Orwell, George "Down and Out in Paris and London: A Gritty Memoir on Life & Poverty in Two Cities" - 1933
Having read "Nineteen Eighty Four" and "Animal Farm", I was expecting, well, I don't exactly know what I was expecting but it was something else.
The book was well written and this will not be the last one I read by this author, it just didn't seem what I thought it might be. Although, I should have known. After all, this is a memoir.
George Orwell gives us a good insight into life on the streets. The book is almost 90 years old, so it is easy to assume that things have changed in the meantime. But have they? We sill see homeless people in the streets, the larger the city, the more homeless people there are.
I guess the author's very insightful novels about the future stem from his experiences in the slums, he must have thought a lot about that when writing his later novels. It also shows us where it can lead when we neglect the poor. Not long after his experiences on the street, WWII started.
Maybe this should be read by everyone, especially those who have no empathy for anyone less fortune than them.
From the back cover:
"Orwell is well-known for his 1984 and a satire, Animal Farm. Down and Out in Paris and London is his memoir where he pens down his life as a penniless writer in two Paris and England. Through his beautiful phrases, meticulous, honest, and vivid experiences of searching for work and spending nights on benches, he blends the testimonies of others of his kind on the streets of London and Paris. The book both illuminates the huge change between 1933 and now, and exposes horrifying similarities. Job insecurity is still a major driver of homelessness nearly 90 years later. This is just an important read now as it was back then."
Thanks for your comment. Agree this is an interesting and important book that should be read by everyone and should definitely be taught in schools. How we treat the poor and unfortunate in society goes to the heart of what kind of world we want to live in. What we can't do is go back to Orwell's world without consequence. A world where the majority are poor and without hope while the 'top' few percent live like gods is not sustainable. Such situations do not end well for anyone....
ReplyDeleteAnd we see it all over Europe, Kitten. The "brown sauce" gains more and more power everywhere. Weird, that the poor don't understand what kind of big evil they raise there and that the rich don't understand that they could avoid that. :(
DeleteI "enjoyed" this book (as much as one can), though as I commented in my review, Orwell's prescriptions carry their own problems. There are no solutions in life, only trade-offs. These days we all live like gods, frankly...though Greek ones, with the same indulgent appetites. :p
ReplyDeleteMmmmh, thanks, Anon ... don't really know who you are since there are several bloggers I talked to about it.
DeleteI think I've only read Orwell's two more well known books - Animal Farm & 1984. He's not an author I naturally gravitate to, but I do think he addresses important issues. 1984 left me a bit scarred!
ReplyDeleteI totally understand, Carol. The trouble with 1984 is that it is so real. I remember waiting for the year and the closer it got, the more we thought he could be right with his predictions. Now we know.
DeleteThe main reason I read this was because it takes place in Paris, so I could use it for "Paris in July". However, I always like to read some of the not so known books from famous authors in order to compare and wonder why some of them became so much more successful than the others.
I have downloaded this book and look forward to read it. I am sure, as you say, it is not like his other books, but should be an interesting take on Paris in the 20s(?).
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm looking forward to hearing what you have to say, Lisbeth.
DeleteI read this novel like 40 years ago for a class in high school. I wish I could say I remember the plot details, but sadly I do not. May I should reread it now as an adult. I read or listened rather to Animal Farm and loved it a lot. I would like to read 1984, so may end up choosing this one first before rereading Down and Out in Paris and London again.
ReplyDeleteI can imagine that you don't remember much, Lisa. It's not necessarily a topic that talks to younger people. His other books are much more impressive.
DeleteLol, typos on my part... Proofreading apparently was not in the cards yesterday when I left you comments. Apologies about that.
DeleteI have those days, so don't worry, Lisa.
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