"Who is John Galt?" is the immortal question posed at the beginning of Ayn Rand's masterpiece. The answer is the astonishing story of a man who said he would stop the motor of the world-and did. As passionate as it is profound, "Atlas Shrugged" is one of the most influential novels of our time. In it, Rand dramatizes the main tenets of Objectivism, her philosophy of rational selfishness. She explores the ramifications of her radical thinking in a world that penalizes human intelligence and integrity. Part mystery, part thriller, part philosophical inquiry, part volatile love affair, "Atlas Shrugged" is the book that confirmed Ayn Rand as one of the most popular novelist and most respected thinkers of the 20th century.

作者介绍

安•兰德（1905—1982），俄裔美国作家、哲学家。青年时代从苏联流亡美国，以其小说和哲学闻名于世。小说《源泉》（The Fountainhead）1943年出版后立即成为畅销书，并为她赢得了巨大的声誉，该书至今仍以每年超过10万册的数量再版。1957年《耸肩的阿特拉斯》（Atlas Shrugged）出版，成为美国历史上仅次于《圣经》的超级畅销书，被誉为对美国影响最大的10本书之一，累计销售超过8000万册。

安•兰德推崇理性，认为人的最高美德便是理性；她不顾传统舆论的偏见，力倡个人主义，认为不能使个人利益得到最大伸张的社会，就不是理想社会。她的客观主义哲学自20世纪50年代起风靡美国校园，影响了几代美国人，她本人也成为美国青年崇拜的偶像。安•兰德一生著述百余种，根据她的生平拍摄的记录片和故事片曾获奥斯卡奖。1982年安•兰德去世后，美国创立了许多兰德书友会和专门研究安•兰德思想的机构。