All four of her novels made the top ten of the controversial list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. As of this writing, atlas ranks 124th on amazons sales charts. Rands fourth and final novel, it was also her longest, and the one she considered to be her magnum opus in the realm of fiction writing. Dagny taggart, vice president in charge of operations for taggart transcontinental railroad, seeks to rebuild the crumbling track of the rio norte line that serves ellis wyatts oil fields and the booming industrial areas of colorado. Humphrey with the compliments of our mutual friend john c. This book should be required reading for everybody for a book published over half a century ago it it. Atlas shrugged is one of those books that divides its readers. Choose your favorite atlas shrugged designs and purchase them as wall art, home decor, phone cases, tote bags, and more. Atlas shrugged is a trilogy of american science fiction drama films. Atlas shrugged, all 1168 pages of it, was published on october 10, 1957, with a dust jacket designed by george salter and illustrated by rands husband. Atlas shrugged ayn rand first edition signed rare book. She died on march 6, 1982, in her new york city apartment. Mar 27, 2009 books atlas shrugged is absurd but strangely compelling.
I try to read 3050 books a year, ranging across the board and including a lot of psychology and sociology. Atlas shrugged author sells 1,000,000 books in 2012 irvine, calif. Humphrey 1890 1970 started his career as a lawyer, but transitioned into the m. Ayn rands atlas shrugged places in the top 20 on the. By 1984 more than five million copies of atlas shrugged had been sold, and in a 1991 library of congress survey americans named it second only to the bible as the book that had most influenced their lives.
Atlas shrugged includes elements of science fiction, mystery, and romance, and it contains rands most extensive statement of objectivism in any of her works of fiction the book depicts a dystopian united states. I believe that claim is a reference to a 1991 survey conducted by the library of congress of 2,000 book of the month readers, so take that as you will. The book sold 445,000 copies in 2011, the secondstrongest sales year in the novels history. Opening with the enigmatic question who is john galt. Apr 21, 2005 atlas shrugged, a modern classic and rands most extensive statement of objectivismher groundbreaking philosophyoffers the reader the spectacle of human greatness, depicted with all the poetry and power of one of the twentieth centurys leading artists. Atlas shrugged has sold around 7 million copies since it was published, which puts it at around half as many copies as the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy. This is the story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of. Atlas shrugged simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Her distaste for communism and collectivism in all forms is apparent throughout atlas shrugged. Total sales of ayn rand books perhaps 40 million galts gulch.
Endowed wlargerthanlife characters and charged with towering questions of good and evil, atlas shrugged is a revolutionary epic. As a kid, i read atlas shrugged three or four times, starting in sixth or seventh grade, all while attending catholic schools in orange county, california. In 1991 the book of the month club and library of congress asked readers to name the most influential book in their lives. Born february 2, 1905, ayn rand published her first novel, we the living, in 1936. The best price on the market for signed atlas shrugged. It is a long book, but i would recommend it to serious readers. But to understand the authors sense of urgency, we must have an idea of the context in which the book. A fine copy of the book in a slipcase with only marginal flaws. In the new atlas shrugged movie, this process is well at work. The atlas shrugged book club begins, polarized but polite. Buy atlas shrugged book online at low prices in india atlas.
Sep 27, 2007 atlas shrugged sales on amazon in the first nine months of this year are already almost double the total for 2006. And we might as well tally the books by the brandens and the reply to them. It tells the story of what would happen if industrial leaders went on. Tremendous in scope breathtaking in its suspense, atlas shrugged is unlike any other book you have ever read. Atlas shrugged is absurd but strangely compelling books. Atlas shrugged is a novel by ayn rand, first published in 1957 in the united. Is atlas shrugged the second most popular book next to the.
Atlas shrugged is divided into three parts, with ten chapters in each part. Apr 29, 2014 atlas shrugged no longer ranks among americans top ten favorite books. It is a mystery story, not about the murder of a mans body, but about the murderand rebirthof mans spirit. The mind is the source of wealth to begin with, atlas shrugged masterfully depicts the role of individual initiative and creativity in economic progress. Atlas shrugged tshirt who is john galt shirt, atlas. Atlas shrugged by ayn rand, first edition abebooks. Rands fourth and last novel, it was also her longest, and the one she considered to be her magnum opus in the realm of fiction writing. Support the book and the 2011 atlas shrugged movie with this atlas shrugged tshirt that will let everyone know that you support individuals like john galt, who believe that people, not government, should be in control of societys destiny. The book explores a number of philosophical themes that rand would subsequently develop into the philosophy of objectivism. In it, rand dramatizes the main tenets of objectivism, her philosophy of rational selfishness. In all of her major novels, ayn rand presents heroes and heroines who are brilliant thinkers opposed to either societys pressure to conform or a dictatorial governments commands to obey.
