Books

New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1949. First American edition, later printing, in dust-jacket with $3.00 price. [4], 314 pp. 8vo. Gray cloth with some soiling along bottom edge and around foot of spine, tape residue where dust jacket was held down; blue dust-jacket with chipping along head of spine and tape residue on inside flaps; previous owner bookplate and residue of a library plate on rfep. First American edition, later printing, in dust-jacket with $3.00 price. [4], 314 pp. 8vo. Connolly 100, 99

"1984" is a dystopian novel set in a totalitarian society ruled by a party led by the enigmatic figure, Big Brother. The story revolves around Winston Smith, a disillusioned man working for the Party whose job involves altering historical records to align with the Party's propaganda. Winston secretly harbors dissenting thoughts against the oppressive regime and begins a forbidden love affair with Julia, a fellow rebel. As they engage in acts of rebellion and attempt to challenge the Party's control, they are drawn into a web of surveillance, manipulation, and betrayal. The novel explores themes of censorship, surveillance, the nature of truth, the dangers of totalitarianism, and the resilience of the human spirit against oppressive regimes.

The first edition can be identified by the publisher Secker & Warburg and the publication date of 8 June 1949, as well as the absence of a dust jacket that later variation contained. The first edition was published in both RED and GREEN jackets at the same time. It is considered that the red jacket is the more collectible as it was seemingly printed in a smaller quantity than the green jacket.