In this caustic, fast-paced novel about the waning days of British imperialism, George Orwell draws on his years of experience in India, the country of his birth. The story focuses on a handful of Englishmen living in a small settlement in Upper Burma. They congregate in the European Club, drinking whiskey and arguing over an impending order to admit a token Asian.

One of the men, James Flory, sees the futility of the white man’s rule but lacks the strength to speak out, to defend his Indian friend Dr. Veraswami, or to win the newly arrived English girl he has fallen for. A corrupt native politician, whose chief ambition is to become a member of the club, cunningly exploits a tense situation to bring about a series of tragic events.