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The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists
A 2022 Eisner Award nominee
Adapted from Robert Tressell’s 1914 socialist novel about English working-class life, this British classic sets out the blueprint for how to organize a fairer society
Robert Tressell’s groundbreaking socialist novel, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists , tells the story of a group of working men in the fictional town of Mugsborough and socialist journeyman-prophet Frank Owen, who attempts to convince his fellow workers that capitalism is the real source of the poverty surrounding them. Owen’s spirited attacks on the greed and dishonesty of the capitalist system, and his support for a socialist society in which work is performed to satisfy the needs of all, rather than to generate profit for a few, eventually rouses his fellow men from their political passivity. Described by George Orwell as a piece of social history and a book that everyone should read, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists is often cited as “one of the most authentic novels of English working-class life ever written.” In this faithful graphic adaptation, creators Scarlett and Sophie Rickard craft a compelling fiction that paints a comprehensive picture of social, political, economic, and cultural life in early 20th century Britain that is still acutely relevant today.
Adapted from Robert Tressell’s 1914 socialist novel about English working-class life, this British classic sets out the blueprint for how to organize a fairer society
Robert Tressell’s groundbreaking socialist novel, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists , tells the story of a group of working men in the fictional town of Mugsborough and socialist journeyman-prophet Frank Owen, who attempts to convince his fellow workers that capitalism is the real source of the poverty surrounding them. Owen’s spirited attacks on the greed and dishonesty of the capitalist system, and his support for a socialist society in which work is performed to satisfy the needs of all, rather than to generate profit for a few, eventually rouses his fellow men from their political passivity. Described by George Orwell as a piece of social history and a book that everyone should read, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists is often cited as “one of the most authentic novels of English working-class life ever written.” In this faithful graphic adaptation, creators Scarlett and Sophie Rickard craft a compelling fiction that paints a comprehensive picture of social, political, economic, and cultural life in early 20th century Britain that is still acutely relevant today.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1914
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
August 11, 2022
I figured I would never read this famous socialist novel because every other review says it’s repetitive, didactic and contrived and those are its fans talking! And it’s SIX hundred pages long. So I thought well, if I’m ever reincarnated, I’ll put it at the top of my reading list. Until then, sorry Robert. But then I saw this graphic novel version (a mere 352 pages!) and it was love at first sight – the art is really gorgeous, and proved once again that Mary Poppins was so right to say that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down in the most delightful way. In this case several pounds of sugar help gallons and gallons of medicine go down.
Five stars for the art & story editing & general spiffiness.
But only 3.5 stars for Robert Tressell’s actual story.
Even in this truncated & compressed form the characters & dialogue & painful twists of fate hammer you over the head with a pure undiluted socialist message. And then the story pauses while we listen to a ten page illustrated lecture on socialism. This is exactly what I expected but still…. Whew….
IS IT IN ANY WAY STILL RELEVANT? OF COURSE
Written round about 110 years ago some of the bosses-grinding-the-faces-of-the-poor stuff might sound a little over the top. Because one of the developments of capitalism that RT did not foresee was the increasing affluence of Western societies. When I was a tiny infant there were only about five or six cars on the street where I lived. Kids played football in the road all day long, no problem. Now the same street is jammed bumper to bumper with cars, some 4 by 4s, and no kids ever play in the street. There is no comparison between the material wealth of an ordinary English working class family in 1910 and one in 2022*. But we just need to raise our eyes to more distant horizons to find very similar ragged trousered philanthropists working 16 hour days in other countries making stuff for Western people to sell to each other. They have not yet got their big cars. A lot of them don’t even have running water and sanitation.
NAILS HIT ON HEAD; READER SQUIRMS
RT is very good on the painful subject of working class stupidity, meaning their limitless capacity to vote for the parties of the rich and view any leftwing socialist parties as limbs of Satan. Most of this book is made up of a series of very uncomfortable debates between a couple of goodlyhearted socialist guys and their hostile fellow workers. They say stuff like
There’s always been rich and poor, you’ll never change it.
Socialism means “What’s yours is mine”
Socialism means atheism and free love.
It’s a beautiful idea but it’s too good to be practical because human nature is too mean and selfish.
