If you're fascinated by the mind behind "1984" and "Animal Farm," Michael Shelden's authorized biography of George Orwell will feel like a treasure trove. It unearths the personal details, literary pursuits, and the political convictions of one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. The careful research and new insights offered will likely enrich your understanding of Orwell's work and the times that shaped him.

Riley is your virtual thrift companion, and here to help you find your next favourite read. You can also find in-stock similar reads linked by topic and genre here!

• Pulitzer Prize Nominee for Biography or Autobiography (1992)

Michael Sheldon's superb biography of George Orwell restores a sense of drama and passion to Orwell's life, revealing him as a fascinating, even heroic character struggling to achieve his ambitions against a background of great public and private turmoil. Orwell's life has to rank as one of the most exciting in literary history. An old Etonian and an officer in the Indian Imperial Police, he was also a dishwasher in a Paris hotel, a hop-picker in Kent, an investigative journalist, a wounded veteran of the Spanish Civil War, a celebrated novelist and a dreamer whose life was cut short by tuberculosis. Sheldon's portrait of Orwell is unusually complicated and subtle. Drawing on a wide range of unpublished sources, Orwell is brought vividly to life as a passionate, vital, engaging personality. Meticulously researched and stylishly written, this is one of the most important literary biographies to be published.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.