Although somewhat dry at times as there is not much excitement in the way of a plot, this book really makes you think about society, particularly western society. The people of pala have adapted to a much different society and makes one wonder if their methods could be implemented in other cultures. I especially found their views of education interesting ( )

En una isla imaginaria de Pali se produce el choque entre dos modos de entender la vida y las relaciones humanas. Cuando el periodista Will Farnaby desembarca en la isla entra en contacto con unas costumbres, unos ritos, una religión y una actitud ante la vida. De este contraste se deriva fácilmente una reflexión sobre los valores que encarna Farnaby, los propios del mundo occidental, y que los cuestione.

I've only read two of Aldous Huxley's books so far:
* Brave New World, obviously.
* Brave New World Revisited, particularly to find out what the man had to say about some of the themes used in that book.

Both books also attracted my attention because of the times we've been living in, this last decade, or rather since the turn of the century.

A few months ago, I saw on BBC Archives' Facebook page a video clip, shot in 1961, of Aldous Huxley telling about the relation between man and technology, and how technology would more and more influence the lives of people, be it in a dystopian or utopian manner. In that video, Mr Huxley mentioned a novel - without giving away the title, 'Island' - he had written about a utopian society, as opposed to that described in 'Brave New World'.

A few weeks ago, I found a copy of 'Island', apparently his last novel. You could, though some readers say it is not, consider this the opposite of the society described in 'Brave New World'. Drugs used to get in a higher state of mind, people working together and looking after each other, a protected society that doesn't leave room for external interference (like industrialism, investors, modern transportation, ... in short, the Western/American way of life). The whole construction revolves around peace, equality, harmony (with nature), solidarity. Of course, not everyone wants to follow that path, are rather convinced of other ways of believing and being more focused on short term gains and riches.

The story is set on the island of Pala, somewhere in the Indonesian archipelago. As I read in another review: The story isn't much, and most likely wasn't the focal point or main reason for this book. The characters and events aren't developed enough, I found, they only serve to present the themes, ideas, in a more accessible way or context. This could have been a non-fiction book, but sometimes a fictional context creates a more accessible gateway. So yes, characters whose roles were only briefly mentioned (take note if you need to know who's who again...), the setting a bit hard to imagine. Even if there were descriptions, Huxley wasn't like other SF-writers in that regard.

'Island' doesn't only contain a good contrast between Hindu and Buddhist mythologies/philosophies, and Christian philosophies, but also various references to political figures like Hitler, Stalin, and others. Huxley used these people's political behaviour, decisions, views, and doings to indicate what the world looked like in the West as opposed to the one the main character, a European journalist, learnt about on Pala. A clash of cultures, indeed.

Again, the story itself isn't that bad - Mr Huxley, on the other hand, should have asked someone else to write the fictional parts (the political struggles, a potential invasion, ... someone like Guy Gavriel Kay would know how to handle it, I reckon, even if GGK was too young at the time) -, it's mainly the spiritual/philosophical themes of the society of Pala that make 'Island' worth reading, especially in our contemporary times (war in Ukraine, war in Gaza, ...). As Andreas Matthias confirms in his article: "Huxley is often less interested in the plot and the character development of his protagonists, and more in the philosophical ideas that fill his books."

More info:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_(Huxley_novel)
https://www.huxley.net/island/ (The Influences of Eastern Philosophies in Aldous Huxley's Island) (contains links to the PDF- and HTML-versions of 'Island') ( )

This was my first experience reading Huxley. After hearing so much about Brave New World, I came across this work of his and, based on the synopsis, thought it would be a very interesting read. Unfortunately, I did not find it interesting at all.

I was expecting a story about a secluded island utopia that, quite naturally, would under assault from the outside world. There was actually very little story here. The book was primarily a series of conversations and discussions of a sociological/political/philosophical nature. The story of the island and the plot to take over it over stood as an example of how the sins of humanity will not allow an ideal society to flourish. But for me, the story got lost amongst the dull soliloquies that Huxley used to make his points about both an ideal society and the flaws of the real world. ( )

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