Gary Shteyngart is a fan of George Orwell, but his new Super Sad True Love Story, a dystopian novel inspired by l984, isn't all that Orwellian a book.
Why?
Because, for all Orwell's greatness, Shteyngart is a much more amusing writer.
But the book does have a couple of surreal and ominously Orwellian moments. The most memorable comes out of the fact that the armed force overtaking American society, the "American Restoration Authority," won't allow anyone to recognize its takeover. It's officially invisible. When the ARA sets up a checkpoint, with the inevitable sandbags, barbed wire, and men armed with machine guns, a large sign is posted:
IT IS FORBIDDEN TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE EXISTENCE OF THIS CHECKPOINT ("THE OBJECT"). BY READING THIS SIGN YOU HAVE DENIED EXISTENCE OF THE OBJECT AND IMPLIED CONSENT.
Now that's creepy.
Kit Stolz 
I believe they are called NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) in our dystopian present and their ubiquity is definitely creepy. I both laugh and shudder every time I sign one.
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