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A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange
Nov 24, 2025 3:14 PM

Author:Anthony Burgess,Blake Morrison

A Clockwork Orange

'I do not know of any other writer who has done as much with language ... a very funny book' William S. Burroughs

Fifteen-year-old Alex doesn't just like ultra-violence - he also enjoys rape, drugs and Beethoven's ninth. He and his gang of droogs rampage through a dystopian future, hunting for terrible thrills. But when Alex finds himself at the mercy of the state and subject to the ministrations of Dr Brodsky, and the mind-altering treatment of the Ludovico Technique, he discovers that fun is no longer the order of the day. The basis for Stanley Kubrick's notorious 1971 film, A Clockwork Orange is both a virtuoso performance from an electrifying prose stylist and a serious exploration of the morality of free will.

In his introduction, Blake Morrison situates A Clockwork Orange within the context of Anthony Burgess's many other works, explores the author's unhappiness with the Stanley Kubrick film version, analyses the composition of the Nadsat argot spoken by Alex and his droogs, and examines the influences on Burgess's unique, eternally original style.

With an Introduction by Blake Morrison

Reviews

Like Nadas's highly praised A Book of Memories, this is a moving, always unusual novel...it lifts the reader into the sort of deeply imagined personal experience that can only be achieved by good fiction

—— Observer

A hypnotically beautiful novel

—— Daily Telegraph

Peter Nadas is unique in that he both fictionalises the storytelling impulse and explores its origins in the consciousness of a child... A magnificent novel... A genuine work of art

—— The Times

'A beguiling, romantic story in an illuminating and surprising setting'

—— Joseph Heller

This is Elton at his best - mature, humane, and still a laugh a minute. At least

—— Daily Telegraph

Only Ben Elton could combine uncomfortable questions about gender politics with a gripping, page-turning narrative and jokes that make you laugh out loud

—— Tony Parsons

A very funny book about a sensitive subject ... Ben Elton the writer might even be funniter than Ben Elton the comic

—— Daily Mail

The selections from the greats are generous and well chosen

—— Guardian
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