Burning Down George Orwell's House

March 2, 2015
Ray Welter has had enough—enough of his job in advertising (main by-products: more SUVs sold, more harm to the climate, more money, more damage to Ray’s soul), of Chicago and his failing marriage, of grieving for his father. What he hasn’t had enough of is scotch or George Orwell, whose testimony to the power of language, 1984, is partly why Ray ended up writing ads. The two intersect on the isolated Scottish Island of Jura, where Ray rents the house Orwell once stayed in. Jura’s no idyll: it rains constantly, dead animals keep turning up on Ray’s doorstep, and there’s talk of a werewolf. The few locals are strange, hostile, and possibly violent, but the scotch is astonishingly good. The best thing on the island (and in the book) is 17-year-old Molly, who wants off Jura and away from her angry, xenophobic father, but her stay with Ray ends up being a useful time out rather than a real life change—rather like Ray’s entire sojourn in Scotland. Ervin excels at atmosphere and fish-out-of-water interactions.