Which book should I choose?

[pi]

I was scared.

[gummo]

I haven't read Growing Up Asian, sorry, but I've read Nineteen Eighty-Four and Curious Incident twice each and found Nineteen Eighty-Four less annoying. They're really different and I think what it comes down to is personal taste. Personally, I found Nineteen Eighty-Four to have more interesting ideas, but Curious Incident has a lot that would be interesting to examine too. The narrator for the latter is really, really, really annoying after a while though. I suggest you read an excerpt from each to get a taste of what they're like though!

Excerpts for you!

Curious Incident: http://www.bookbrowse.com/excerpts/index.cfm/book_number/1252/the-curious-incident-of-the-dog-in-the-nighttime
Nineteen Eighty-Four: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Authors/1984_Orwell.html

Edit: lol didn't see the other post with excerpts soz

[Lolly]

It's morbidly horrifying and scary.

So it's sort of like a horror film? o.O

Ahahahhahaha if only.

Naah the film's just weird and creepy and scars your brain foreverpermanently.

But the book blew my mind. Go read it.

I wish I hadn't had to study it in English though, we didn't even explore it in depth or even begin to tap its surface.

Edit: Changed username for privacy purposes - Phy124

[charmanderp]

I played on my iPod to avoid having to look at the screen.

[Lolly]

I think this has been mentioned before, but also Animal Farm should never have been made into a movie. Ever.

[charmanderp]

It's morbidly horrifying and scary.

So it's sort of like a horror film? o.O

LOL you could say that.

Edit: Changed username for privacy purposes - Phy124

[brenden]

Didn't even know there were movie adaptions of George Orwell's books. Definitely watching 1984 ASAP LOL.

Henry, I heavily agree with laseredd. My sentiments exactly. I'd skew more towards the Curious Incident though, I think about that book frequently and it's one of those ones that can influence the way you interact with people for the better. So I'm voting CI.

Can't even imagine Animal Farm as a movie. All the pigs dining lol.

[Art Vandelay]

I've read all three, and I would recommend reading Orwell's 1984.

Growing Up Asian in Australia is basically a collection of stories/text (anthology) regarding issues with implications regarding Identity and Belonging (I studied it for Year 12 Context this year).

Curious Incident is basically about a kid that has some (unnamed) syndrome/disorder and is narrated in first-person, describing his search for some dead dog/whatever (i read it like 2-3 years ago, dont judge me)

1984 i enjoyed the most though. Though curious incident, through its first-person narration, which is both funny and depressing and feel-good (yeah), I reckon 1984 is probably the text that's stood out for me the most in my years of schooling, cos of its implications regarding totalitarianism/suppression etc. It really does spark a lot of debate within the classroom, and I really enjoyed discussing the book with my classmates... Plus there are more resources and critiques online for it.

O ye, for Macbeth, be sure to listen/watch the play first before reading it - it's a lot more enjoyable!

[EvangelionZeta]

1984 is a classic - I think it's a really significant work to engage with as part of your education.

That said, Growing Up Asian in Australia is also really fascinating, and I think is similarly worth reading, especially given the changing social climate of Australia.  That said, if you're of Asian heritage, it's probably not going to be as much of a thing for you as 1984.

[gibsonaxxxs]

I assume you're going to JMSS
From experience, you wouldn't want to do anything science-fiction-y.
We did a term on science fiction, and another term on identity and belonging (before I moved to lit). Identity and belonging was so SO much better.

[katykins]

I studied Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell in year 9 and i hated it at the time, because i hated the teacher haha, but i have grown to like it! plot keeps you interested, good novel!

I also studied growing up asian in Australia this yr as part of the 'Identity and belonging' context. found it a bit boring, but there are a few funny stories such as the ones by Benjamin Law

[astone788]

All my friends say 1984 is awesome, but I don't read books. If this is for year 10 OR 11 I would choose Growing up Asain (provided that the yr12 context your school chooses to study is identity and belonging) only because growing up asain is an official text that VCAA reccommend for identitfy and belonging. So if you study it in year 10/11 it will save you a lot of time in year 12. Best thing about it, is it's a collection of short stories. Some of them are funny, some of them suck, but you can choose which short stories you want to write your essay on.

By the way, I would purcahse NO FEAR shakespear's version of Macbeth on ebay. On one side of the page it has the original Macbeth, but right next to it is every single sentence of the play translated in modern english. It helped me alot, and removes a lot of the guesswork out of shakespears writing. Just don't show it to your friends, or else they will pester you for it.

[Yendall]

Nineteen-Eighty-Four for sure! (unintentional rhyme)