Orwell-s classic dystopian nightmare is lent new life in this atmospheric graphic adaptation by Brazilian artist Nesti. In Orwell-s bleak totalitarian world engaged in perpetual war, Big Brother is always watching (ever-present in the comic-s setting via ubiquitous ominous signs posted), and Thought Police stand guard to mete out brutal justice for thoughtcrimes. Hero Winston Smith, drawn as a drab everyman, is both gifted and cursed with pre-dictatorship memories, and reflects that -even the outline of your own life lost its sharpness.- When he enters into a forbidden love affair with Julia, a fellow apostate, together they join a secret revolutionary group called The Brotherhood. While this adaption is rather text-heavy-perhaps necessarily so to fully impart Orwell-s complex ideas-Nesti-s accessible gray and orange drawings provide balance and light, giving Orwell-s oppressive vision a lyrical touch. His artistic style also lends a Depression-era vibe, one that would have read as retro even in 1949, when the novel was originally published. This artful reinterpretation reminds how Orwell-s warnings of the dangers of authoritarianism have remained frighteningly timeless. Agent: Bill Hamilton, A.M. Heath. (Aug.)