Keep the aspidistra flying
Bold
Exciting

Keep the aspidistra flying

George Orwell2000

Deep cut – we couldn't find a description for this book.

Sign up to use

Reviews

Photo of Ed Kay
Ed Kay@edk
5 stars
Apr 6, 2023

I remember reading 1984 when much younger and being surprised at how readable it was. A simple story, well told, disguising some more thought-provoking ideas and clever satire. So I should have been prepared to find the same with this book: also very readable, straightforward and funny, but discussing some darker truths. My reaction to the main character kept veering wildly from frustration and annoyance to sympathy and affection, but this meant I was always engaged in one extreme passion or another. This is not a boring book. Add to that some comic moments and a general, overall amusing tone and rarely was the smile not on my face. Orwell's writing is just so beautiful and controlled: it takes a lot of skill to make writing look this damn easy. My favourite image is a description of a nursing home wherein the inhabitants have nothing to talk about except their diseases: "All over the darkish drawing-room, ageing, discoloured people sat about in couples, discussing symptoms. Their conversation was like the dripping of stalactite to stalagmite. Drip, drip. 'How is your lumbago?' says stalactite to stalagmite. 'I find my Kruschen Salts are doing me good' says stalagmite to stalactite. Drip, drip, drip." Genius.

Photo of Matthew Royal
Matthew Royal@masyukun
3 stars
Feb 13, 2023

Enjoyed the journey, even if it was a flight to nowhere. It's an early work, and an interesting lens to view 1984 through.

Photo of Eylül Görmüş
Eylül Görmüş@eylulgormus
4 stars
Feb 28, 2022

Orwell’in en iyilerinden diyemem ama iyi bir kitap bu. Özellikle 1984’e giden yolun taşlarını görebiliyoruz sanki ufak ufak. Sevdiği konularda dolaşıyor yine; sınıf meselesi, yozlaşma, kapitalizm. Baş karakter Gordon bir protagonist değil, basbayağı antagonist bence, bu da biraz zorlaştırıyor kitabı. Kendi kendini imha etmeye odaklanmış bir karakter, sistem eleştirileri çok yerinde olmakla beraber “kendini batırarak sistemi değiştirmek” diye özetleyebileceğimiz hedefine giden yolda kendisini izlemek asap bozucu. Yazarın bir diğer eseri Wigan İskelesi Yolu ile beraber okunmalı diye düşünüyorum, anlattığı dönemki tabloyu daha doğru anlamak için. Bir de sevgili beyaz yakalılar – bu kitabı en çok siz okumalısınız sanki. Neredeyse 100 sene sonra içinde hala kendinizden bir şeyler bulacaksınız zannediyorum. Bu da içinde yaşadığımız dünyaya dair ne çok şey söylüyor. “Peki, öyleyse ne istiyoruz? Tanrı bilir. Bildiğimiz tek şey neyi istemediğimiz. İşte çağımızda bizim yanlışımız bu. Hepimiz kararsızız.”

Photo of Pallavi Tirkey
Pallavi Tirkey@waywardmoped
4 stars
Oct 25, 2021

It is one of his lighter novels. A fun read and you will be amused at the extent of Gordon's refusal to kneel to money. Money is "one ring to rule them all". So he has declared a war on the money God. To really be free. If having money is a prison and having none of it is too. it's simply a matter of choosing the easier one for Gordon. But he'll do anything to not become 'of' it. The novel is a constant trip of Orwell's political and social views. Interesting observations, and the lucid writing is a always a plus. Orwell has done well in illustrating that even the most persistent of anti capitalists cannot escape it.

Photo of chaca
chaca@cobification
4 stars
Dec 8, 2024
Photo of Ana
Ana@anaaniri
3 stars
Jul 31, 2024
Photo of lucy lou
lucy lou@louhardy
5 stars
Aug 19, 2022
Photo of Zeynep
Zeynep@zynp
4.5 stars
Apr 19, 2022
Photo of Tom
Tom@tculf
3.5 stars
Mar 25, 2022
Photo of Asif Akbar
Asif Akbar@asifkabeer
4 stars
Aug 12, 2021
+2
Photo of noal
noal@noamissa
4 stars
Jul 17, 2024
Photo of Helen Bright
Helen Bright@lemonista
4 stars
Jul 4, 2024
Photo of Chloe Dawson
Chloe Dawson@coco_eevee
3 stars
May 10, 2024
Photo of N.C
N.C@quince
5 stars
Dec 28, 2023
Photo of logan chung
logan chung@lchungr
4 stars
Nov 17, 2023
Photo of Anita Irsevic
Anita Irsevic@picalla
4 stars
Oct 30, 2023
Photo of Vanda
Vanda@moonfaced
4 stars
Oct 16, 2023
Photo of Seth Kalback
Seth Kalback@skalback
4 stars
Jan 18, 2023
Photo of Rachel D
Rachel D@vibrantafternoon
4 stars
Dec 30, 2022
Photo of John Philpin
John Philpin@johnphilpin
3 stars
Dec 26, 2022
Photo of Louie Dinh
Louie Dinh@ld
4 stars
Dec 19, 2022
Photo of Michael Pejin
Michael Pejin@mariachi
5 stars
Aug 30, 2022
Photo of Alexander Lobov
Alexander Lobov@alexlobov
4 stars
Jun 10, 2022
Photo of Amir M
Amir M @amyr
4 stars
Jun 3, 2022