Adding 1984 by George Orwell to the Edgewater Bookstore collection feels like a no-brainer. Each month, I look for books that will make you think deeply, and this classic fits perfectly. At its core, 1984 is about learning to think for yourself, as Winston Smith wrestles with the oppressive forces around him.

This book is haunting, and in some ways, eerily plausible. Orwell has a way of using literature to open our eyes to the real problems of humanity, and his message here is as relevant today as ever. The writing is beautiful, and the story will stay with you long after you turn the final page. If you haven’t read it—or even if you have—this 75th Anniversary Edition is worth adding to your collection.

Written in 1948, 1984 was George Orwell’s chilling prophecy about the future. And while 1984 has come and gone, his dystopian vision of a government that will do anything to control the narrative is timelier than ever...

•Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read•

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”

Winston Smith toes the Party line, rewriting history to satisfy the demands of the Ministry of Truth. With each lie he writes, Winston grows to hate the Party that seeks power for its own sake and persecutes those who dare to commit thought crimes. But as he starts to think for himself, Winston can’t escape the fact that Big Brother is always watching...

A startling and haunting vision of the world, 1984 is so powerful that it is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the influence of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of multiple generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions—a legacy that seems only to grow with the passage of time.

Includes a foreword by Thomas Pynchon