The wall street journal has an interesting column that asks whether ayn rand, the famous libertarian novelist and philosopher, is a net plus for the freemarket movement. John galt is a character in the ayn rands novel atlas shrugged. There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteenyearolds life. My ayn rand craze was in the late seventies when i was a professor of biblical studies at bethel college. Rand sold her first screenplay in 1932, but nobody would buy her first novel we the living 1936 a melodrama set in russia.
Here is the longoverdue obituary for the unbridled greed glorified by atlas shrugged and the prophet of profit. The ayn rand companion by mimi gladstein and chris matthew sciabarra 45. And in various scholarly books examining atlas shrugged, including those by. Ayn rands analogy specifically referenced in the books are that the industrialists and geniuses of the world essentially carry the entire.
Two of her books, atlas shruggedand the fountainheadcombined have sold more than 12 million copies in the us. The novel made the new york public librarys list of best books. Atlas shrugged no longer ranks among americans top ten favorite books. For the first time, combined annual sales of ayn rands four novels totaled more than 1,000,000 copies. I got interested in the book after seeing the two films. May 18, 2009 so if you think, as the economist suggests, that sales of atlas shrugged in the united states were pushed up by the british bailout of northern rock and the u.
Peopled by largerthanlife heroes and villains, charged with towering questions of good and evil, atlas shrugged is ayn rands magnum opus. Atlas shrugged by ayn rand best 100 novels top 100 novels. In atlas shrugged, she shows that without the independent mind, our society would collapse into primitive savagery. Feminist interpretations of ayn rand by mini reisel gladstein 46. Not all fiction written in prose is a novel even accounting for length, just as not all. A towering philosophical novel that is the summation of her objectivist philosophy, ayn rands atlas shrugged is the saga of the enigmatic john galt, and his ambitious plan to stop the motor of the world, published in penguin modern classics. Ayn rands literature of capitalism the new york times.
In addition to atlas shrugged designs, you can explore the marketplace for ayn rand, john galt, and objectivism designs sold by independent artists. Total sales of ayn rand books perhaps 40 million galt. Mar 12, 2011 atlas shrugged has sold around 7 million copies since it was published, which puts it at around half as many copies as the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy. All atlas shrugged artwork ships within 48 hours and includes a 30day moneyback guarantee. It was with the publication of the fountainhead 1943 and atlas shrugged 1957 that she achieved her spectacular success. Atlas shrugged is one of the most profound books ive ever read.
Atlas shrugged and the fountainhead were number 1 and 2 respectively on the modern. The book sold 445,000 copies in 2011, the secondstrongest sales year in the. Atlas shrugged is a book by the russian american writer and social philosopher ayn rand. In her story, rand let freemarketers john galt, dagney taggart, and their accomplices return triumphant from their strike to remake the world in the image of godless selfinterest. The events that surrounded rands life, notably the rise of communism in russia, heavily influenced her work. The best reason to read atlas shrugged is that it is culturally significant.
Tremendous in scope, breathtaking in its suspense, atlas shrugged stretches the boundaries further than any book you have ever read. It was first published in 1957 in the united states. Greece, germany, and a realworld version of atlas shrugged the. Yes, almost 9 million copies of atlas shrugged have been sold. It is the story of a manthe novels herowho says that he will stop the motor of the world, and does. According to a 1991 survey done for the library of congress and the book of the month club, atlas shrugged was mentioned among the books that made the most difference in the lives of 17 out of 5,000 book ofthemonth club members surveyed, which placed the novel between the bible and m. Atlas shrugged and the fountainhead were number 1 and 2 respectively on the. The popular author of atlas shrugged and the fountainhead has sold 1,000,000 copies of all of her titles in 2012. Atlas shrugged presentation copy ayn rand first edition. And a new book, ayn rand and the world she made by anne c heller doubledayrandom. As passionate as it is profound, atlas shrugged is one of the most influential novels of our time. Atlas shrugged by ayn rand, the fountainhead by ayn rand, anthem by ayn rand, we the living by ayn rand, and the virtue of sel. Atlas shruggedstructure wikibooks, open books for an open.