What about the jobs nobody wants to do? Who will you make do them if everybody’s equal?
RT was also not around to observe the progress of the Russian experiment in socialism. I wonder what he would have said to that.
Soundtrack :
Which Side Are you On? By Natalie Merchant
This World Is Not Fair : Randy Newman
Banquet : Joni Mitchell
Get Up Stand Up : Wailers
Dear Mrs Roosevelt : Bob Dylan
Hard Times : De Dannan
The Sun Never Shines On The Poor : Richard Thompson
Poor And Needy : Misty In Roots
We Poor Labouring Men : Waterson Carthy
and
Pete Seeger’s entire album entitled CAN’T YOU SEE THIS SYSTEM IS ROTTEN THROUGH AND THROUGH which features songs such as My Sweetheart’s the Mule in the Mines and I Hate the Capitalist System
*But on the news in the UK just now there is a constant flow of stories about energy price rises, and it’s often said that this coming winter there will be many who will have to choose between “heating or eating”. And right now in the UK we have a system of food banks which dish out free (tinned) food for those deemed as poor. RT would have said plus ca change, plus le meme chose.
Five stars for the art & story editing & general spiffiness.
But only 3.5 stars for Robert Tressell’s actual story.
Even in this truncated & compressed form the characters & dialogue & painful twists of fate hammer you over the head with a pure undiluted socialist message. And then the story pauses while we listen to a ten page illustrated lecture on socialism. This is exactly what I expected but still…. Whew….
IS IT IN ANY WAY STILL RELEVANT? OF COURSE
Written round about 110 years ago some of the bosses-grinding-the-faces-of-the-poor stuff might sound a little over the top. Because one of the developments of capitalism that RT did not foresee was the increasing affluence of Western societies. When I was a tiny infant there were only about five or six cars on the street where I lived. Kids played football in the road all day long, no problem. Now the same street is jammed bumper to bumper with cars, some 4 by 4s, and no kids ever play in the street. There is no comparison between the material wealth of an ordinary English working class family in 1910 and one in 2022*. But we just need to raise our eyes to more distant horizons to find very similar ragged trousered philanthropists working 16 hour days in other countries making stuff for Western people to sell to each other. They have not yet got their big cars. A lot of them don’t even have running water and sanitation.
NAILS HIT ON HEAD; READER SQUIRMS
RT is very good on the painful subject of working class stupidity, meaning their limitless capacity to vote for the parties of the rich and view any leftwing socialist parties as limbs of Satan. Most of this book is made up of a series of very uncomfortable debates between a couple of goodlyhearted socialist guys and their hostile fellow workers. They say stuff like
There’s always been rich and poor, you’ll never change it.
Socialism means “What’s yours is mine”
Socialism means atheism and free love.
It’s a beautiful idea but it’s too good to be practical because human nature is too mean and selfish.
What about the jobs nobody wants to do? Who will you make do them if everybody’s equal?
RT was also not around to observe the progress of the Russian experiment in socialism. I wonder what he would have said to that.
Soundtrack :
Which Side Are you On? By Natalie Merchant
This World Is Not Fair : Randy Newman
Banquet : Joni Mitchell
Get Up Stand Up : Wailers
Dear Mrs Roosevelt : Bob Dylan
Hard Times : De Dannan
The Sun Never Shines On The Poor : Richard Thompson
Poor And Needy : Misty In Roots
We Poor Labouring Men : Waterson Carthy
and
Pete Seeger’s entire album entitled CAN’T YOU SEE THIS SYSTEM IS ROTTEN THROUGH AND THROUGH which features songs such as My Sweetheart’s the Mule in the Mines and I Hate the Capitalist System
*But on the news in the UK just now there is a constant flow of stories about energy price rises, and it’s often said that this coming winter there will be many who will have to choose between “heating or eating”. And right now in the UK we have a system of food banks which dish out free (tinned) food for those deemed as poor. RT would have said plus ca change, plus le meme chose.
December 7, 2020
Fellow Goodreader Emily Davies’ review more or less says everything for me about this book!
