Read if you have A TON of spare time on your hands

books:

	• A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess W. W. Norton & Company, 1986 - 192 pages average customer review:based on 619 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Read if you have A TON of spare time on your hands

"Dad, have you ever heard of the book, `A Clockwork Orange'?" I asked my father when I received the book, A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, in the mail as my family and I sat down for dinner. "Kinda," he responded, "I remembering hearing that the movie was really violent." That was what persuaded me to read to book: the violence. It may sound sick and weird, but I enjoy reading books with plenty of action and some violence. But for the first time, the violence in the book actually prevented me from enjoying this book as much as I thought that I would.
The book is separated into three parts. The first part immediately opens up with the narration of the main character, Alex. Alex is 15 years old and is apparently the "leader" of a gang that consists of his friends. I couldn't really figure out why Alex was the leader because each one of his friends appeared capable of being able to bring harm upon a person as much as the other. I suppose he stood out mainly because his attitude was cooler, calm, and collected than the others when he made small talk with his soon-to-be-victims. The description of how Alex and his friends commit the crimes that they do and who they do it to is the main focus in the first part, which after a few chapters, can become quite repetitive, but doesn't lose it's shock factor.
The second and third parts of the book are probably what give the book it's strength because even though they contain as much violence as the first part, they're more "random" and different as oppose to the usual find an innocent person, beat or rape them, and rob them for all they're worth. Readers also witness Alex's road to recovery from being a sick menace who lives to cause to pain to someone who gets terribly sick at the smallest thought of violence.
The book has its strong points and weak points. Since there are more weak than strong, I'll start with the weak points. For a book that was said as really easy to get into, I found it terribly difficult to read past the first ten pages. I feel that it was because of the weird Russian slang that was constantly used. Sometimes I could read through it because I had a basic idea of what Alex was describing, but then no more than seven words later, an even more foreign word would cross my path and I'd have to stop reading, flip to the back of the book to the dictionary section, look up the word, then flip back to where I was, and then try to get back into the plot. I feel that many readers will find this incredibly frustrating at first, until they eventually get a feel for the book and won't have to look in the back as much as they used to. I also mentioned that the amount of violence in the book kept me from fully enjoying the innovative plot. There's just too much of it! It kind of takes away from the book because either it's too much for the squeamish readers or too unnecessary or repetitive for the hardcore ones. It's a good thing that Mr. Burgess didn't rely on the violence alone for the entire plot of the book, although it is one of the main factors.
This brings me to discuss one of the best parts about the book, which is the plot. As an avid reader, the plot of a book can either make it or break it for me. Never before in my entire life have I ever read a plot so vivid and detailed and I suppose, eccentric is the word for it. This book left me thinking, "What the Hell just happened here?" after every chapter. I also enjoyed how the book was separated into three parts, which is another way of separating the three main personalities and stages of Alex and his life. Another idea that I enjoyed about the book was how Alex associated classical music with violence. Classical music is often perceived as being a way for those of high society to relax and find peace. But Alex on the other hand, finds it as sort of a spark to violence and doesn't see how one can exist without the other.
All in all, I recommend this book for anyone who feels that reading is boring and a waste of time. This plot will open up the minds of those with the emptiest imagination and show them a world of darkness and in a sense, confusion. One should read this when they have plenty of free time and won't be distracted easily, that way they won't be confused as much about what is happening and won't be easily aggravated by the common use of all the Russian slang words.

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Book review

What is a clockwork orange? Anthony Burgess, the author of A Clockwork Orange, would seem like the first person to ask such a question. "`The attempt to impose upon man, a creature of growth and capable of sweetness, to ooze juicily at the last round the bearded lips of God, to attempt to impose, I say, laws and conditions appropriate to a mechanical creation, against this I raise my sword pen-'" (22). Alex, and his three pals, Dim, Georgie, and Pete, are normal teenagers living in a futuristic world that is somewhat of a nightmare. These boys' rape women, steal, kill, and savagely beat other citizens living in this time; as a solution the government "rewires" Alex to feel sick when the want to do any of these things occurs. He becomes "a clockwork orange" in the sense that he doesn't have the ability to decide what is good, or evil, and whether to participate in "evil" acts. Had the book only consisted of my brief outline above, it wouldn't be the well known and thoroughly enjoyed classic that it is today. Along with an eyebrow raising plot, the style, questioning of morality, and unique outlook on the future, makes A Clockwork Orange, not only an important book, but an entertaining one. I truly enjoyed reading, and re-reading this book. I assume that throughout my progression into adulthood, I will find it entertaining for different reasons than I do now, and I hope to re-read it again, and again. A book that can change, as a person changes, is something to cherish to enjoy. I believe that most people will find entertainment, if not shock value, to this controversial text. I definitely consider it to be one of my favorites, and a must read to all participants of an educated society.