She explores the ramifications of her radical thinking in a world that penalizes human intelligence and integrity. The story is set many decades in the past and focuses on a rail executive who finds herself in a world where business leaders are disappearing. Atlas shrugged project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. Book summary the story of atlas shrugged takes place in the united states at an unspecified future time. Her notable works included the fountainhead 1943 and atlas shrugged. The novel made the new york public librarys list of best books of the century in 1996, and radcliffe publishing ranked it 92 out of the top 100 novels of the 20th century. Rand set out to explain her personal philosophy in this book, which follows a group of pioneering industrialists who go on strike against a corrupt government and a judgmental society. Irvine, ca ayn rands atlas shrugged sold more than 500,000 copies in 2009, more than double the previous record set in 2008, reports penguin usa, publisher of the four american editions. Atlas was a figure in greek mythology who was punished by zeus to bear the entire world on his shoulders. The 23 most expensive books sold in 2016 businessinsider. All our books are sanitized for your protection before mailing. Atlas shrugged is not very good literature, despite the amazing sales. Chapter 1 the theme summary eddie willers, special assistant to the vice president in charge of operations of taggart transcontinental railroad, is accosted by a bum on the streets of new york city, who asks him, who is john galt.
So if you think, as the economist suggests, that sales of atlas shrugged in the united states were pushed up by the british bailout of northern rock and the u. Her first real success was the fountainhead rejected by more than ten publishers before publication in 1943. More than twice this many copies of atlas shrugged have been sold. According to brook, atlas shrugged, her most famous novel, has sold more copies in the first four months of 2009 than it did for all of 2008 and in 2008, it sold 200,000 copies. The book is extremely long and does get become unnecessarily long and repetitive at points, but is still a good read nonetheless. In a perverse way, im glad that there are places such as greece and illinois. Published in 1957, atlas shrugged was ayn rands last and most ambitious novel. Buy atlas shrugged canvas prints designed by millions of independent artists from all over the world. It continues to sell hundreds of thousands of copies a year, more than 50 years after it was published and more than 30 years after the death of its author. How many copies of atlas shrugged have been sold answers. The novels title is a reference to atlas, a titan of greek mythology, who in the. Atlas shrugged is an impassioned defense of the freedom of mans mind. Website with comprehensive list of individuals mentioned in atlas shrugged.
Ayn rand, russianborn american writer whose commercially successful novels promoting individualism and laissezfaire capitalism were influential among conservatives and libertarians. Atlas shrugged 1957 is a mystery story, ayn rand once commented, not about the murder of mans body, but about the murderand rebirthof mans spirit. Greece, germany, and a realworld version of atlas shrugged. Thirty years after her death, novelistphilosopher ayn rand is still selling a lot of books, a million to be precise.
Published in 1957, ayn rands atlas shrugged is set in a dystopian and impoverished united states, in a communist world system. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. About atlas shrugged cliffsnotes study guides book. Ayn rands atlas shrugged rare books experts at bauman. She started a new philosophy known as objectivism, opposed to state interference of all kinds, and her follow. After all, her books especially atlas shrugged have been hugely influential, exposing countless people to a libertarian message. The goal of this article is to provide a summary of the types of economic issues found in atlas shrugged. Atlas shrugged has sold around 7 million copies since it was published, which puts it at around half as. It is easy to predict from the gross sales numbers that anyone who volitionally buys atlas shrugged, the fountainhead, or anthem, will buy the other two. The astounding story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the worldand did. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read atlas shrugged. All atlas shrugged canvas prints ship within 48 hours, include a 30day moneyback guarantee, and arrive readytohang with preattached.
Many characters question who he is, but he isnt named until the third way through the first book. More than twenty million copies of her books have been sold. After reading the fountainhead and atlas shrugged by ayn rand in 20052006, my life has been changed for the better. Atlas shrugged by ayn rand meet your next favorite book. Im politically leftleaning and read atlas shrugged prior to the rise of the tea party. Shop for atlas shrugged art from the worlds greatest living artists. In one survey from 16 years ago, atlas shrugged was ranked second only to the bible as the book that influenced people most. One of the most influential business books ever written is a 1,200page novel published 50 years ago, on oct. Rands first novel was we the living 1936 and was followed by anthem 1938, the fountainhead 1943, and atlas shrugged 1957. Inscribed by rand on the front free end paper prior to the october 10 release date. But as recently as 1991, a survey by the library of congress and the book of the month club found that readers rated atlas as the secondmost.
1077 777 1079 495 947 1145 170 536 1573 962 1230 1080 199 1076 432 1109 1284 630 1477 1405 971 1173 103 403 577 507 1188 1238 1399 701 1172 1151 1157 1465 38 1136 270 1091 1127 1444 966 329 876 732 390 309 1379 1435