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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.52
EAN num: 9780451187840
ISBN number: 0451187849
Label: Signet
Manufacturer: Signet
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 464
Printing Date: January 01, 1996
Publishing house: Signet
Sale Popularity Level: 36326
Studio: Signet
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Rated by buyers 
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I admit I read Atlas Shrugged years before reading We the Living even they were written in the opposite order. I recommend reading WTL very first as Atlas Shrugged is far superior. They are similar in that both feature a heroine involved with two heroes, eventually choosing one in the end.
Rand is not shy in promoting her objectivism of the self. She presents her philosophy masterfully in rich narration and thoughtful dialog.
I found myself bored in the very first half of the book. The second half read faster. I did not quickly connect emotionally with the characters; I kept reading because I enjoyed Atlas Shrugged so much.
I did learn about life inside the U.S.S.R. and the dirty politics therein. I wonder if Rand was as familiar with similar dirty politics in democracy and capitalism.
Rated by buyers 
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Sometimes, after finishing a book, I feel deep within me that it is important that other people read it, too.
I'm sure you feel the same way.
We The Living is such a book. I can't say whether it is Rand's best fiction or not... certainly a better read than Atlas Shrugged or Anthem, but The Fountainhead looms large in my memory, and might still claim the throne. However, I wouldn't feel it as important to have others read The Fountainhead as I might this one -- We The Living is somehow more personal, and more affecting.
Ayn Rand is a divisive author, especially for those who haven't really bothered to study her and are just going off of what they've heard from others. If even a detractor reads We The Living, however, I think they'll see a person passionately devoted to the best things about humanity, and about life. Who could witness the plight of Kira and not be moved? Not be profoundly angered at the society that would put her through such ordeal? Not be convicted to ensure that no such thing could take place again, anywhere on earth?
We The Living is a labor of love, and its plain to see in the writing. It sparkles with honesty, and draws from its readers the true pain that only honest writing can. A person may or may not agree with the Objectivist stand on laissez-faire, or inductive reasoning, but a solid common ground can still be reached by looking into this slice of Soviet life and being properly and profoundly horrified. From the resultant senses of pain, sorrow, and anger, our common philosophical conversation can continue...
Rated by buyers -
I am not an Ayn Rand fan. Yet, this novel cannot be ignored by those that are rational and honest.
To me, every great author has a "signature novel." (For example, "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is Hemingway's "signature novel.") This, to me, is Rand's "signature novel."
LOVERS OF SOCIALISM/COMMUNISM: Those that admire socialism/communism should read merely one portion of the Introduction to this splendid book. Rand wrote:
'A young Russian had said to her [Any Rand] at a party in 1926, just before she [Any Rand] left for America: "When you get there, tell them that Russia is a huge cemetery and that we are all dying."'
That was in 1926, and little did anyone know that the situation in Russia/USSR would become far worse than a cemetery.
Socialists, communists, collectivists that read this book will be challenged to defend their impeccably ludicrous, transparently preposterous belief-system. Will they admit it? No.
"We The Living" is a powerful, bleak, grim tale of "Kira Argounova," a young lady that wants to leave Russia. She faces one problem: It is illegal to leave Russia--so much so that it is punishable by death or a stint in the Gulag.
Kira Argounova will use anyone and any method to leave. She is the hero. It is a book about escaping a terrible situation at any cost.
This is Rand's most passionate, realistic and powerful novel. It is a masterpiece for those of us that have studied the history of the Soviet Union and have observed the abject repression--"repression" is a mild word for it--of those who suffered under Lenin, Stalin (who was born Iosef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili and changed his name to Stalin, meaning, literally, "made of steel"--a title that fit him well), and others.
This is her masterpiece.
This is the book that will be remembered far, far after her other works are forgotten.
I highly recommend it.
Rated by buyers -
In the early days after the Russian Revolution, one might have easily slipped into the false idea that communism was a passing fad and life would soon return to normalcy. This is the backdrop for the masterful novel by Ayn Rand which follows three young adults as they learn about themselves and the ways of the embryonic communist government. "We the Living" is a world loosely held together, but which never seems to completely fall apart.
Rand places much of the focus of "We the Living" on Kira, whom the author has suggested possesses many characteristics of herself. Kira's physical appearance is given an unflattering description in the initial pages, but which evolves positively as the story progresses. Kira can be described as an idealist, formerly of the wealth of a bourgeois family. But as many her age in all times and places do, she is searching for something. Leo is haunted by the death communism caused his father and begins to openly seek to sabotage the system. The only strand that seems to prevent recklessness is his bond with Kira. Andrei, although a communist, struggles with his beliefs in the face of the burgeoning love triangle. Perhaps Andrei is the most tragic character in the book.
While Kira seems to have chosen Leo early in the novel, the realtionship is built on unstable ground. Circumstances lead Kira back to Andrei, causing an already confused woman to further question her direction. While the story digresses into some slower moving points, it is emblematic of the stereotypical image Westerners have of a depressed life in the Soviet Union. As one may expect, the ending reflects the stereotype. While the ending may be somewhat expected, readers are still eager in their anticipation.
Though the pacing of "We the Living" seems uneven at times, the critical points in the plot make the novel tough to discontinue reading. Rand is masterful at putting an image to the faceless phenomenon of socialism.
Rated by buyers -
In her self-proclaimed near-autobiography, Ayn Rand writes of the tumultuous time after Russia's fall to Soviet rule through the lives of a few individuals stuck in it. The descriptions of daily life, the frustrations of everything from heating to food to dealing with corrupt bureaucracy, give a realism to the time period and conditions that aren't so easily conveyed in history texts. While people tend towards caricatures, as can be typical in Rand's work, the core of humanity within them, both high and low points, clearly shine through.
It's a love story gone all wrong as Kira, the young woman who wishes to design bridges but won't ever achieve that goal under the blue boot of socialism, watches the man she loves succumb to the dehumanizing effects of the system which surrounds and controls them. Other characters, friends and relatives of the main characters give the story a great deal of depth.
This book does not fall prey to the excess wordiness that Atlas Shrugged did. There are not redundant speeches which take up dozens of pages. I'd not re-read this book without a box of tissues handy. Whether or not you tend to agree with Rand, this is an excellent book which gives a deeper understanding to a particularly unique and dark period in history.
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