itibaren Texas
What did I think...the first thought that popped in my head after I finished the last page was "Well that was f-ing depressing" And it was - anything that takes such a dystopian view of the world, offers really no hope, at least within the context of the story. I really found fascinating how Orwell created a whole language (Newspeak) that went way beyond the term "doublethink" - it says something about the importance of language as a form of control in society. The copy we have includes an Afterword (written in 1961) and I'm glad I took the time to read it. It's easy to draw parallels to the totalitarian regimes we know, but the afterword also connects 1984 to the pursuit of material things, corporate life and man vs. machine. I think many people say "It's just like 1984" and leap immediately to government or the state. But I think it's more relevant to draw parallels to that which influences the state. I felt the driving concept was really the pursuit of power as an end, not necessarily the means, and I would argue that occurs largely outside of (or surrounds) the state.
While Matched totally captivated my attention leaving me wanting more and telling everyone I knew about the book, Crossed lacked a certain zeal. It didn't have me up to the wee hours of the night awe struck by a dystopian love triangle I found with Ally Condie's first book. Like Matched, Condie's second installment leaves readers incomplete. I don't like leaving my characters all out of place and unhappy when I have to wait a whole year to find out what will happen. Positive aspects of the book, (obviously I rated it a four), were the poetic aspect the writing took on. I also enjoyed the new characters Eli, Indie, Vick and Hunter introduced to us in this sequel. I also highly anticipate that Condie's third book in the series will be her best yet. All the answers to my questions will hopefully be revealed. All in all as a stand alone book I would give it a three star but becuase of my love for Matched I am giving it the extra star. What can I say I am a fan.