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The George Orwell who wrote Coming Up for Air seems a bit different from the one who penned 1984 and Animal Farm. In this book, we see an Orwell who can be humorous, lighthearted, and self - amusing, rather than the grim, world - weary intellectual we imagine when reading 1984. This novel tells a simple story: a middle-aged, overweight man named George Bowling, tired of his monotonous insurance sales job and boring married life, reminisces about his early life in his hometown and embarks on a nostalgic journey back to his hometown after 20 years away.

I particularly enjoyed the second part of the book where Bowling reminisces about his early life. This enjoyment is largely due to the fact that I read about a completely different childhood, one that belonged entirely to the countryside, a childhood belonging to a time before cities and many industries had developed. In this part, you can see how Bowling meticulously lists various types of hedgerow berries and when they should be eaten; you can also see how he introduces his favorite sport - fishing, and how he explains in detail various fishing tools, fishing techniques, and bait combinations, and narrates his fishing experiences in different ponds. These details are described so vividly that you can easily visualize various scenes, as if you were experiencing his childhood with Bowling.

Nostalgia is a theme that has been continuously expressed by many writers, but few have done it as genuinely and honestly as Orwell does in Coming Up for Air. Through Bowling, Orwell says that the past was not necessarily better than the present, and in terms of living conditions, the past was certainly incomparable to the present. Therefore, Bowling is not recalling the past with the hope of returning to it, like many nostalgic people. He is simply triggered by seeing a poster on the street. In his memories, the sanitary conditions at that time were extremely poor, and few families could afford a separate toilet. It was common for maggots to crawl in the dirty corners of houses, and Bowling even often went to other people's shops to catch "superior" maggots for bait. These are undoubtedly unbelievable things to think about now, but it is precisely these descriptions that enhance the book's sense of authenticity, setting it apart from works that infinitely beautify the past.

After following Bowling through his not-so-good-but-not-so-bad old days, we follow him on a whim - driven journey to his hometown of Binfield with 17 pounds won from horse racing. This nostalgic journey turns out to be a disappointing one. 20 years later, Binfield has become another typical British industrial town, and almost all the people and places that Bowling's childhood memories were attached to have disappea as deep pond where he used to fish has become a landfill for a so - called nature - friendly community. Orwell’s treatment of the disillusionment of this nostalgic journey may be telling us why we are nostalgic. Bowling originally thought that this trip would allow him to "come up for air" from his current life and work, but he returned disappointed, only to discover that "that breath" had already been "exhaled" in his nostalgic memories. This nostalgic sentiment is precisely where Bowling places all his fantasies about another life, to support him in returning to his "underwater" life.

Orwell’s initial intention in writing this book was probably to reflect the widespread fear of war at that time (the story's background and writing time were both before World War II) and the disillusionment with development. Such a theme is not only not outdated today, but also has a new meaning when I read it today. As I said earlier, what attracted me most about this book was his description of childhood, and the reason for this attraction is precisely because I lack such memories. In today's rapidly developing cities, how many of us will be able to recall such a vivid and interesting childhood like Bowling's? A more pessimistic prediction is that we will not have such memories that contrast sharply with our current lives, because we grew up in cities and will continue to live in cities. Of course, this argument denies the fact that society is still constantly developing, and even cities are constantly changing. However, this change brings a sense of uncertainty, because we don't know whether this change is good or bad, we only know that it is changing. This uncertainty and even pessimism about the future enveloped people in his time and also envelops us today. This seems to be a sadness that humanity can never escape, because we can never be certain about the future. In comparison, we tend to recall the past that is already certain, even the most trivial old things, after being washed by time, seem to have a different kind of luster, worth savoring.

So why are we nostalgic? Because we need to get a sense of stability from this fast-paced world.

3.8 / 4 stars

My other review of Orwell's Work:
Animal Farm
1984
The Road to Wigan Pier
Down and Out in Paris and London
Why I Write
Coming up for Air