We The Living (Ayn Rand, 1936)

An early novel by Rand - published when she was 30. She describes it as semi-autobiographical. She grew up in Russia in the early days of Communism - and had what now seems like a pretty good take on the system even though both she and the Communist state were quite young.

The theme is the individual being overwhelmed by the collective. Along the way, shows the hypocrisy of the too-often venal Party leaders (who live well while the population stands in lines, lacks food, is shipped to Siberia at a faster rate than under the czar, forced to attend classes - the whole "party line" thing).

The protagonist is Kira; she interacts primarily with Leo (who wasn't a compelling character, not sure why Kira fell for this guy) and Andrei (joined the Party in the early going and is disillusioned as things develop). Plenty of other characters are developed. Sasha and Iruna scene on the train is extremely effective (and sad).

Not great, but a good read. I continue to have the same outlook on Rand - politically incorrect, oversimplifies, but plenty of things definitely worth thinking about.