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Anthem
Anthem
Anthem
Audiobook2 hours

Anthem

Written by Ayn Rand

Narrated by Andrew Garman

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3.5/5

()

About this audiobook

Ayn Rand's classic tale of a dystopian future of the great "We"-a world that deprives individuals of a name or independence-that anticipates her later masterpieces, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged. They existed only to serve the state. They were conceived in controlled Palaces of Mating. They died in the Home of the Useless. From cradle to grave, the crowd was one-the great WE. In all that was left of humanity there was only one man who dared to think, seek, and love. He lived in the dark ages of the future. In a loveless world, he dared to love the woman of his choice. In an age that had lost all trace of science and civilization, he had the courage to seek and find knowledge. But these were not the crimes for which he would be hunted. He was marked for death because he had committed the unpardonable sin: He had stood forth from the mindless human herd. He was a man alone. He had rediscovered the lost and holy word-I. "I worship individuals for their highest possibilities as individuals, and I loathe humanity, for its failure to live up to these possibilities."-Ayn Rand
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJul 21, 2017
ISBN9781501929304
Author

Ayn Rand

Ayn Rand (1905–1982) wrote the bestselling novels The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged (1957) and founded the philosophy known as objectivism. Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Rand taught herself to read at the age of six and soon resolved to become a professional writer. In 1926, she left Communist Russia to pursue a screenwriting career in Hollywood, and she published her first novel ten years later. With her next book, the dystopian novella Anthem (1938), she introduced the theme that she would devote the rest of her life to pursuing: the inevitable triumph of the individual over the collective. 

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Reviews for Anthem

Rating: 3.624815005029585 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

2,704 ratings115 reviews

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Great book as was the narrator. Sad but this is where we are, somehow crimes are excused just because they are committed by 'the majority'. Democracy is not a substitute for morality.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Very Good narration. Short and to the point. An anthem to individualism.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Having read most of Ayn Rand's works, I thoroughly enjoyed the audio version of this piece
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    My head is spinning and I can't string together appropriate words to describe how I feel.

    One thing, however, is certain, the parallel between then ~ when this book was written ~ and the political climate we're living in now, is nothing short of terrifying.

    Big Government needs to reverse course, NOW, before we all end up as nameless, faceless, gender less, rubes.

    "We the People - it doesn't need to rewritten, it needs to be reread," period.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It's hard not to compare Anthem to 1984. Anthem could be considered the unofficial and unintentional sequel. Written both by people with similar Soviet backgrounds and written with similar purposes in mind. The good thing Rand does is build up the background quick as that's what makes the story the most interesting. There isn't really a need to build much of a character since the whole point in for everyone to be character-less. Anthem follows a lot of Rand's other motifs with the society at large wanting for collectivist control. Here, that system has won. And in similar Randian fashion, the individual that resides in the spirit of man attempts to break free. As far as a complete philosophy being built up, you'll have to read her other novels to get that. Rand's attempt is to show what would happen if the ideology of communism developed a Utopian society - even when civilization is destroyed by it to rule over men by man is deeply set. Anthem does what it sets out to do - to promote the need for the "I" rather than the "we". Final Grade - B
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Anthem by Ayn RandWhy I picked this book: I never read an Ayn Rand book and was interested to see what I would find. The collective. what it is about. The Us? the we, No more, I, me, nothing individual, no choice, no freedom after the world council took over. Jobs were given to people, numbers for names, no looking at ourselves, things had to change from the awful unmentionable times have passed. Equality 7-2521 had the desire, the curiosity, the drive, the attraction and ran off with the golden one. He found the “we” and the long lost “I” that belongs to every person. Why I finished this read: This book made me look around at the USA today, the push for socialism, the ideas of equity vs. equality the Marxism and communism that NEVER crossed my mind growing up during the Cold War waiting for nuclear war heads flying towards us. I finished this book to revel in the choices made and value was we have in America. When reading this the author’s different language seemed to seep through, idk, maybe the words were too focused on or something but because it was a good messsfe I rated it as a 3.5 stars.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    "Our name is Equality 7-2521..."

    yeah, try saying that over and over again....it's not pleasant, and neither was this short---but really long---read.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was a strange, powerful read. Ayn Rand's philosophy of the "I" is most evident in this simple yet stimulating novella.

