So you’re Thinking About Reading Atlas Shrugged but Don’t Have 35+ hours to spend on it?
Atlas Shrugged is one of those books that probably everyone should read. It is continually in most of the “Top 100” reading lists I have come across. And rightfully so.
In fact, it is probably more relevant now than ever before in American history. And I am sure that many people have heard about what an opus Atlas Shrugged is, and how it is a “must read” and especially if they support capitalism or libertarian ideals.
I am certain that many people have gone out to buy a copy of Shrugged, and then, realizing just how thick and long this behemoth of a book really is, either started but never finished it, or simply did not even begin the monumental task of reading it—most versions of the book are over 1,000 pages.
First off, there is nothing against long books. Don Quixote, War and Peace and even Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six were all over a thousand pages long and well worth the significant time it takes to read them. In fact, a well-written book that is very long can be an extraordinary literary experience.
But the question remains, is Atlas Shrugged worth spending the time to actually read? At 30-pages an hour pace, it would take over 35 hours to read in the hardback version I bought. Spending that much time on a book is a question for individual readers.
But it can be a bit of a chore. In fact, the US Navy was actually disciplining unruly Sailors by making them read Atlas Shrugged, and other Ayn Rand works, and then doing reports on what they read!
And there are some valid critical points about reading Atlas Shrugged in its entirety: Ayn Rand can easily spend 20 words to describe what should probably take two words. This played out long-enough and you end up with a 1,000+ page book with an interesting plot, ideas, characters and political message, but just too long and time-consuming to fully absorb and/or appreciate.
This is fine if you have a reader that enjoys a long-winded author in order to get the message in the book. But the question you need to ask yourself is do you need to read a 70+ page political soliloquy in order to understand, and appreciate, the underline message in a book?
I’m pretty sure Animal Farm was about the same length as John Galt’s famous speech over the pirated radio airwaves in Atlas Shrugged, and in reality, the political message could be delivered concisely in a few pages.
Looking back, Atlas Shrugged is probably a bucket list book for many literary enthusiasts, but after a while, reading a book in its entirety just to say you did is a bit ridiculous—although there was a time when I would set out to do just that.
Nowadays, with ever-shrinking attention spans and distractions, I honestly believe that most readers would be able to get more out of a condensed version of Atlas Shrugged than by reading it in its entirety. Because few people will read it straight through and may have difficulty remembering the plot as they go, as it may not be in one concise shot.
So if you want to understand the very interesting viewpoint of people and the economic system as it relates to government, then I would highly recommend a condensed version such as SparkNotes or Cliff Notes.
If you skip the forward and the background/introductory pages of each version, then you are left with about a hundred or so pages of actual text.
Both of the versions are very easy to read, contain the main political viewpoints that Ayn was trying to convey, and the best part, either can be read in a couple of sittings.
So to sum this up, yes, I think Atlas Shrugged is worth reading in full form by anyone that wants to understand Ayn’s unique viewpoints, has the time to spend reading a lengthy book, and doesn’t mind a long-winded writing style that can ramble, at times.
And if you want to read it but do not have the time, then get a SparkNotes or Cliff Notes version and get the core message that Ayn is trying to portray. And again, this book is now more relevant than ever before, especially with an increasing government and all of this talk of collectivism and social policies that basically amount to income redistribution.
And if you want to read a shorter, more introductory novel by Ayn Rand in its entirety, then Anthem is worth reading, as it is only a few hundred pages and gives you a glimpse into Ay Rand’s writing style and basics on her political outlook and views on the human condition in a world of government.
If you enjoy Anthem, then perhaps you would be a good candidate to read Atlas Shrugged in all of its full glory.
And for those that are wholeheartedly opposed to condensed versions of novels being read, then all I will say is that Atlas Shrugged is not Anna Karenina and Ayn Rand was not known for her literary writing style, but for her political/philosophical viewpoints embedded in her novels.
Short of cramming for a test on the book, I would rarely recommend a SparkNotes version of a literary novel in lieu of reading it in original form. But then again, reading something, even a condensed Cliff Notes version is better than not reading anything at all.
If You Want a Shorter Introductory Book by Ayn Rand...
Then check out Anthem. A great novel but at traditional novel length, If you like this one, then you may enjoy Ayn’s longer works like Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.
Anthem is a great introduction to Ayn’s viewpoints on collectivism, socialism and other forms of wealth redistribution. And it also lays much of the groundwork for her later works. I would recommend starting here if you are not a fan of SparkNotes versions of books and want to weigh whether or not tackling Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged is right for you.