'All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.'

Drunken Mr Jones of Manor Farm has neglected his livestock for too long. In a burst of insurgent fervour they rise up and he is deposed, with the pigs taking charge of the newly named Animal Farm. Everything runs smoothly, productivity soars, and all animals are well-fed and happy.

But the further away the memory of the revolution, the more distant seem its ideals, and when Boxer the workhorse is betrayed, the horrifying extent of the pigs' corruption is revealed.

Orwell's 'fairy story', a scathing satire of Soviet communism, is as potent now as it was in 1945. Animal Farm is one of literature's most electrifying examinations of power and corruption.

George Orwell, born Eric Arthur Blair (1903 - 1950) was a teacher, novelist and journalist. He also served his country, including in the Home Guard during the Second World War. He later became the literary editor of the Tribune and wrote for the Observer and Manchester Evening News. The author of nine books, Orwell is best know for the allegorical Animal Farm (1945) and dystopian satire Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949). They have gone on to become two of the most influential books of the twentieth century.

'A wise, compassionate, and illuminating fable.' New York Times

'There are no replacements for George Orwell, just as there are no replacements for a Bernard Shaw or a Mark Twain...he pricked, provoked and badgered lazy minds, delighted those who enjoyed watching an original intelligence at work.' Time

'A book for everyone and Everyman, its brightness undimmed after fifty years.' Ruth Rendell

'Timeless, even transcendent.' Christopher Hitchens

'Absolutely first rate.' New Yorker