Books v. Cigarettes

Dec 4, 2025 2:19 PM

Author:George Orwell

Books v. Cigarettes

Beginning with a dilemma about whether he spends more money on reading or smoking, George Orwell’s entertaining and uncompromising essays go on to explore everything from the perils of second-hand bookshops to the dubious profession of being a critic, from freedom of the press to what patriotism really means.

Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves – and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives – and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.

Reviews

Wonderful... A triumph

—— New York Times

Toni Morrison makes me believe in God. She makes me believe in a divine being, because luck and genetics don’t seem to come close to explaining her

—— Guardian

Deeply perceptive...Returns risk and mischief to the contemporary American novel

—— New York Times Book Review

Toni Morrison's writing is a train that knows where it's going, fierce and fast-moving in narrative, lyrically showy in description

—— Sunday Times

Toni Morrison has made herself into the D. H. Lawrence of the black psyche, transforming individuals into forces, idiosyncrasy into inevitability

—— New York Times

It takes one to the sheer edge of human relationships

—— Vogue

Arresting images, fierce intelligence, poetic language...One becomes entranced by Toni Morrison' s story

—— Washington Post

Mercurial imagination and brilliantly elegant prose-She has the ability to shock and entrance, episode by episode, which is the hallmark of a genuine writer

—— Guardian

That rare commodity, a truly public novel... Morrison' s genius lies in her uncanny ability to immerse you totally in the world she creates

—— Newsweek

Wise, beautiful, astonishing, absolutely breathtaking

—— St Louis Globe-Democrat

Wrenchingly good. A terrific book

—— Philadelphia Inquirer

Hypnotic, stunningly alive

—— San Diego Union-Tribune

Powerful... A stunning performance... Morrison is one of the most exciting living American writers

—— Kansas City Star

Artisan-like control... As breathless as it is inevitable

—— Boston Globe

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