    She depicts a society where there is absolutely no individualism to speak of; it's also a society where men work for other men and all technology/progress is controlled. It's a nightmarish world which I wouldn't ever wish upon my worst enemies.

    She writes about the human spirit, individuality, and free will. While her philosophy of the "I" and the "ego" are more prominent in her later books, I feel that this short novella is an excellent sample of her ideas.

    I'd love to recommend this book to everyone. Even if you're an ardent supporter of collectivism, socialism, or whatever similar -ism(s) there may be, I feel this is something you need to read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Review of eBookIn a dark world ruled by the World Council, there are no individuals, no choices, no options. The Council of Vocations decides what work each one will do; it has been so since the Great Rebirth following the Unmentionable Times. There is no longer the individual, only the collective.But the restrictions cannot stop Equality 7-2521 from being curious, from wondering. And although he realizes that, according to the teachings, such ideas are evil, he cannot stop himself. What will happen as Equality 7-2521 rebels against the “We” and discovers the long-lost “I” that belongs to every person?This narrative serves as a sort of prophecy, an observation on the loss of the individual to the machinations of the powerful [that is, “the state”]. It’s an ode to individualism, to freedom, to choice. It’s quite heavy-handed on the hypocrisy of the leadership [that is, those wielding the power] and the inequitable treatment of the populace destined to follow orders without question. The glorification of individualism, of owing nothing to any other continually jumps out at the reader.While it is true that each individual has moral worth and deserves both freedom and independence, the true answer to the conundrum would seem to lie somewhere midway between individualism and collectivism. However, “Anthem” is worth reading as a reminder that when we forget to value each person, something important is lost.Recommended.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I hate this book.
    Just added additional point for its length, but boy, Ayn makes it difficult for me to finish it!
    I was already not in the mood to read anything else other than short books, and this one is making it worse.
    Are her other books better than this?
    Because right now I'm determined not to waste my time in reading The Fountainhead.
    Glad I didn't buy it on sale when I had the chance, but it's another story.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This book is my least favorite of Rands, although still worth reading. I don't recall any paramount passages (such as d'Anconia's speech about money in [book: Atlas Shrugged]), and the plot is pretty straightforward: Guy lives in socialist society, guy starts liking girl, guy convinces girl to run off with him and live in a cabin in the woods, they become individuals.

