In this dystopian novella, we follow a beautiful character arch in an unforgiving hero’s journey. Little Alex, of only fifteen is giving the old in out to poor helpless devotchkas. The book comes complete with an entire vocabulary of slang that the Humble Narrator uses throughout the book. At first, it is a little disarming, but once you get used to the silly words, the book is worth the read.
I never felt comfortable reading it. That is to say, it is a rather heady book that will require some effort from the reader. If you venture out of your comfort zone you will not be disappointed. It is still up in the air whether or not I prefer the film equivalent to the book, but I will say that I was not disappointed, and both are works of brilliant art meant to be recognized as cannon. At times the book is hard to look away from out of sheer horror. It isn’t scary, but it is terrible. Art is meant to disturb rather than comfort.
I will say, however, that the book can do without the last chapter. I read the book with a forward from Anthony Burgess, stating that the book (which the film was based on) was initially published without the final chapter. I believe it really isn’t needed. I was expecting some grim revelation but I agree that the point that Alex is a horrible monster is conveyed without an anticlimactic ending representing him back where he was at the start, only a few years older.
The best part of the book is the narration and wordplay. It is just beautifully written and is comparable to The Catcher in the Rye with such an iconic voice. I can hear every syllable and the sarcastic tone of the Narrator. The story is good too, and I would have loved to have talked with Anthony Burgess about what happened when the brilliant concept for the book went through his head like a bullet. The man is a genius, and I look forward to his lesser-known work. It plays well to a science fiction audience but is really a prolific character study. I had fun reading it (even when it felt like a chore) and I look forward to re-reading it again someday, it is that horrorshow.
90/100
Ben Bonkoske 