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#2 Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World"


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All right, so I know you all thought that I'd quit my challenge already because I hadn't blogged, but I assure you, I have not!  I have finished book #2, Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World".  First off, let me say, where can I get some soma?  I assume it to be similar to ecstasy.  Just a thought.  Anyone else who's read it have an opinion about that?  Don't get me wrong, I've not done ecstasy, but from what I've heard of it, I assume soma to be similar.

Anyway, moving on.  I really liked this book.  When I started reading the first chapter I got a little annoyed and thought I wouldn't like it based on all of the science lab-by B.S. that it had to explain.  It really was necessary to set the novel up though.  This is why I can never stop if I don't like the first chapter in a book.  Prime example.

For those who don't know about this book, it is basically about a post-apocalyptic society where everyone is a test-tube baby created and honed to be in a certain caste.  Everyone is given this happy drug "soma", to make anything negative go away.  There are absolutely no moral repercussions for any choice made because no one in this "civilized" society would ever do anything that they aren't conditioned to do.  However, throw in a few "savage" characters from outside of the civilization and a few "civilized" characters who break the mold, and we have ourselves a story folks!

"Brave New World" had me feeling all kinds of emotions.  Like I said earlier, I really liked this book.  I would recommend it to most people, but will also add that you have to stick out that first chapter or two.  I found myself angry right off the bat because I can totally see our society headed in this direction.  I know that may seem far-fetched to some, but at the same time everyone is already brain-washed by something to some extent, how long before everyone gets brain-washed by the same thing/person/group?

Of course, I always enjoy a book with a nice dark twist, which this book definitely takes at the end.  Huxley could easily have ended the book without the last chapter by just adding a few predictable paragraphs, but he doesn't!  I think he did it just because he knew that I would read it and would want a darker ending from him!  Okay... I know he passed away like 20 years before I was born, but still...

Your first line action:  "A squat gray building of only thirty-four stories." 

(I am aware that was a sentence fragment.  I did not WRITE this book; you can't blame me.)

This book is: RECOMMENDED

Unless you can only handle a light, fictional read.  Then don't read it.  You won't like it.

UP NEXT:  "EATING ANIMALS" by JONATHAN SAFRAN FOER

(YAY!!!)

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2 Responses to “#2 Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World"”

  1. Jana says:
    July 15, 2010 at 6:05 PM

    This is one of my all-time favorite books!

  2. Unknown says:
    July 15, 2010 at 8:37 PM

    I think I may have known that about you! I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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