Review: 1984

1984 by George Orwell. You’ve probably heard of it.  You may know the line, “Big Brother is watching you.”  I did, but I only just read the novel having joined an online book club. This was our book for January.

Winston Smith is a member of the Party, but he hates Big Brother. He must be careful about saying or even thinking that thought, but he does hate Big Brother and wants it taken down.

The three slogans of the Party are:

War is peace.

Freedom is slavery.

Ignorance is strength.

Orwell is portraying a totalitarian government.

First, to control the collective mind and keep them from turning on Big Brother, the nation must be constantly at war --- keeping the people’s eyes and hatred on the enemy.

Second, the state gets to control meaning and reality. Whatever the state says is the truth is fact, and anyone who argues against it will be punished. Even, as the example is given, that 2 + 2 = 5.

Third, the state controls history and rewrites it and obliterates inconvenient “facts” previously believed to bolster the positive image of the state.

The good of the collective is greater than the good of the individual and the state is best suited to control what the good is and feed it to the people.

Winston Smith attempts to find ways around the strictures and watchful eye of the state. In the end, he faces horrific torture and becomes a faithful part of the collective.

This dystopian novel is a warning to what can happen – it has happened in various places at various times to different degrees. While there is a sense of being part of our country, state, and town, we are individuals with individual rights that must be protected. The government is not to be allowed to put its authoritarian boot on our neck for what it believes to be good – ignoring our freedoms.

Watch out.

[This review appears on my blog, Amazon.com, and Goodreads.com].

Review: Day by Day with Jonathan Edwards

 

One of the devotional books I used for the past year was Day by Day with Jonathan Edwards, compiled and edited by Randall J. Peterson.

Each day has a text from the Bible (King James Version) and then a half to a full-page text from one of Edwards’ writings.

If you’ve never read Edwards, this would be an excellent introduction to disabuse you of the stereotype of Edwards as being pure hellfire and brimstone. Rather, he is a biblical scholar who believes both in the justice of God against those who never believe in His Son, Jesus, the Only Savior, and the grace of God that lovingly gifts salvation to all who believe through His Son, Jesus.

I was encouraged and challenged by Edwards’ reflections through the year, and I would recommend this as a yearly devotional to anyone looking for sound biblical reflection for each day.

At the end of the book, there is a listing of what text each quote comes from. While I am glad for that, it would be even more useful to have the title, edition, and page number listed for those of us who might want to read more around the text one the page. I would encourage that to be added in an update of the book.

You will grow in the knowledge and love of our Triune God using a devotional like this.

[This review appears on my blog, Amazon.com, and Goodreads.com].