'Julia' revisits George Orwell's '1984,' from a new point of view

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Arts, Books

4.2 • 672 Ratings

🗓️ 29 February 2024

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

With permission from the Orwell estate, Sandra Newman's latest novel takes place in the same world and with many of the same characters as 1984, but retold through the eyes of Winston Smith's love interest, Julia. It's a deep exploration of women's experiences under totalitarianism, and as Newman tells NPR's Scott Simon, an appreciation of the original that doubles down on some of Orwell's humor and ability to capture the psyche of fear — and unexpected comfort — under political tyranny.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. Way back in 2017, a weird little
0:08.4	thing happened. George Orwell's novel, 1984, came back to the bestsellers list. What was going on in
0:15.1	2017 to inspire such a thing, you know, who's to say? But there is something about this book that has a hold on us,
0:22.5	and that continues today. Writer Sandra Newman has got a new novel titled Julia. It's a retelling
0:28.0	of the Orwell book, and in this interview with NPR Scott Simon, Newman talks about freshening
0:33.2	the story up a bit, being inspired by social media and totalitarian figures today, but also about
0:38.7	adding some levity and, more importantly, hope to the narrative. That's ahead.
0:43.9	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life. Distant wars, murky conflicts,
0:50.9	diplomacy behind closed doors on our new show, Sources and Methods.
0:55.3	NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people helping you understand
0:59.9	why distant events matter here at home.
1:02.9	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:08.2	The new novel, Julia, is double plus good.
1:12.4	As you might say in newspeak, the language developed more than seven decades ago by George Orwell for his classic novel 1984.
1:20.9	American writer Sandra Newman, with approval from the Orwell estate, has retold and extended the original dystopian society.
1:30.0	A big brother, telescreens, Room 101, and the Ministries of Peace, Plenty, and of Truth,
1:35.4	which is anything but.
1:38.0	For her story, Sandra Newman presents 1984 through the eyes of Julia Worthing,
1:42.9	the love of Orwell's main character, Winston Smith.
1:46.1	Sandra Newman joins us now from London.
1:48.3	Thank you so much for being with this.
1:50.3	Oh, thank you, Scott.
	...

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