Animal farm : a fairy story

George Orwell's book, "Animal Farm", is a classic example of political fiction. In this short novel about farm animals, Orwell portrays the rise and fall of the Soviet Union. If one reads this as a fantasy story about animals, like the beloved stories of "Babe" and "Charlotte's Web", "Animal Farm" can be very confusing. However, if one reads it with a good understanding of the history of the Soviet Union, it has an ironic tone. "Animal Farm" is a transformation-circle story. However, where the usual transformation-circle story ends with a character or characters changing for the better, this one has no such hopeful ending. Orwell, who hated communism, paints it in a dim light through "Animal Farm". It is not a book to be read lightly, and I don't recommend rushing through it, even though it can be a quick read.