This is my third book by Ayn Rand and I always enjoy her writing. I might not agree with he philosophy entirely but I do love the writing style and reflective nature of her books. I’ve not tackled The Fountainhead yet which is next on the list before finishing with Atlas Shrugged, and even though reviews are mixed I’m confident in enjoying them based on my experience so far. 

 

This particular book having the story as both a novella and a play is a first for me, and quite rare. I enjoyed both and can see why Rand thought it would work better as a play but also some parts were lost by staging it as a play as each chapter was in a single setting. For example I preferred the ending of the novel, but this would require at least 2 settings for the final scenes which wasn't really doable in the play. Having both was brilliant though and it’s short enough to enjoy twice in quick succession. The introductions by Leonard Peikoff were brilliant and set up both the book and the play perfectly, the insightful comments about the work and Ayn Rand itself gave the whole thing an extra dimension. 

 

The style of Ayn Rand’s characters can be a bit divisive. It could certainly be argued that they are flat, however I find that the characters embody specific concepts or emotions and are representative of that. As a result of this though, they are one dimensional as they aren’t really real people a lot of the time, they are just vessels for a concept, and that’s not for everyone but I enjoy it. It’s not every character either, some are more rounded, depending on their purpose. 

 

There’s no real plot in this, it does have a beginning, middle and end, but the middle is a series of vignettes, and again this will be to some peoples taste and not for others. 

 

For me though I like these things and still enjoy Ayn Rand’s style, I’m excited to start The Fountainhead when I have the time to commit to such a long read.