I have read the original Robert Tressell novel and reviewed it on this site, but I think the Rickard sisters have done an admirable, fantastic job of producing this wonderful graphic novel version. Not only is it beautifully done, but their labour of obvious love has made it likely that many young readers who might never get round to reading the original can access this socialist classic and learn something about Britain’s social history.
It would make a great birthday or Christmas present, particularly for young thinking relatives and friends, and I would also hope that librarians everywhere would get a copy in! Our son bought this for us, and I will certainly give copies to others in future.
I have read the original Robert Tressell novel and reviewed it on this site, but I think the Rickard sisters have done an admirable, fantastic job of producing this wonderful graphic novel version. Not only is it beautifully done, but their labour of obvious love has made it likely that many young readers who might never get round to reading the original can access this socialist classic and learn something about Britain’s social history.
It would make a great birthday or Christmas present, particularly for young thinking relatives and friends, and I would also hope that librarians everywhere would get a copy in! Our son bought this for us, and I will certainly give copies to others in future.
November 2, 2020
Anyone who has known me for any significant length of time will have been told to read The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists. Probably more than once. I’ve even gifted a few copies. I think this book is so good and important that I used it as the starting point of my dissertation a few months ago. Often considered /The/ socialist novel, Tressell’s story of a group of decorators in the town of Mugsborough contains not only a gripping plot with a rich cast of characters but also a treatise on the cause of poverty and the only solution for it; Socialism. Scarlett and Sophie Rickard’s graphic novel of the iconic book is done with such love and care that I highly recommend it alongside the original. The artwork is beautiful and the story remains complete and cohesive, making its points excellently. Currently we are living through some extraordinary times... and yet the story remains as relevant as ever. Engagement with politics is always important and this book, this story, is the perfect first step in becoming politically educated. The Rickard sisters have done such a brilliant job with this. I can’t recommend enough. I read it in once sitting which is impressive considering the density of material and the heavy subject matter covered. The nuance and sensitivity of the original comes through despite the obvious casualties of adaptating such a long book. Definitely, definitely read this.
October 9, 2020
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists is quite a forbidding book - it's incredibly beloved, with a deeply loyal following many of whom have had their entire world outlook inexorably shifted by the novel, but it's also quite daunting because of that and how big it is. I wouldn't say I leapt at the chance of reading this adaptation simply because it would translate some of those ideas in a more direct manner, but honestly it didn't hurt. But what the Rickard sisters have achieved is far more than just an adaptation but a work of art in and of itself that can sit proudly next to the original as a book of great power.
I first saw their debut, Mann's Best Friend, online and thought some of the landscape in it looked very familiar - it turns out that they set this charming, lovely little book in a fantasy of several northern towns including bits of my home in Todmorden. So I was already somewhat biased towards what they did next but this is such a gargantuan step forward it really gives hope for chumps like me still trying to coalesce their own personal style. Because it really does take the humanity and intimacy of the debut and use it as a way into what must be a really difficult book to break down. That's mostly because a great deal of it is mainly dialogue and the expression of big ideas from character to character. Now it must be incredibly easy for this sort of thing to become unbearably didactic and preachy, but the Rickards know better than this and know that the book will be too much if it doesn't really nail the characters, which it absolutely does.
There are echoes in the art of a range of socialist artists and posters, especially of the kind that is held at the People's History Museum in Manchester, yet it never feels unduly owing too much to any of these reference points. And the art is at its best when it happily wheels through genres (the lectures of Barrington) and time (there's a beautifully subtle appearance at the inquest of a particularly awful politician at his historically worst), whilst also happily allowing these to be secondary to the narrative. There's a lovely physicality to all the characters which also means the dialogue stretches - of which there are many - are not too gloopy because the characters are always in motion in some way.
I think the real testament to the power of the book is trying to work out what the right wing version of this would be? And I don't mean in terms of blatant fascism, but what kind of book someone could read and overpoweringly feel that their politics lay to the right of the spectrum. The nearest I could think of is Ayn Rand, and apart from the witty and erudite work of Daryl Cunningham which is more a commentary on the worst instincts of this kind of writer, I think any adaptation would basically be lacking entirely any sense of humanity. Look at Steve Ditko's mad libertarian/ objectivist stuff with Mr A: it reads like an absurd take on a Jack Chick tract because it is hectoring and angry and lacking in any actual understanding of humanity, just like Chick and Rand themselves.
