Summary and Reviews of Julia by Sandra Newman

Julia by Sandra Newman

Julia

A Novel

by Sandra Newman
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  • First Published:
  • Oct 24, 2023, 400 pages
  • Paperback:
  • Sep 2024, 400 pages
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About This Book

Book Summary

An imaginative, feminist, and brilliantly relevant-to-today retelling of Orwell's 1984, from the point of view of Winston Smith's lover, Julia, by critically acclaimed novelist Sandra Newman.

Julia Worthing is a mechanic, working in the Fiction Department at the Ministry of Truth. It's 1984, and Britain (now called Airstrip One) has long been absorbed into the larger trans-Atlantic nation of Oceania. Oceania has been at war for as long as anyone can remember, and is ruled by an ultra-totalitarian Party, whose leader is a quasi-mythical figure called Big Brother. In short, everything about this world is as it is in Orwell's 1984.

All her life, Julia has known only Oceania, and, until she meets Winston Smith, she has never imagined anything else. She is an ideal citizen: cheerfully cynical, always ready with a bribe, piously repeating every political slogan while believing in nothing. She routinely breaks the rules, but also collaborates with the regime when necessary. Everyone likes Julia.

Then one day she finds herself walking toward Winston Smith in a corridor and impulsively slips him a note, setting in motion the devastating, unforgettable events of the classic story. Julia takes us on a surprising journey through Orwell's now-iconic dystopia, with twists that reveal unexpected sides not only to Julia, but to other familiar figures in the 1984 universe. This unique perspective lays bare our own world in haunting and provocative ways, just as the original did almost seventy-five years ago.

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Reviews

BookBrowse Review

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It's a remarkable take on a classic—one that I personally enjoyed more than the original. And, like 1984, Julia will haunt one's thoughts for a long time after the last page is turned. I highly recommend this eminently readable novel to adult and mature teen audiences who enjoy dystopian fiction...continued

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(Reviewed by Kim Kovacs).

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Beyond the Book



George Orwell and 1984

Original US and UK covers of 1984Sandra Newman's novel Julia is based on George Orwell's classic work of fiction 1984, retold from the point of view of the protagonist's lover. Who, though, was George Orwell, and how did 1984 come to be?

Orwell was born Eric Arthur Blair on June 25, 1903, in Bengal, India. His father, Richard, was employed in the India Civil Service as a customs official in the Opium Department. His mother, Ida, moved to England in 1904 with Eric and his older sister, Marjorie, in tow, settling in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. He attended school locally until the age of eight, when he was sent to a private prep school in Sussex. After graduation, he attended Wellington for one term before studying at Eton for the rest of his education. He ...

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Read-Alikes

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