    If you're reading Rand's books to get a better sense of her ideas, there's no reason to read this one. If you want something that doesn't require too much thought and can be polished off on a rainy Saturday afternoon, there are worse choices.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    A little parable about a very collectivist society. Even the word "I" is banned. It is a very flat characterisation, and unbelievable, and banal.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Short SF book about the strangulation of man by the state. Since she left the Soviet Union in 1926, to come to the US, she has experience in this area. Readers of Classic SF will say they have read this theme by others who did it better. Published in 1938 she did it before many of the others.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I read this book on the serial reader app. It is the first Ayn Rand book I have read and I really enjoyed it. I read it during my breaks during work and it was very hard to put down when it was time to go back to work. I felt the story was very original and I was excited to see what would happen to Equality 7-2521. His society was very disturbing although I did find the ending to be equally disturbing. The use of the plural pronouns made the story that much more intriguing to me.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This was a fairly thin dystopian novel. Not much was said here that you couldn't read in something like "We" or "1984." Rand's tone was fairly didactic, but that isn't surprising given Rand's reputation. Overall, I give it 3 out of 5 stars because I did enjoy it, but I felt that more could have been done with it.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    On a whim, I decided to read Anthem by Ayn Rand. I'd noticed it popping up on Middle School and High School reading lists in recent years. Since this book wasn't part of the reading curriculum in my school years I was curious to read it and see why it was being revisited now. As I started reading I made a couple of early observations. First was the odd usage of point of view and pronouns. If you've read the synopsis or any brief outlines of the book you are aware that this book is set in a dystopia where individualism has been eradicated to the sense that the idea of "I" or "me" has been eliminated. Thus, while the book is written in "first person", it is written in first person "plural." That is, the narrator speaks and writes using "we" to narrate rather than "I." Even as he speaks of actions he did alone, he writes "we" rather than "I." The other observation I made was that of simplicity. The sentence structure and the delivery of ideas and concepts was very blunt and matter of fact. While there were certainly a lot of nuances and details still left to be learned about this world and the people inhabiting it, the sentences and observations were very to the point. As such, Rand's messages quickly became very clear and often felt a little heavy handed and over the top.As you might expect in a world without individualism, I found the characters and the world to lack in terms of depth. Our narrator (whose name was "Equality-7###") was the only character with any depth to him at all and that was presented as an abomination and subversive to society. Indeed, everyone and everything was expected to be precisely the same and completely equal.The story of the book progresses as you might expect with the primary tension being because of the narrator's break from same-ness and the consequences of that break if, and when, it is discovered. With more than a century of dystopic fiction (and a recent resurgence in the past decade), it was fairly easy to predict how things might play out. As a result, the story and the plot obviously aren't the most compelling things about this book.Rather, this book is more a book of philosophy. As the title suggests, this could be seen as a sort of celebration or eulogy. This book is meant as a way for readers to forge their own personal "anthem" in celebration of their individualism and rights to be their own person. The philosophies presented by this book are natural expressions of the author's personal struggles in Russia and her opposition to Communism. But why might this novel be finding its way back onto school desks in America in the 21st century? Without getting too political, I can see a couple of reasons.First, as I mentioned above there's been a recent growth in the popularity of dystopian fiction. Kids are latching onto this genre and devouring it. Schools can attempt to tap into this popularity by prescribing dystopian literature as part of the curriculum. But the schools will likely want to steer clear of work that is too violent or racy. As a result, we find a book like Anthem that contains almost no violence or anything else to push it beyond a "PG" rating.Secondly, and I think this speaks somewhat to the popularity of dystopian novels now generally, people are more and more dissatisfied with the state of things and are seeking ways to analyze and overcome the problems they see within society. Studying this and other dystopian novels is a way to have a "safe" conversation about a fictional society and then to ponder the potential relation to the real world and our out thoughts and ideals.Another thought occurred to me while reading...one of strong familiarity. As I read, I kept finding myself thinking of other novels, most particularly The Giver by Lois Lowry. Knowing that The Giver frequently shows up as school reading, I could see