- Paperback: 336 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins Canada / Adult Mm (Feb 7 1994)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0006547346
- ISBN-13: 978-0006547341
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 11.4 x 2.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 240 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #581,001 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"A mirror in which modern man can see all that is rotten in his society and himself." -- -- Saturday Review of Literature
"An intellectual teaser in the best Huxley Tradition." -- -- Time --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"An intellectual teaser in the best Huxley Tradition." -- -- Time --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
In his final novel, which he considered his most important, Aldous Huxley transports us to the remote Pacific island of Pala, where an ideal society has flourished for 120 years.
Inevitably, this island of bliss attracts the envy and enmity of the surrounding world. A conspiracy is underway to take over Pala, and events are set in motion when an agent of the conspirators, a newspaperman named Faranby, is shipwrecked there. What Faranby doesn't expect is how his time with the people of Pala will revolutionize all his values and—to his amazement—give him hope.
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best books I have read!,
By Sushil Markandeya (New Delhi, India) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Island (Paperback)
One of the best books I have read is Aldous Huxley's 'Island'. It is a take-off on the utopia theme and not his first one on it, the earlier one being 'The Brave New World'. His 'The Brave New World' was a brilliant trenchant satire, written on the premise that the human race has only two alternatives viz. being either insane or lunatic. 'The Brave New World' was a fantasy fable. 'Island' published in 1962, 30 years after 'Brave New World' was written by a much mellowed Huxley. Huxley's premise had changed from the earlier one. He believed that humanity had a third choice, of being sane. 'Island' is no satire, less fable like, the socio-political, economic system exposited in it is less fable like, and though might seem very difficult to realize, is not impossible if we all manage to be sane!Pala is a tiny (fable) island in the Indian Ocean, where it's small community has made the best of western and eastern worlds. The inhabitants are basically Shivaite-Buddhists. They have adopted the western technology but not to the extent that the technology becomes dehumanizing and prevents them being full human beings. They have steered clear of the three pillars of the western prosperity:- armaments, universal debt and planned obsolescence. They have of course their tradition of empathy for all the living beings, their respect for the environment, habitat and the practice of their traditional mind science. The Community believes that God is immanent, man is potentially transcendent. The island's enlightened community have attempted the enormous folly of trying to make a marriage between Hell and Heaven and succeeded at it. They have blended their tradition with western technology in a perfect synthesis. Rather, one of their prime credo is making the best of all the worlds. The book opens in a dramatic fashion. An English journalist on a secret mission to push the Oil interests of his tycoon boss is regaining consciousness an early morning on the fable island Pala. He had the previous afternoon procured a boat at the neighboring island (a separate country) and planned to sail into the Pala harbor. Unfortunately, he gets caught in a squall. Instead of sailing into the Pala harbor, he is washed ashore the wrong side of the Island with steep hills to be negotiated to reach habitation. Even as he is descending in the failing light of dusk, negotiating the slippery rain washed rocks, he espies snakes (not necessarily venomous) slithering around. Probably finding live snakes around for the first time in his life, he panics, loses hold and falls. Fortunately for him, this fall to the ground is cushioned by an obstructing tree. Still badly bruised, shaken and utterly terrified he loses consciousness. He regains consciousness the next morning with two Palanese urchins - a ten year old girl and a four year old boy- solicitously looking down upon him. The girl sends off the boy to get help. Meanwhile she feeds the famished journalist with bananas. The journalist is still carrying the phantom images of the slithering snakes though they are no more around. How the ten year old successfully administers therapy to the adult journalist to rid of the snakes crawling in his mind is one of the high points of the novel! One of the other high points in the novel: - the character Lakshmi, in last dying stages of terminal cancer is treated by her relatives. Death is treated as any other incident in life. It is as if Lakshmi's relatives are seeing her off for a long journey she is undertaking. She is helped in every way to live to the very fullest even as she is dying. Huxley had been deeply influenced by the book 'The Tibetan Book of the Dead' so popular in the west during 1920s & 1930s. This particular episode seems to have been inspired by 'The Tibetan Book of the Dead'. Huxley concludes the book on somewhat tragic but realistic note.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
People are missing the point,
By A Customer
This review is from: Island (Paperback)
This book is wonderful but probably in a different way than many people think. Huxley wrote this the year before he died. And in a letter his wife wrote shortly after his death she says that Huxley was appaled that people didn't take it serious. His entire lifes wisdom was summed up in island. The seemingly slow moving plotline and the somewhat underdeveloped characters are not flaws they are fully intentional. This was done so that the attention of the reader would lean more towards the palanese way of life and less towards the things going on. He has a strong point when it comes to eastern philosophy being concerned with what works, and western with what is real. And the issue of psychedelics was nicely addressed. Some parts did get a little cheesy but that's understandable because he was such an emotional man. He also recycles alot of words but this doesn't bother me because it is such a beautiful book. Island is so much better than BNW. You should read it...
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Impossible Ideal?,
By
This review is from: Island (Paperback)
My favourite Huxley book by far! This is Aldous Huxley's utopian vision to contrast with his dystopian Brave New World. "Island" was written much later in Huxley's life and reflects his interest in Eastern philosophies and his concern about the corruption and exploitation that the Third World suffered from both the West and the Communist Bloc. It's a very well-written book that is very easy to lose oneself in, so "Attention!" (read the book and you'll understand that ;) and join Will Farnaby as he discovers Pala and, in the process, himself.
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