Animal Farm and Other Writings by Eric Blair

At long last I was able to buy this book. I had to wait a year but it was worth it. The book was sitting at Fullybooked for over a year. Several times I was tempted to buy it but somehow I convinced myself that I had to wait. Financial obligations and other important factors had to be considered. Anyway, I already had two copies of Animal Farm - a browsing copy and a collection copy.

George Orwell's Animal Farm is one of my favourite books. Looking at things now maybe the Philippines would have been a better place if more people read Animal Farm. Maybe a Pilipino translation of the book would be needed. I have seen two movie adaptations of the book. The first one was the classic cartoon version I saw at the British Council and the second one was the version from the creators of the pig movies Babe. Unfortunately, both versions seem to be very pale, almost anaemic, versions of the tale. There really is no need to change the story of Animal Farm. It is perfect in its original form.

I was also able to read Orwell's 1984. This was during 1984 or 1983 during my stint at UPIS. I read the book as part of the English literature class' requirement - a book report. Interesting book and more guttural than Animal Farm. But it seems not as sly and wicked. Orwell's Animal Farm was effective because it was a Fable. The distance it allowed the reader to learn about the happenings at Manor Farm made the lesson from the tale more evident and the impact lasting.

I just had to get this version. Along with Animal Farm it contained a selection of political writings culled from the complete collection of Orwell's writing. It should provide interesting reads. One of the more interesting reads is Orwell's List of Crypto-Communists and Fellow-Travellers - euphemism for Useful fools of political causes. Each piece of work is preceded by a short description of the work and its significance. Quite sure this is going to be good read. Orwell is probably one of the best political writers in English.

A must read for everyone.

Orwell & Politics: Animal Farm in the Context of Essays, Reviews, and Letters Selected from The complete works of George Orwell. Edited by Peter Davison. Introduction by Timothy Garton Ash.