On one level, Night of January 16th by Ayn Rand  is a totally gripping drama about the rise and destruction of a brilliant and ruthless man. On a deeper level, it is a superb dramatic objectification of Ayn Rand’s vision of human strength and weakness. Since its original Broadway success, it has achieved vast worldwide popularity and acclaim. Now at last this important work is available for the first time in a trade paperback edition.

Readers Review:
This is one of Rand’s earlier published works, and it shows. Her characters are bubbling with life and she doesn’t feel the need to preach constantly. It is a success in many ways. Rand, firstly, is a good writer: I felt myself glued to the page, finding myself unable to put the book down. That only happens very rarely. I can only imagine how engaging it would be on stage with a competent production and decent actors. Rand, secondly, is a decent dramatist. The second act, in particular, ends with a real bang. Thirdly, Rand largely succeeds in developing engaging and distinct personalities.

Now to the faults! Firstly, the courtroom procedural is all wrong. I tend to get irritated when a writer does not do her research and depicts a courtroom setting like an amateur. Secondly, her ‘heroes’ seem like extremely unpleasant people. This seems to be during the stage when Rand was more enamored with Nietzsche than Aristotle (or Kant, however much she might want to deny it). As with many of her other characters, the people here are so stuck up that they make life harder for themselves than it really needs to be. Thirdly, the drama can quickly become melodrama. It alternates between being captivating and droll.

Is it Rand’s best work? No. It has its faults. But if you’re new to Ayn Rand, this is a great introduction (because one usually either loves Ayn Rand or one hates Ayn Rand; there aren’t too many people who fall in-between. Why dive into one of her 700-1100 page novels when you don’t really know what you’re getting into?). And if you’re already a Rand fan, I don’t need to tell you to read this. Good read. Recommended.