Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

Published in 1949, Nineteen Eighty-Four is George Orwell's last novel and one of the most famous contributions to dystopian and political fiction. 

Winston Smith lives in the dark, grim superstate of Oceania. Members of The Party control Oceania and Big Brother acts as their poster-boy and leader, although his existence is uncertain. The Party's political philosophy consists of paradoxical slogans like "War is Peace". The masses are under constant surveillance by The Party which rewrites the past so that its principles are not contradicted.  The Party's goal is to suck the pleasure out of people's lives and abolish rebellious thoughts. Winston Smith is an individual thinker and he is eventually "remedied" by O'Brien, a leader of The Party. By the end of the book, Smith loves The Party and Big Brother. 

Nineteen Eighty-Four gives us an appreciation of the importance of knowing and remembering our history. Because all accurate records in Oceania have been expunged, the only knowledge that an event actually happened or that a person actually existed is contained in someone's memory. Reading Nineteen Eighty-Four makes me grateful that I live in a society where family and friends don't betray us to the government and where it's OK to trust others.

I rate this book four out of five stars - because it's a true pleasure to read. I deducted one star because at times the novel was a bit slow.