lesson plans reading both novels and then writing papers or doing presentations comparing and contrasting the two novels or perhaps writing their own short story dystopia.Curious as to if Anthem had influenced The Giver, I did a few searches and found this post from Lois Lowry speaking in response to claims of similarities (or outright plagiarism) that she sometimes receives. As I've often pointed out to people, there are few stories/movies/etc. that I would call 100% original. Everything has similarities somewhere. And when you look within very specific genres you will likely find even more similarities. In my mind, these similarities don't suggest plagiarism but rather that two (or more) individuals had similar ideas that they presented in similar ways. Sometimes the timing and the similarities are uncanny (I remember discussions when the movies "A Bug's Life" and "Antz" were released so closely together...while high level ideas had similarities, there were plenty of differences). In cases where an author has experienced a previous work, there are sometimes even more similarities. I think an author should be aware of this but if the author has an idea they want to share in their own way, they should do so. That's my long-winded way of saying that you shouldn't shout " plagiarism" unless an author is blatantly and obviously copying something without paying homage or presenting their own ideas and concepts. Overall, I found Anthem to be a thoughtful read. The story and characters were naturally flat but the ideas and concepts were interesting even if the author really beat you over the head with them. As to the relevance of this story in our modern era of personal freedoms, there is still plenty of space for improvement even in the most open societies. As a piece of literature and philosophy, we can learn from Anthem and use it to inspire conversations moving forward. While it's certainly not the most eloquent or profound piece of writing, it is a worthwhile read and gives good food for thought.***3 out of 5 stars
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A thoughtful bleak look at a degraded society and the discovery of freedom. It reminds me of Farenheit 451 and 1989 but in a way that is entirely different and mesmerizing.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    “And slowly, slowly as a flush of blood, a red flame trembled in the wire.”I read in an article that the head brewer of New Anthem named the business after Ayn Rand’s novella “Anthem”. So, of course, I had to read it to source the inspiration. I’m not necessarily a huge fan of Rand or her unilateral and often selfish philosophy—however, there are truths to be gleaned and hints at vision. “The Fountainhead” I particularly enjoyed for its resolve, even if it was a bit stiff and, once again, unilateral. No surprise, then, when “Anthem” seemed even less fleshy, more static, and far too familiar. Zamyatin’s “We” had the same stiff, mechanical coldness—yet, I felt it had far more emotion and poetry (all while being published fourteen years prior). Not that “Anthem” doesn’t have its flourishes—they just seem to come far too little near the end. But then, I’ve read and watched so many dystopic works that I can be a bit bored if nothing startlingly new is presented. “Brave New World” and “1984” are both mind-blowing and painful benchmarks. And there’s nothing I’m going to add to that discussion that Walter Cronkite hasn’t said in his superb foreword to Orwell’s grand masterpiece. Rand’s novella also shares similarities with “Fahrenheit 451” and Fritz Lang’s silent epic “Metropolis” (as well as the aforementioned “We”) in that the principal male protagonist is sparked into awareness by a female character, and that newfound freedom snowballs down various hills of destruction and creation. Oddly enough, “Anthem” also reminded me of Gilliam’s latest movie, “Zero Theorem”, in its employ of plural pronouns (and subsequent discarding upon the growing awareness of individuality).If New Anthem’s beer is as adequate yet unoriginal, I won’t be disappointed. From the article, though, it seems the brewer’s definitely dedicated to serving up some unique fare. In any case, the idea of using a philosophical novella as a sudsy moniker is pretty fucking cool.“It is our own world, Golden One, a strange, unknown world, but our own.”
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The first 75% or so of the book is pretty decent, I mostly agreed with it; sheeple are bad, question things, don't follow blindly, etc. But then, it wouldn't be Rand if she didn't smash it into your face and go absurdly over the top, and she ruins it with the ending. Basically (as per her norm) saying, eff everyone else, only do things for yourself not because they benefit humanity, and so forth. Because that is what will obviously make for such an excellent society! *groan*Anyhow, the story is decent enough, and it's only a novella, very quick read. But yeah, Rand had some seriously screwed up notions.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A quick read. Found this book in my daughter’s stack of unread books from high school. I enjoyed the story of a post-apocalyptic society and how one individual went from being part of a collective to an individual.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I've always steered clear of Ayn Rand. As a 'libertarian or 'classical liberal', I've often been accused of being some Rand fanboy and I was always able to reply that I'd never read one of her books. But I don't suppose you can avoid it forever.

