It is hard for me to choose my favorite novelist of all time, I like so many writers and all for so many different reasons. I have always liked science fiction writers, however lately philosophical writers have peaked my interest. Novels by Tolstoy, Hesse, and Morley do speak to me on a different level, much more than just entertainment. But my all time favorite would have to be Ayn Rand.
Ayn Rand was born February 2, 1905 in St. Petersburg Russia, under the name of Alisa Zinov’yevna Rosenbaum. She was educated in Russia at the University of Petrograd studied philosophy and history. Rand was an eyewitness to the destruction of the Russian Czarist Government and to both the Kerensky Revolution, which she supported, and-in 1917-the Bolshevik Revolution, which she denounced from the begin. In 1925 she basically defected to the United States and in 1929 she married actor Frank O’Connor, they stayed married until he died. Ayn Rand was not only a novelist but also a screen writer, play write and a full time purveyor of objectivism. She wrote four novels, and they are, We the Living, Anthem, The Fountain Head, and Atlas Shrugged.
Ayn Rand has always been controversial, her novels push the reader into her philosophy head on, and many people find her ideas distasteful and selfish. Myself, I do not agree with her philosophy in total, however some of what she professed and wrote about has come to pass. We can see first hand that crony capitalism, centralized government, and the redistribution of wealth have hurt our economy and damaged our standing in the world. The interesting thing to me is that her work is more than 50 years old and it seems to show us the direction our society is going.
As far as entertainment value, The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged are well constructed stories that I had a hard time putting down, I really connected with the characters. If the reader can get past preconceived notions of Rand and her work, her novels can be a very captivating read and give you something to think about.
Sources:
Kerensky
Bolshevik
objectivism