Apologies this will be full of spoilers, so avoid if you don’t want to get spoiled. 

I’ve read two Orwell retellings recently, one had brought the premise up to date brilliantly and was a well rounded satire on the current state of UK politics. That was Beasts of England and was one of my favourite reads of the year, you could really tell that Adam Biles understood the original story and built on it from there.

This was disappointing. It promised a modern feminist retelling of 1984 from Julia’s point of view. If this was a standalone story, totally separate from Orwell, it would have been great. But other than the names and references to events in 1984 this feels like a totally different world and not in a good way. Winston’s world in 1984 was a hell, you were constantly monitored, you even had to control your facial expression to keep from being considered a criminal. In this Julia comes and goes as she pleases, regularly visits proles, buys black market items, without a care or worry that she’ll be caught. Apart from a few mentions when it’s relevant nobody is concerned about the telescreens, even though we know that’s how the inner party monitor the party and the proles.

Yes Julia is a more rounded character but I don’t know if that’s a good thing because she isn’t remotely likeable. I also don’t understand what’s feminist about it, yes she’s well rounded, yes she owns her sexuality but for what purpose. She uses her sexuality to collude with a totalitarian regime, where she sleeps with party members so the inner party can spy on them. Why? It ruins the original story for me. Why have Parsons not being dobbed in by his vile H*tler Youth esque children but committing sex crime with Julia. And the same for Ampleforth, him being a criminal just because he couldn’t find a rhyme for rod in newspeak and had to use god shows how petty and trivial thoughtcrime can be. And I guess we should feel bad when it turns round to bite her and she ends up tortured and left as an unperson anyway? Even though it’s obvious that’s what would happen. Also it made no logical sense that Julia would still be pregnant at the end of the book after everything she went through. 

And worst of all the fact that Big Brother is not only real but a senile old man. This makes no sense. The reason that Big Brother is so impactful is because he is this figurehead of the party that actually no one has seen and probably isn’t real. 

Sandra has taken the subtle and nuanced horror of Orwell’s world and overblown and overexplained parts of the story that didn’t need explained. Less is more and you don’t need every gruesome detail thrown in your face to feel how horrific a situation is, it loses its impact. 

I probably wouldn’t have finished this if I hadn’t been listening to the audiobook, if I had a physical copy of the book I’d have DNFed it. It might work for some, but it didn’t work for me. Which is unfortunate because I can tell Sandra Newman is a good writer and I had wanted to like this, but just can’t. 1984 and Animal Farm are two of my favourite books, and I know them cover to cover, inside out and upside down so maybe that clouds my opinion.