Book Excerpt of the Week: We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

Yevgeny Zamyatin

This week I've gone with a current read to share. First published in the US in 1924, We by Yevgeny Zamyatin is a precursor to Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's cautionary tale, 1984. It is a satirical look at the future, a logical projection, from the author's perspective, of the recent Russian revolution told ala the relatively nascent genre of science fiction. From what I've read so far, it is a wry tale told by a unreliable narrator; a template used by many later master's of the genre, including, Atwood, Asimov, and Tolstaya.Though generally lesser known, Zamyatin could be considered the critical link between proto-sci-fi pioneers like H.G. Wells and the dystopian-schoolers, over whom, Orwell looms the largest.