Julia

'Sandra Newman's Julia, approved by Orwell's estate, is neither an anachronistic betrayal of the source material, nor some parched scholarly exercise. Rather, it is a vibrant, full-blooded book that adheres to the spirit of the original while tearing elements of it - namely the character of Winston Smith - to pieces... very funny... it is also peppered with fresh observations that made me laugh out loud... Newman hits all the big beats from Orwell's book - the torture in Room 101, Julia and Winston's final meeting. But what is so wonderful about this is not just its depiction of Julia as even cleverer than you might imagine, but also its rich understanding of what Orwell meant about society's three strata locked in an endless battle for supremacy. Julia, living in this pressure cooker, is often cruel as well as astute. She is the one in the end who understands this' - I Paper 'Excellent ... Bold, eloquent, and often drawn to the psychologically unsettling, Newman is a worthy recipient of the iconic 1984 baton' - Big Issue '[A] gripping read' - Literary Review 'Delicious and provocative' - The Gloss 'Julia's story [...] is so well engineered it perfectly matches the contours of Nineteen Eighty-Four. The same goes for Newman's dialogue and descriptive language, both of which have an Orwellian melody... smart... This is a good book, which offers an optimistic take on the pessimistic original' - Irish Independent