Anthem by Ayn Rand

Anthem is set in a distant collectivist future, when every form and emblem of individualism have been erased and society has reverted to a preindustrial level. In this novella, as many of her writings, Ayn dramatizes her philosophy of Objectivism in the main character. Its hero is a scientist in a world where the pursuit of knowledge is a crime, and he struggles against the established society to discover the meaning of individual freedom.

Ayn Rand, novelist and philosopher, was born in St. Petersburg Russia. From her earliest years, she felt alienated from the dark, brooding atmosphere of Russia, but loved the bright world projected in foreign magazine stories. At age nine she made the conscious decision to become a writer.