Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays by George Orwell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When this edition and its companion volume were first published in 2009, I checked them out of the Oklahoma City Public Library and read selections from them. Last year I finally purchased my own copy and began reading this one while I was on our recent vacation to Hawaii.

A few of these essays are as strong as the rest and there is a wide variation in style and length. Among some of the standouts:

"Shooting an Elephant" -- one of his classic works which reflects on the inherent problems in British colonialism.

"War Time Diary" -- an interesting window into London life during the Second World War.

"Looking Back on the Spanish War" -- from which I learned more about that major event and the failures of the democracies to understand what was happening and thereby confront Fascism.

"The Sporting Spirit" -- is a fun criticism of the modern cult of sport and the Olympica ideal that sport will bring international peace.

"How the Poor Die" -- a scary story about a stay in a French hospital for the poor.

"Such, Such Were the Joys" -- in which he tells about his school days. Even though we don't raise and educate our children in the same way that the British did a century ago, there is still good insight (and not just historical insight) in this story.

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