And that's where this book really strikes you already as a classic: because it's all about humanity and people and their needs and wants and desires. Even when Tressell is rightly angry and sometimes lapses into more blatant anger (Dr Weakling, Mr Crass, Mr Slyme - although it's interesting that these are all the middle men, not the actual fat cats, that he's most furious at), he and the Rickards never lose sight of the humanity of the people. Owen and Barrington could so easily be wish fulfilment characters, angry at the system and brilliantly articulate, but they're both very pointedly shown as vulnerable and human. For me the real beating heart of the book is Mr Philpot, who despite having lost his family, is shown as the real emotional centre of all the workers and whose ultimate fate is so awful because of this.
The book doesn't so much end as pause. There are endings, but not An Ending because there is never an ending for this story while a hundred years after Tressell having written it the powers that rule us treat the workers with contempt. The parallels between the world then and the world now are stark and obvious but don't need to be signposted because they're so bloody ingrained in every part of our society. There's a throwaway moment where a Tory politician promises an end to struggle by "the end of the century" and one of the crowd says "I've been waiting all my life for better conditions so a few more years won't make much difference" and it makes you so angry and sad because this really is still what we're being promised. Austerity is exactly the crap the Mugsborough Corporation pull on their workers. Nothing has changed and that's desperately sad. But one day, if enough people are moved like the Rickards have been by Tressell's story we can finally do something about that. A truly great book
I first saw their debut, Mann's Best Friend, online and thought some of the landscape in it looked very familiar - it turns out that they set this charming, lovely little book in a fantasy of several northern towns including bits of my home in Todmorden. So I was already somewhat biased towards what they did next but this is such a gargantuan step forward it really gives hope for chumps like me still trying to coalesce their own personal style. Because it really does take the humanity and intimacy of the debut and use it as a way into what must be a really difficult book to break down. That's mostly because a great deal of it is mainly dialogue and the expression of big ideas from character to character. Now it must be incredibly easy for this sort of thing to become unbearably didactic and preachy, but the Rickards know better than this and know that the book will be too much if it doesn't really nail the characters, which it absolutely does.
There are echoes in the art of a range of socialist artists and posters, especially of the kind that is held at the People's History Museum in Manchester, yet it never feels unduly owing too much to any of these reference points. And the art is at its best when it happily wheels through genres (the lectures of Barrington) and time (there's a beautifully subtle appearance at the inquest of a particularly awful politician at his historically worst), whilst also happily allowing these to be secondary to the narrative. There's a lovely physicality to all the characters which also means the dialogue stretches - of which there are many - are not too gloopy because the characters are always in motion in some way.
I think the real testament to the power of the book is trying to work out what the right wing version of this would be? And I don't mean in terms of blatant fascism, but what kind of book someone could read and overpoweringly feel that their politics lay to the right of the spectrum. The nearest I could think of is Ayn Rand, and apart from the witty and erudite work of Daryl Cunningham which is more a commentary on the worst instincts of this kind of writer, I think any adaptation would basically be lacking entirely any sense of humanity. Look at Steve Ditko's mad libertarian/ objectivist stuff with Mr A: it reads like an absurd take on a Jack Chick tract because it is hectoring and angry and lacking in any actual understanding of humanity, just like Chick and Rand themselves.
And that's where this book really strikes you already as a classic: because it's all about humanity and people and their needs and wants and desires. Even when Tressell is rightly angry and sometimes lapses into more blatant anger (Dr Weakling, Mr Crass, Mr Slyme - although it's interesting that these are all the middle men, not the actual fat cats, that he's most furious at), he and the Rickards never lose sight of the humanity of the people. Owen and Barrington could so easily be wish fulfilment characters, angry at the system and brilliantly articulate, but they're both very pointedly shown as vulnerable and human. For me the real beating heart of the book is Mr Philpot, who despite having lost his family, is shown as the real emotional centre of all the workers and whose ultimate fate is so awful because of this.
