Ravaged   by years of war and civil conflict, Britain has changed its name to Airstrip   One and become part of Oceania - one of the three totalitarian blocks   dominating the world - ruled by a mysterious leader called Big Brother who   keeps the population in thrall through strict surveillance and brutal police   repression. In a society where the individual is suppressed and turned into   an "unperson" for not conforming, and where not only personal thought, but   also historical record and language itself are constantly being manipulated   by the ruling regime, Ministry of Truth worker Winston Smith tries to make   sense of the rebellious thoughts and passions that are stirring inside him,   and finds himself impotent against the inexorable machine that surrounds him and   threatens to crush him at any time.
     
     Arguably the greatest dystopian novel of all time and the most influential   post-war work of fiction - which enriched the English language with words   such as "Newspeak", "doublethink" and "thoughtcrime" - Nineteen Eighty-Four   is a riveting read and a groundbreaking exploration of mass surveillance,   censorship and mind control, which has a deep resonance with the world we   live in.