    Rand exists as both novelist and political philosopher and the two cannot be entirely disentangled. This short book, really a novella, is a sort of parable illustrating the key points of Rand's Objectivist philosophy. As a literature it actually works better than I'd been led to expect. The last couple of sections might be a bit overblown, but it is worth remembering that this is written in the first person by a character escaping from a lifetime of deadening submergence in a collective.

    As political philosophy Anthem is not the evil book that some of these reviews would have you believe. It is based on the simple and obvious observation that people exist as individuals and that when people say 'we' do this or think that what they really mean is that some of us do this or think that and extending that action or thought over people who might not do or think it is wrong.

    Either way, if you think you might like or hate Rand as writer and/or philosopher, this book is probably a good place to start.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This is not my favorite Ayn Rand book. I read it first because it was her shortest. Bad idea.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This novella takes place sometime in the far distant future in a totally controlled society and it will surely make you stop and think long after you turn the final page. It is about a dystopian society, yet I wonder if it is not really about what some would consider a utopian society. Everything is decided by a Council. There is no danger to speak of. There are no uprisings. There is no dissent. If there should be, it is halted immediately and the guilty one is subjected to severe physical punishment. There is no due process. All societal threats have been removed because of the severe consequences for infractions. Conversation is controlled and limited so no new ideas are generated. Children are raised in group homes. There is no parental involvement. Adults live in homes organized by profession. Older adults are consigned to Homes for the Useless to await the end of their days at about age 40. No one is educated unless they are chosen to be by the Council of Vocations. Careers are not chosen but assigned. Mating and procreation is strictly controlled. It is basically a slave society, but the slaves don’t know anything else but that life, and so they meekly obey. The author has written a prescient tale of an America that becomes unrecognizable. The time of its publication is pertinent. Written in 1937 and published in 1938, it echoes the rising number of abuses instituted by Adolf Hitler, practices which were gaining enormous support. The theme of Arbeit Macht Frei on the gates of the Concentration Camps, “work will make you free” is a repetitive theme in the novella. Mating is conducted according to a strict schedule with mates chosen by the Council of Eugenics, This harkens back to Hitler’s Lebensborn program, created to raise a society of pure Aryans. It illuminates his effort to control thought and behavior with the rising popularity of the Hitler youth movement; the young were trained and taught to hate those that were different, those that were not pure Aryans. They were taught to blindly obey, even if it meant betraying their own family and friends for the benefit of Hitler’s Germany. The survival of the whole, the Fatherland, was of utmost importance.In the society of the book, everyone is supposed to be the same. Individuals are identified by numbers because individuality is forbidden. The individual exists only for the benefit of the group, not for themselves. Free thought and free choice is forbidden. Feelings are forbidden. Strict schedules guide and govern daily life. Children are raised in group homes. At 15 a Council decides their futures. Hard work is the main goal in life. Ambition does not exist. There is no need for political correctness; politics, and conversation are both forbidden. Obedience is absolute. In this new world, it is forbidden to make mention of the past “Unmentionable Times”. History has disappeared entirely. The “we” is worshipped as a “G-d”. There is no “I” allowed. Nameless people are identified by a number and occupation, i.e. equality 7-2521 is a street cleaner. Others are in groups that are scholars, others are half-brains like Union 5-3992. Liberty 5-3000 is a woman. It is a crime to think, smile or walk about without purpose. It is a crime to be too tall because it makes you stand out, it makes you different. Even those who live past 40 are gaped at like animals in a zoo.Men and women do not fraternize. This keeps emotions in check, which reminded me of religious rules forcing women to cover their bodies in burqas to prevent men from having sexual thoughts about them. Women are separated from men except at times of mating. Mates are chosen by the Council of Eugenics. Love does not exist, nor do any other human emotions because all opportunity to experience feelings has been removed. Equality 7-2521 refers to everyone as they and himself as we. He has no self-identification because everyone exists for the benefit of everyone else, not for one man alone. Candles light the world. There are no mirrors so Equality does not know what he looks like. He has been told he is evil. He is too tall. His eyes are too bright. He thinks and it is not allowed. He knows that he is different. He thinks that hard work will redeem his sins, but he has no idea what his sins actually are. Soon, he begins to break rules. He believes he is doing something that is good, but he is not allowed to believe in what he does, only what the group does. He is committing more and more sins. He is learning and for him, further education has been forbidden. When he comes upon Liberty, during his work as street sweeper, he begins to feel something he has not felt before. It awakens something unknown in his body. Before long, she acknowledges similar feelings. They communicate without speaking. How will their relationship change the existing society? With individualism will the sins of jealousy and greed renew again? Will humans form their own groups and will they shut others out or be inclusive? Will selfishness once again rear its head and survive? What new sins will be birthed by their transgressions? Will free will and choice bring about a new beginning that is doomed to end? Will the story of Adam and Eve be relived with Prometheus and Gaea, aka Equality and Liberty? Will they lose interest in the needs of others to further benefit only themselves? Will there be no happy medium? Will the “absolute and unbridled” thirst for knowledge ultimately corrupt them too, as in the Unmentionable Times? Will the desire to seek their own pleasure destroy their desire for righteousness and compassion? Will they be too naïve to make the necessary changes and march forward into a better future?Is there a middle ground between dystopia and utopia? Can overregulation be curbed to the point where it does no harm? Can socialism find a way to fund all without benefitting the few at the top who are protected from the tentacles of its policies? Can non-conformity by positive before it becomes too negative and demanding of others for constant approval? Is it like the bible story of Adam and Eve? Will the sins of Gaea and Prometheus benefit or injure the new world they wish to create? If obsession with self becomes more prevalent, does it always mean selfishness will be the end result? Can obsession be prevented? This book makes one think hard about society and its needs. In this brief little tale, the sins of our current society are evident. Our history is being rewritten, revised, as I write. Political Correctness demands it, as it has curbed free speech as well. Some think they have the one right way for all and demand to be followed. If they don’t get there way they find means to achieve it that may not be politic. Where the many ruled, times are changing, as in the tale. Now the individual has begun to take a supreme place in the dialogue of the day. Small groups of individuals band together and rise up, like Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter. They demand that everyone agree with their ideas or they riot or commit acts of civil disobedience which go unpunished. Some ideas are “over thought”. Fear rules most of our daily lives; there is the fear of terrorism, of some uses of science as in cloning and stem cell research, of some religious beliefs, some life choices, some alternate lifestyles, of the unknown, of change, and of those that make rules for others but exempt themselves. Is our Council of Elders, i.e. Congress, guilty of making too many rules, or of not following those they made? Will Americans have to find a place to “hide” to find peace and freedom eventually, like Equality and Liberty eventually did? What awaits us in the future?
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    One of my friends recently asked me to read one of his favorite books, he said though, if I am going to read it I have to read Anthem first. So I agreed and picked up this pretty short book. I adored it. The writing style of this author is so beautiful, she writes in a way that I feel is lost to the modern novel.

