Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (Anniversary Edition)

I have noticed in the review of this book that many people mistake John Galt as being high on himself. They take Ayn Rand's description of the common worker as something bad. And they would be correct in that assumption. The "common" worker often comes home screaming for the weekend. The saying "thank god its Friday" came from somewhere did it not. The fact that the common man "hates Mondays" is also quite prevalent in our society. Would this happen to someone who loved their work? I think not. Most people let others push them around, they get into relationships they don't want in the long run because they don't put enough thought into them at the beginnning. They want life beautiful and easy, but they don't want to "work" at making that happen. You will notice that not all the people in Ayn Rand's "hidden" Colorado valley are people with degrees. But in fact, these people are as happy as the others. This is because they like what they do and respect those they work for. And when this fact changes they move on to another job (continuing to make themselves happy and be "self-centered"). Is the opinion of Ayn Rands that we should strive for "that" happiness a bad philosophy? If we could all just "stand on our own two feet" and be happy being our own person this planet would be a much happier place. At any crossroads in "Atlas Shrugged" Ayn Rand presents to us what a "hero" would do and what a "drone" would do. At any decision we make we are allowed to decide how this will "affect us". How it affects us financially, emotionally, and any other manner is up to us. Not recognizing a tiger as a tiger is our own stupidity. Not recognizing a bad boss or a bad job is also our own fault. While a job may not be bad in "society's eyes", it may be bad in an individual case. And when you make that decision that it is "bad for you" then you have become an "objectivist". An objectivist looks at the whole and decides how it affects" him or her. "Atlas Shrugged" like "The Fountainhead" or "Anthem" state this all too well. An individual making individual choices for that individual. It does not mean "not caring about society" or not caring about "one's fellow man". It simply means that you don't "owe" them anything. It is a book like this that every once in a while opens the eyes of a reader and lets them know its okay to be themselves.Long live those that open the eyes of the individual.

I liked it, but it's long af. Very interesting and keeps you mystified

I have been pondering for some time the fact that a book labelled Fiction can contain much more truth than a book labelled Non-Fiction; Atlas Shrugged is the poster child for this idea. Perhaps it requires someone raised in Russia to pen a full-throated defense of capitalism like Atlas Shrugged. Most of the book is fantastic, not only illuminating and true to life but also a captivating, superbly-written page-turner that was hard to put down. I'm unsure why the ball was dropped in the final part of the book. Trying not to spoil: "Atlantis" and a rambling, 57-page speech by the book's main character pull the book down from A+ to A-. Still, if you had kids reading this book in high school instead of being taught how evil the United States is, we'd be living in an entirely different and better country.

I loved this book so much, I bought one for my brother.who is John Galt?

Great product!

How appropriate.

I sent this book to my Aunt. I love this book. Ayn Rand is a great writer. What she wrote years ago still holds today. Her other excellent book is “The Fountainhead “

This novel is one of my favorites, though I do not agree with a lot of aspects of the philosophy espoused by the main characters. It is one of the 20th century great novels. Once you begin, you will want to keep going just to find the answer to the opening line and question, "Who is John Galt?". This edition is, in my opinion, a pretty good one, though they are "faux leather", i.e. regular clothbound.

Christopher Hurt does an AMAZING job narrating this book. He switches characters so smoothly and realistically that you'd swear there are a whole room full of expert actors playing their parts. Ayn's writing style was very good, but the written text depends on the reader to inject the proper emotion into the story - not something that everyone can do. Christopher's reading is more like living the story. The emotion is embedded IN the lines. In my opinion, better than a movie.Speaking of the movie, I'd highly recommend this audiobook to anyone who has seen Atlas Part 1 at the theater and is wanting more of the real thing.

Even though I don't agree with Ayn from a religious perspective she did an awesome job of telling a story that proves a point that those who produce, are and always have been, under fire by those who don't. Unfortunately the story is coming true today more than ever. It is almost as if they got their strategy for the book. When you listen to this it will motivate you to accomplish something and be active to preserve it. Capitalism may have it's flaws but it is the most productive form of accomplishing something.

This is my bible.I read Ayn Rand for the first time in 1975 when I was 18, since then, I have read and re-read both The FountainHead and The Atlas Shrugged many times over, with gaining more and more clarity as I grew in my experiences.I have introduced my children with these books and they have greatly benifitted from the philosophy presented by Ayn Rand.

This was a very good book. I started reading it, but didn't have enough time, so instead, decided to listen to it. The first chapter was enough to capture my attention and stick with it. Ayn Rand does a great job at keeping the listener entertained and focused in a story.This story is about the economics of not only a struggling company, but in the workings of capitalism. It is captivating, educational and eye-opening.It is a must read!