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The creator's greatest tie to the world is the fact that he will not (ital) surrender the world to the parasites. He realizes that it is his proper function to shape the world to his wishes. And he struggles to do it no matter what obstacles the parasites put in his way. But by tolerating them or compromising by accepting their terms, he succeeds only in creating their (ital) world -- or in keeping it going.

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Como todo el trabajo de Rand este libro no tiene desperdicio. Es fantástico poder ver cómo estructuraba su escritura, cómo pensaba, como organizaba sus ideas. Es asombrosa su lucidez, su claridad mental. Un libro indispensable para los que quieran saber más de Rand, así como para quienes aman la literatura y están interesados en los procesos creativos.

Tremendous insights! More raw and unvarnished thinking from Ayn Rand. Her journal entries present a personality that is consistent with her published work, but it's so interesting to see her raw and candid thoughts. I especially appreciate her notes on characters and ideas that she goes on to develop in her fiction (notably Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.

A book which has consumed a year of my life. I feel like I have internalized the AR philosophy. Impressed by her original thinking , conviction and the detailed world and philosophy she set up for her every book. Truly a fountainhead.

Very interesting...picked this up for an essay I had to write on Anthem and ended up loving it and reading most of the essays. Shows lots of Rand's ideas about her philosophy of objectivism and such. Overall a nice book for any Rand fan.

Lot of amazing passages and nice clarity of thought for a woman who did not learn English no earlier than her early tees.

Perhaps one of the most wickedly brilliant lines was when she observed how, while capitalism encourages people to bring forth their best, socialism is a disease that encourages people to appear weak and needy.

Also offered a glimpse into the thought processes that went into her books. (Including some characters being eliminated as she ultimately felt some redundant.) Definitely one of those books that offers some daily insight if you were to only read a couple pages a day.

This book revealed a few things, but not much more than a thin outline of AR's plans for a final novel, *To Lorne Dieterling* and a few extra characters for *Atlas Shrugged.* There were notes on epistemology, and another book (between *Fountainhead* and *AS*) which would have been nonfiction. Doubtless she used some of this for later non-fiction. It did show how her mind worked to plan her novels, and in a way, shows how limited was her focus. She apparently had no notes for *Anthem* or the editor chose not to include them.

It may have taken me more than 3 years to get through, but I thoroughly enjoyed The Journals of Ayn Rand. It was fascinating to see her thought develop over decades—and to trace all the effort she put into researching and writing her books.

the book is pretty much unique!!

What a treat to read. Some stunning and refreshing passages.

It is a peculiar thing to read the journals of any person, journals that were never meant for publishing. The Journals of Ayn Rand may be even more interesting than most because we get a deeper insight into the development of her philosophy and her fiction writing. There are a few almost complete text here too that I was glad to finally read. I have this feeling that there are things omitted here that would have been of value - for instance, her notes on the break with Branden - but maybe those are not parts of her journals. I'm fascinated by this unfinished Rand because it gives us insight into the workings of a very fine mind. It is an achievement to get through, but the mix of fiction and then nonfiction gives the reader to change the pacing and the strain on the mind while reading.

An insight into one of the most powerful writers involved with the blacklisting of Hollywood. Rand made baseless accusations against people she never met and attempts to explain her reasons in her journals and letters. Her continued power over the American economy and politics is tied to her objectivist philosophy, the cult-like following she created for herself, and the incredible power that she gained over our culture by acting to paralyze it. As a Soviet immigrant, novelist and Hollywood script writer, Rand's resume does not prepare one for the problematic view she had on the world or her vindictive nature. This book also includes some references to her testimony for the House Un-American Committee.