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Wow

I wanted to write this review because I feel this book is reaching in so many ways and on so many levels. Anthony Burgess paints a picture of life, of the way life is at any given moment and then strings you along this journey, expossing the atrositys of culture and the repricutions of our actions. Alex, Your Humble Narator (YHN) is a droog (a gang member sort-of-speak) who fancies raping women and beating others near death. He's the youngest member of his group yet is the bossy ringleader. After having a fall out with his friends they decide to sell him out and he becomes a prisoner of the State. While in prison he undergoes treatment to cure his violent urges and make him a safe human, stripped of free will and a complete robot for the sole purpose to make him safe for the comunity. This novel makes you ask yourself so many questions. Is it fair what they've done to Alex? Did Alex suffer enough? When you see is parents reaction to their sons return home you'll wonder if they're being fair, or if they are being unreasonable. Don't let the language stop you from reading this powerful novel. I almost stopped before the first chapter was threw and that would have been a shame. The slang used in the novel actaully help you to see the attitude of YHN and how he is truly a distressed youth. You can see how for the majority of the novel he is self pitying, feeling that he is a victim of those around him when in actuallity you can see he is a victim of his our selfish decisions. Read and analyze and realize that this is a one-of-a-kind novel with guts that you don't see very often. Great novel and an instant classic. I understand all the praise.

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Deeply Disturbing, Utterly Ingenious

Although in Mr. Burgess' introduction, A Clockwork Orange Resucked, he rambles on about how much he doesn't like this book, I read it and was nothing short of amazed.

In a world where criminals rule the street after dark and anyone standing in their way will get killed stands young Alex and his "droogs" (invented slang for close friends) are young and bloodthirsty teens who go about every night robbing, beating, and raping innocent people. This part was extremely disturbing, as they involved terrible acts of violence, such as the beating of an old man, the robbery and beating and raping of a couple (the husband was writing a book called "A Clockwork Orange), and the drugging and violent raping of two ten-year-old girls. Finally, after beating an old woman to death while robbing her house, Alex is caught by the police and sent to jail, charged with mainly murder.

Here the book takes a very personal turn, and really shows you how Alex feels, and exposes the real person inside him, not just a ruthless, violent child out to terrorize the world. In jail you get connected to him as he gets disconnected from the world.

In two years time it seems like Alex has really cleaned up his act, and is released to a group of doctors who will test a new technique where they are able to program the violence out of Alex. They succeed in doing so, but now Alex is not a real person, for he cannot chooses how he wants to live. He is now a free man who can walk the streets alone, but now that he's been reformed into an ordinary citizen, nobody wants him and he has many encounters with previous victims, including F. Alexander, the author of A Clockwork Orange, who Alex beat up and raped his wife (along with three other guys). It's revealed that after being beaten up so badly and raped so fiercely, the wife died.

This was probably the strangest part of the book and one that really crawled under my skin.

Alex is now repeatedly betrayed by people and finally, in an attempt to end it all, jumps out a window.

But Alex does not die. He wakes up in the hospital weeks later and finds out he's back to normal.

The book ends where it begins, for the most part, but, although it sounds awful, this book was really well written.

It is very sad, tragic, and true, but also makes you think about certain things that you usually do not. It's hard to explain, but, read the book. It will do you good.

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DONT GIVE UP!!!

I have not seen the movie "A Clockwork Orange" and at my 3rd attempt at reading the book, I finally finished. The lanuage is very hard to understand AT FIRST. Once you get more into the book, it starts to clear up. My message is this: Do not give up on reading it. Its GREAT.

reviews: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, page 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20

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