    I loved the content of the book. I think that this book feels like a true dystopian. If you are a fan of dystopian fiction and have not read this book, you are missing out. It is written very stylized and very methodical, as the world in the book is. I enjoyed that most of all. I was awwed by this author and already started 'The Fountainhead".
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Along with books like 1984 and Brave New World, Ayn Rand's Anthem does a great job of describing a dark future and the beliefs and ideas that lead to it. The story's premise (which I won't spoil here) creates a fun backdrop for Rand's typical themes of individuality and objectivism. It's a very quick and fun read and is probably the lightest and easiest of Rand's novels to get into.

    Having said that, I found this to be the least moving of Rand's novels, possibly because the central concepts are presented so transparently, quickly and obviously. The novel also includes a lot of deliberate mis-use of the English language which is definitely important to the story, but can be somewhat annoying to listen to. However, the audiobook itself is extremely well read and overall, the story is definitely worth hearing.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I like to keep relatively current on young adult fiction and to add to my library of YA fiction so that I can recommend more to my students, but I REALLY just need to realize that there is no place for this genre in my life anymore. Nothing, nothing will compare to 1984, so I'm constantly disappointed. And The Giver covers it all, so all of these different ways of showing the same theme are just unnecessary. I'll just recommend The Giver to young adults, and the Uglies & Matched trilogies to girls who want another, especially one with a bit more romance and action, and 1984 to adults (you can skip Brave New World, in my opinion) and this one is just.....eh. However, there's the potential to win an essay contest if a student reads this one and wants to write about it, so some of my students will still want to read Anthem (Honors, only, I expect). It was "good." That's it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A true dystopian novel in the spirit of 1984 and Brave New World. Anthem takes a harsh view of collectivism and ends by glorifying the individual. This being the first thing by Ayn Rand I've read, I was impressed by her writing, but a little jarred by the swinging being two extremes (collectivism and individualism in this case). Certainly a book worth discussion and thought.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    You're a little transparent, Ayn. Just a little.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I think. I am. I will.

    This book is about rediscovering individualism. It's about a future possibly where people are deprived of names, independence, and values. It is a very short but good read.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    For years I have been meaning to read this book and I finally did over the summer. After I was done with it, I wondered why I hadn’t read this book in the first place. I blamed it on the fact that I tend to be more of a fantasy reader than a science fiction reader. However, I am now finding a place in my heart for this genre.I was pretty disturbed by this book. Not only was the government in this book “recruiting” young geniuses to fight their wars for them, but they were turning it into a game. Since every training exercise was a game many of the children would forget the fact they were training for war, which gave me the creeps. War, in this future world, is a game to the people who are being forced to fight it.This book really made me think about the prevalence of war based video games today. Now, I’m not against these games but I did find it interesting to compare what these children were doing during training to what my friends do in their own living rooms. There were some eerie similarities between the two, like the planning and strategy that sometimes goes in to playing them.While there were some parts that were a little slow, the book was totally worth the read. It really makes the reader look more critically at how our society views war today and even video games. I give this book a 4/5 and I recommend it to most everyone. This book is proof that the science fiction genre can have literary value despite what critics of the genre may say.