4. A Clockwork Orange // Anthony Burgess
This dystopian novel follows Alex, a vicious teenager who belongs to a sub-culture of ultra-violence, and the authorities who are intent on reforming him. Speaking mostly in Burgess’ invented language of Nadsat, Alex describes his savage leadership of a gang of ‘droogs’, Peter, Dim and Georgie. Though notorious for its violence, A Clockwork Orange is written with smart perception; though it may seem difficult to sympathise with such an unreliable narrator, Burgess makes it easy to understand his reasons if not necessarily to agree with his actions. The novel asks the question of whether liberal reformation is the answer to combat ultra-violence or whether it damages the entire social system, yet the prose is still hard-hitting and readable.