# 1984 by George Orwell

42 Hacker News commenters recommended 1984 by George Orwell and 8 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 11 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** People recommend it as a prescient, gripping classic about propaganda and power, and say it still speaks to the present. Critics find the opening slow and the plot thin.

## Why people recommend it

- Essential classic everyone should read (5 comments): "1984, Brave New World, and Animal Farm should be required reading." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47800973)) "IMO everyone should read it once, alongside with 1984." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46230474)) "Of course 1984 and Animal Farm are the best" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47886086))
- Prescient about propaganda and surveillance (3 comments): "I think our current world proves that being watched by humans hits people in a way that being monitored by computers doesn't." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48924229)) "1984 was surprisingly prescient about automatically generated propaganda" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47893295)) "just as prescient as "Brave New World" and "1984"" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48258485))
- Still relevant today (4 comments): "which made for good speculative fiction in the 50’s (and also does now)" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48924180)) "1984 in particular is well worth a read right now" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48320484)) "Very interesting and so actual." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46922325))
- Gripping, well written, easy to read (3 comments): "I have only had animal farm and 1984 hook me up to a book so much." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47307479)) "The writing is beautiful and the story is gripping." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48259410)) "fun and easy reads that have meat on the bone" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48834850))

## What people warn about

- Slow, boring opening (2 comments): "It took me three tries to finish 1984 because the beginning is such a slog." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46259801)) "1984 was just boring and lifeless rant where nothing happens" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48923488))
- Shallow plot and thin story (2 comments): "the actual plot was pretty bad imho" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49267690)) "a fairly shallow bad government bad story that it's such a cultural icon everywhere" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48923810))
- Writing seen as weak or obvious (2 comments): "Orwell's attacks are so pedestrianly obvious" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46908411)) "Orwell was an important author sure, but not particularly a good one." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47472575))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Road by Cormac McCarthy](https://hackerapproved.com/p/road.md): 27 recommend
- [Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell](https://hackerapproved.com/p/nineteen-eighty-four.md): 24 recommend
- [We by Yevgeny Zamyatin](https://hackerapproved.com/p/we.md): 11 recommend
- [The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood](https://hackerapproved.com/p/handmaid-s-tale.md): 6 recommend
- [The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins](https://hackerapproved.com/p/hunger-games.md): 5 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0571394388?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780571394388) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "1984 by George Orwell", https://hackerapproved.com/p/1984/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).