"George Orwell wrote the following letter to his publisher, Frederic Warburg, in 1948. At the time, he was valiantly attempting to finish the first draft of his latest novel whilst "under the influence of" tuberculosis, and was still undecided as to the book's title. Sadly, that book — the incredible Nineteen Eighty-Four, published in June the next year — would be his last, as Orwell passed away in January of 1950. It has since become one of the most successful and influential pieces of literature of all time"