The book doesn't so much end as pause. There are endings, but not An Ending because there is never an ending for this story while a hundred years after Tressell having written it the powers that rule us treat the workers with contempt. The parallels between the world then and the world now are stark and obvious but don't need to be signposted because they're so bloody ingrained in every part of our society. There's a throwaway moment where a Tory politician promises an end to struggle by "the end of the century" and one of the crowd says "I've been waiting all my life for better conditions so a few more years won't make much difference" and it makes you so angry and sad because this really is still what we're being promised. Austerity is exactly the crap the Mugsborough Corporation pull on their workers. Nothing has changed and that's desperately sad. But one day, if enough people are moved like the Rickards have been by Tressell's story we can finally do something about that. A truly great book
May 3, 2021
Tressel's ground-breaking posthumously published novel is given the adaptation it deserves in this beautifully illustrated graphic novel; the key themes are explained in accessible form, the human tragedies are sensitively handled whilst still packing a punch, and the elements combine to make this a great introductoion to anyone wanting to know more about socialist theory. Sadly there are also reflections on what little has changed in the more than a century since the book's publication, but the main intention of the story, on why and how a better world is not just possible but needed, remains intact.
December 31, 2021
I really enjoyed reading this novel years ago and I absolutely loved this GORGEOUS graphic novel. Definitely one to keep and treasure.
January 3, 2024
Great graphic novel tribute to *the* socialist novel
December 30, 2020
A good introduction to socialism but often feels outdated, lacks any depth in most characters and is just boring mostly. It also fails to make the case for it to be a graphic novel, often failing to use the visual medium to add anything to the story itself. I keep willing it to be more playful, why not have it updated to a modern setting, why not play around with the layout use more striking imagery. It's a very moralistic novel it will appeal to people that already agree to socialist principles and not win many people over. It's like you are being ranted at by a guy at an activist meeting and for all my leftie ranting myself I realise it's not exactly the way I or anyone else likes being talked to.
August 5, 2022
i expected this to be so much heavier than it was, the points tressells brings up are just as relevant now as they were when he wrote it over 100 years ago. this adaptation i would automatically recommend to anyone- it’s beautiful.
April 7, 2021
Like any good leftie, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists has been on my bookshelves since my teenage years, and like most people who read it, found it help clarify my thinking as well as inspiring my politics. It is of course very depressing that the central themes are still relevant and directly transferrable today, and the results of the 2019 UK general election as well as the content of newspaper letters pages, Facebook posts or Tweets show that the general public are still aptly represented by Owen's exasperating workmates.
This is a great, and well overdue version done as a comic book (or graphic novel or whatever folk want to call it). The illustrations are clever and beautiful, and more accessible than a text-only offering. I was able to reacquaint myself with it very quickly and didn't feel I had missed out a lot by not revisiting the original, which has been sitting on my shelf long overdue a re-read. I really recommend this as a good primer as to how we got to where we are today, and hopefully inspire people to think again about the society we now live in and how we really can't afford for things to still be the same in another 120 years from now.
This is a great, and well overdue version done as a comic book (or graphic novel or whatever folk want to call it). The illustrations are clever and beautiful, and more accessible than a text-only offering. I was able to reacquaint myself with it very quickly and didn't feel I had missed out a lot by not revisiting the original, which has been sitting on my shelf long overdue a re-read. I really recommend this as a good primer as to how we got to where we are today, and hopefully inspire people to think again about the society we now live in and how we really can't afford for things to still be the same in another 120 years from now.
August 5, 2023
Imagine a late Victorian novel about working-class people written from a socialist perspective in the style of Charles Dickens. You will have a copy of Robert Tressell’s The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists.
Set in the fictitious town of Mugsborough, based on Hastings, where Tressell lived and worked as a sign writer and decorator. Hastings is also our adoptive hometown on the south coast in East Sussex, England. Sadly, our copy of The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists disappeared in our moves between Hastings and the USA.
The story of the novel’s publication is a tale of courage and tenacity. Tressell (a pen name) died a pauper before it was published. His life and his ideas live on in the novel. He is not forgotten in Hastings (e.g., Robert Tressell Close). Periodically there are events celebrating his life and work. A walking tour took us to the streets where he lived and worked and featured in the novel. We watched a stage production with actors wallpapering the set as they argued about socialism. Recently, sisters Scarlett and Sophie Rickard gave a presentation at the Hastings Museum and Art Gallery about their interpretation of The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists.
