A Clockwork Orange

“A Clockwork Orange” is an audacious tale full of debauchery, allegory, spite, and thoughtfulness. Despite its often off-putting subject matter, the book lends itself to a burgeoning look into youth culture and adult impassiveness. The plot is a simple one. Alex and his hooligans run amok through the city, inflicting extreme violence on everyone they meet. The droogs, as Alex puts it, are a gang that spouts off slang and whose tempers rise towards anyone in establishments. Once the group is caught by the police, jail time and re-education ensue. Is the radical treatment enough for Alex to change his ways?

I don't really know how to review the rest of the book. There are so many themes of religion, music, rules, and structure that would be interesting to talk about in a book club-type setting.

The book is sort of like a grand experience. One that, depending on your age, you might see differently. If you're a youth, you might connect with the anti-establishment or governmental control of Alex's story. As an adult, you might cherish the staunch methods of control the lawmakers use to try and help control the rambunctious youth. Wherever you fall on the spectrum, I think this classic has all the underpinnings of what makes great satire. It's a well constructed symphony of emotion, and even though I'm supremely late to reading it, I kind of wonder what I would have thought about it when I was younger.

❖ Category: dystopian
❖Rating: 5/5