Moon Palace or Brave New World for students?

[barbara0207]

As I know there are lots of young people on this forum, I'd like to ask especially them - but also everyone else - which of these two novels I should recommend to my students. (There is a new curriculum and reading one of the two is compulsory.)

Personally I like BNW much better, but maybe you think Moon Palace appeals more to young people (age 18+).

I'd appreciate any contribution.
(I didn't put it in the teaching thread because the question is not directed to teachers only.)

[KimyReizeger]

Never heard of Moon Palace. Really like other bits of Huxley but found BNW boring and dated; go for 1984!

[barbara0207]

go for 1984!

That's not possible. We're required to do one of the two.

Moon Palace is by Paul Auster.

[KimyReizeger]

That's not possible. We're required to do one of the two.

Moon Palace is by Paul Auster.

Jeez.. That's the amount of curriculum control offered to teachers?

[barbara0207]

Um, one of these is a must-read for the central exams in this part of the country. For the theme 'post-colonialism' for example, we can make our own choice.

What were the boring bits in BNW? I've reread that novel several times and I'm still fascinated. I don't think it's dated. There are some themes in it that will never grow old eg. man and technology, 'happiness' versus the freedom to be unhappy at times, love, parenthood, individual and society etc.

[dramasnot6]

We studied BNW last year in 11th grade lit and it was very successful.

[barbara0207]

We studied BNW last year in 11th grade lit and it was very successful.

Good to know. What did you like about it?

[PeterL]

Paul Auster is a lightweight. Go with Huxley.

[ucdawg12]

I was in 12th grade when I read BNW (for class) and I really enjoyed it. I thought it was one of the best books we read that year. I didn't really like to read then but I remember not being bored at all when reading BNW which is always a good sign :) I felt that the world and setting were all really interesting, the characters were good and it wasn't tough to read. I mean that it didn't feel dry at all compared to many of the other books we read.

I think it was pretty popular within the rest of the class too.

I have not read Moon Palace so I cannot compare the two.

Hope that helps

[Dark Star]

Sadly, I didn't get to read it in high school but I will say this: Getting to read a dystopia as part of the high school curriculum (the closest we got was Animal Farm) would have been a dream come true for me! Go for Brave New World.

[barbara0207]

That's 4 -1 for BNW so far if I counted right.

Thanks everybody for answering. But I want more opinions, of course. :D

[Charles Darnay]

Paul Auster is a lightweight. Go with Huxley.


I would have to agree. I haven't read Moon Palace but I have some of his other works. They are very nice. Good imagery, for the most part a good use of language. However, his novels aren't that interesting, deep, thought provoking. I thnk BNW would make for a mch better read in terms of class discusion and analysis. Just don't try to disect ever detail too much - that's when your students will lose interest.

[KimyReizeger]

What were the boring bits in BNW? I've reread that novel several times and I'm still fascinated. I don't think it's dated.

I found the whole thing very obvious. I think he spends too much time force-feeding the 'rules' of the world. It's not very subtle, in fact I'd go as far to suggest that his 'point' resides firmly ahead of any desire to write an enjoyable story. I personally find it most effective when these elements meet halfway - in other words: 1984.

[SleepyWitch]

at the risk of sounding like a conservative, narrow-minded, canon-thumbing old spinster: Brave New World is much more famous and representative of what some consider the must-reads of English "literature". So I'd make them read BNW rather than a less well-known book.

[dramasnot6]

Good to know. What did you like about it?

I loved how scarily relevant it was to today. Everyone in my class thought it was so hilarious that they were engineering humans and hyperbolizing consumerism.

[ThousandthIsle]

When I was in high school, nobody who read Brave New World didn't love it. I've never heard of Moon Palace though.

[barbara0207]

8 - 1 for BNW. I think that settles it. Unless there are some people out there who speak up for Auster.

Thank you very much, everyone. :)