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Homage to Catalonia

Homage to Catalonia

Summary

THE AUTHORATITIVE TEXT

'There are occasions where it pays better to fight and be beaten than not to fight at all'

Both a memoir of Orwell's experiences during the Spanish Civil War and a heartfelt tribute to those who died, Homage to Catalonia is an extraordinary first-hand record of him time on the frontline. Written with all of the depth, passion and deep human understanding that defines Orwell's writing this is a vivid account of the battles that were faced by ordinary working people as they fought for both their lives and their ideologies.

Although Orwell was himself near-fatally wounded he finds both bleak and comic notes in his experience which is recorded with such clarity and depth that this short work has become one of his best known.

Reviews

  • An unrivalled picture of the rumours, suspicions and treachery of civil war
    Antony Beevor

About the author

George Orwell

Eric Arthur Blair (1903-1950), better known by his pen-name, George Orwell, was born in India, where his father worked for the Civil Service. An author and journalist, Orwell was one of the most prominent and influential figures in twentieth-century literature. His unique political allegory Animal Farm was published in 1945, and it was this novel, together with the dystopia of Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949), which brought him world-wide fame. His novels and non-fiction include Burmese Days, Down and Out in Paris and London, The Road to Wigan Pier and Homage to Catalonia.
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