The Rickards were fascinating speakers and spoke enthusiastically about their adaptation of the 700-page novel into a 300-plus-page graphic novel. One sister focused on its adaptation, while the other brought it to life by working on an iPad. The original is not considered great literature; however, how many novels can you name with a chapter called The Money Trick that explains how capitalism exploits workers?
The Rickards said they receive positive feedback, particularly from young and old readers who find the style and length of the original intimidating. A graphic novel faithfully and lovingly produced is much easier to read and understand Tressell’s compassion and convictions.
Rickards' second graphic novel is an adaptation of Constance Maud's 1911 book No Surrender about the fight for the right of women to vote. It is waiting for me to read it in a pile of books by my bedside.
Set in the fictitious town of Mugsborough, based on Hastings, where Tressell lived and worked as a sign writer and decorator. Hastings is also our adoptive hometown on the south coast in East Sussex, England. Sadly, our copy of The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists disappeared in our moves between Hastings and the USA.
The story of the novel’s publication is a tale of courage and tenacity. Tressell (a pen name) died a pauper before it was published. His life and his ideas live on in the novel. He is not forgotten in Hastings (e.g., Robert Tressell Close). Periodically there are events celebrating his life and work. A walking tour took us to the streets where he lived and worked and featured in the novel. We watched a stage production with actors wallpapering the set as they argued about socialism. Recently, sisters Scarlett and Sophie Rickard gave a presentation at the Hastings Museum and Art Gallery about their interpretation of The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists.
The Rickards were fascinating speakers and spoke enthusiastically about their adaptation of the 700-page novel into a 300-plus-page graphic novel. One sister focused on its adaptation, while the other brought it to life by working on an iPad. The original is not considered great literature; however, how many novels can you name with a chapter called The Money Trick that explains how capitalism exploits workers?
The Rickards said they receive positive feedback, particularly from young and old readers who find the style and length of the original intimidating. A graphic novel faithfully and lovingly produced is much easier to read and understand Tressell’s compassion and convictions.
Rickards' second graphic novel is an adaptation of Constance Maud's 1911 book No Surrender about the fight for the right of women to vote. It is waiting for me to read it in a pile of books by my bedside.
August 19, 2021
A very beautiful, engaging and easy to read graphic novel. It also gives a nicely accessible bit of social history and a clear illustration (literally :) ) of some key principles of socialist thought. Really a great introduction to the basics if you don't have time to read Capital, or even the original Tressell novel. One character asks 'Why are we poor?' and another character explains it - educational! (Spoiler alert: because of capitalism).
The story and politics are very rooted in a specific white male working class context of the time as I guess the original novel is, but the contemporary relevance will also make you flinch - blaming of 'foreigners' for widespread poverty, exploitation, unstable work, private sector bosses foisting their losses off on the state and making off with all the dosh... oof. This adaptation definitely gave me a sense of why the original novel might have had such an impact and been such a formative socialist book for many people.
The story and politics are very rooted in a specific white male working class context of the time as I guess the original novel is, but the contemporary relevance will also make you flinch - blaming of 'foreigners' for widespread poverty, exploitation, unstable work, private sector bosses foisting their losses off on the state and making off with all the dosh... oof. This adaptation definitely gave me a sense of why the original novel might have had such an impact and been such a formative socialist book for many people.
June 20, 2023
What a brilliant interpretation! We follow a group of trade painters as they work to alleviate poverty for their families and along the way learn of the socialist thinking floating around at the time. We also meet the foremen and their bosses with such biting names as "Mr. Grinder", "Mr. Didlum" and so on. Socialism is explained very well through conversations at lunch where the guys all chat and argue. We learn from speeches given but most importantly we learn about the downside of capitalism and how, not only the rich get richer but how the poor feel they don't deserve to avoid poverty and do nothing except scrounge for work - which makes the rich richer and them more dependant!
The drawings are beautifully clean (almost 'clair ligne' like Tintin, the choice of using banners for chapter headings was inspired, and each character easy to distinguish.
