![]() ![]() Born as he was into a world at war, a biography of Orwell is almost a running history of that world in 46 years – years in which he hammered himself into a writer of monstrous talent, enormous breadth, and enduring significance. The best reason for a second try is that Orwell is worth it. The publishers’ proud claim that this is the first full-length study for 20 years is not true. ![]() By and large he sticks to his brief – the life and those who hovered close to the flame. ![]() Not much bothered by other biographers, Taylor raises nobody up, casts nobody down, shows little interest in grand theories and doesn’t come up with any of his own. The New Life has the advantage of being able to draw on about a dozen previously unpublished letters, but to no real consequence. Why? Although the two books are different, there’s not that much you can change in the life itself. David Taylor has already written one biography of Orwell, from 2003, and now he’s written another. ![]()
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