Respected biographer Jeffrey Meyers delves into the complex life of the man whose visionary work gave us the great anti-utopias of modern literature. "The breadth of his research is impressive" (New York Times Book Review), drawing on a close study of the new edition of Orwell's Complete Works, personal interviews, and unpublished material in London's Orwell Archive. Meyers's "briskly paced, absorbing narrative...offers keen insights" (Boston Sunday Globe) on Orwell's intellectual development, as well as his human failings—his childhood insecurities, his political dilemmas, and his conflicted relationships with women. "Leagues in front of" Orwell's previous biographers, Meyers "convincingly demonstrates the essence of [Orwell's] character" (Denver Post), revealing a "much more helpful and believable portrait" (Paul Theroux). 10 pages of b/w photographs.

Author Biography: Jeffrey Meyers, a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, has written biographies of D. H. Lawrence, Robert Frost, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.