A big read, a hard read - in terms of concepts but also a fantastic read!
The drawings are beautifully clean (almost 'clair ligne' like Tintin, the choice of using banners for chapter headings was inspired, and each character easy to distinguish.
A big read, a hard read - in terms of concepts but also a fantastic read!
October 3, 2022
This felt like the diametric opposite of Atlas Shrugged, which is to say that it's a treatise on socialism disguised as a novel. It at first goes into the evils of Edwardian era capitalism, later going on to exactly what socialism and how it would ideally work. This graphic adaptation presents a decent amount of theory in an easy to digest format. I would absolutely recommend this to someone who isn't familiar with socialism and is curious to find out, without having to slog through something like Das Kapital.
October 14, 2020
I loved this. Like a lot of people I started the original a couple of times but, although it was interesting, I found it heavy going and couldn't get past the first 50 or so pages. What the Rickard sisters have achieved is to distill some complex ideas into an accessible form through the power of the writing and the amazing artwork. Given the current economic situation I'd highly recommend this to anyone who is questioning the status quo.
May 11, 2024
It's interesting how little has changed, like the people at the top dividing the 99% against each other with poltical parties that feign opposition while agreeing on maintaining welfare for the rich. I can believe that this beautiful graphic novel is more accessible than the book it was based on, but I have a hard time imagining this as either necessary or sufficient for convincing Americans about the problems with crony capitalism.
June 23, 2021
A colorful adaptation of a book I probably would never have read otherwise. Don't know how well its polemic force compares to the novel, but neither the story nor the characters were very interesting, and it made for unconvincing proselytizing.
Maybe I don't understand Marxism, but are skilled tradesmen really the target for revolutionary agitation? Weren't half these guys in the Masons anyway?
Maybe I don't understand Marxism, but are skilled tradesmen really the target for revolutionary agitation? Weren't half these guys in the Masons anyway?
September 5, 2022
Easy to read graphic version of Robert Tressell's famous socialist novel. I've always put off reading the original - it looked daunting but this nade it accessible. I'm grateful to the Ruckard sisters. The book consists of one young worker's attempt to arouse the consciousness of his fellow workers about the abysmal plight of the working man. We've come a long way since those dark days.
February 22, 2023
Finding out who Barrington really is leaves the rich saviour sour taste in my mouth as always.
Aside from that the study of human frailty and fear, especially when you’re living daily on the edge is a good one.
But of course now I need to read the actual book and hope it’s not quite such a sugar coated ending.
Aside from that the study of human frailty and fear, especially when you’re living daily on the edge is a good one.
But of course now I need to read the actual book and hope it’s not quite such a sugar coated ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 3, 2020
I quite enjoyed this, but found it hard to follow (my ability to tell people apart by their faces is marginal). It's preachy in places, predictable in many, but it's beautiful and I finished it -- which is more than I can say for the text version.
May 31, 2021
Scarlett and Sophie Rickard’s book is a triumph. Through hard work and extraordinary talent they have made this important story more accessible and created a graphic novel that is the most complete I have ever seen. Their book is a work of art and I feel very lucky to have read it.
June 18, 2021
Beautiful graphic novel adaption of the classic socialist novel.
Just as relevant today as ever.
Inspiring hope for the future but so depressing that so many working class people remain so ignorant.
A very accessible format.
Just as relevant today as ever.
Inspiring hope for the future but so depressing that so many working class people remain so ignorant.
A very accessible format.
November 5, 2020
I've not read the original, so I can't comment on this as an adaptation, but as it's own thing, I found the story very engaging, and a good way of understanding socialist ideas.
December 12, 2020
A beautifully executed graphic adaptation of Robert Tressel's classic novel. Making socialism accessible.
February 11, 2021
Very inspirational as a guide to activism. Fight the good fight, y'all.
February 19, 2021
Brilliant. The art and the writing.
June 24, 2021
Absolute classic. Retold and illustrated beautifully by the extremely talented Rickard sisters. I would urge anyone with even a passing interest in politics to read this book.
September 26, 2021
An absolute ‘must read.’
March 26, 2022
Absolutely vital.
August 9, 2022
¡Viva la revolución!✊🏼
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