monitored by telescreens, which let the Thought Police locate and stop anyone against Big Brother and the Inner Party. Families are caused to be divided, as children are told to tell the Thought Police about any criminals, even including their own parents.

He works as an editor in the Ministry of Truth, which rewrites and twists information and history to make it follow anything the Inner Party desires. When someone disobeys the Inner party and are killed secretly, he rewrites the articles and books that mention them, too make it seem as if they never existed. He then incinerates the original texts.

However, he soon becomes amazed by the truth of the past and tries to save as much of it as he can. He also hides where he thinks he cannot be seen to write a journal against the Inner Party and Big Brother, something he would be killed for by the Thought Police if they found out.

Winston Smith lives in a dystopian, oppressive society lead by the Inner Party. Every citizen has their life monitored by telescreens. Everywhere he looks, he sees posters bearing the face of the Party leader called Big Brother, with the caption ‘Big Brother is watching you’. Winston works for the Inner Party by twisting and rewriting history.

However, after realising that the truth is worth fighting for, he rebels with his lover Julia by going against what Big Brother believes. They have secret meetings where they believe they cannot be seen, and find a way to take down the evil of Big Brother.

However, the two ‘thoughtcriminals’ are captured. Winston is tortured and betrays Julia when he is about to be killed, thus losing to Big Brother.

Winston is put back into the society. At the end of the book, he looks up at an Inner Party poster and realises that he loves Big Brother.

Recommended Age: 13 and up
Reviewer Rating: 9/10
Average Rating: 8.2

Sources: Image from lightlit, written by George Orwell and published by Harvill Secker.

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

Book: Carve the Mark

Author: Veronica Roth

Review Written by Luka Clark

I think Carve the Mark is an enthralling tale. It’s a novel about two warring civilisations in space. Cyra and Akos are enemies, but they are brought together by chance. Every person in these civilisations gains a current gift, a power. Cyra can cause pain. Akos is the only one that can take it away.

This story has twist and turns throughout the story. It has a truly wonderful plot. I fully recommend this to anyone age 12 and up. This book has some scenes of violence  and a small amount if romance. Carve the Mark is and dystopian tale That is full of horrors, sad moments and happy moments. It will put you on the edge of your seat. The more you read the more you get stuck in.  it  was incredibly hard for me to put the book down. If you like Divergent I thoroughly recommend you read this book.

Recommended Age: 12 or over

Rating: 9.5/10

Book Trailer:

Sources: Image and video from http://www.carvethemarkbooks.com/, all rights of the Carve the Mark series belong to Veronica Roth and HarperCollins.

Gone by Michael Grant

Book: Gone
Author: Michael Grant
Review Written by Kupa Mugutso

I really enjoyed this book because it was exhilarating and exciting. It is about a group of teenagers and kids who are trapped in a dome with no adults. They're threatened by starvation, animal mutations and even mutations among themselves, which give some of the kids deadly super powers. It had fast twists and turns that kept me interested. I’m still thinking about the brave, real characters, long after reading. This is a good book for anyone who enjoyed the Hunger Games series or Lord of the Flies. I think that this is a very good starting book for people who want to read a more advanced style of book. It paves the way for the rest of the series. I fully recommended this book, as it is a more modern version of the classic Lord of the Flies.

Recommended Age Group: 13 or over

Rating: 9/10

Book Trailer:

Sources: Image from http://gone.wikia.com/wiki/Gone, all rights of the Gone series belong to Michael Grant and HarperCollins.