Animals in Suits

by Timur Raad

Here to file a complaint? Management or HR, eh? A fellow employee you say…oh, you meant you don’t like the work assigned? Listen, that’s some bad luck there my friend.

Step into my office…well, not my actual office, grab this seat and pull up next to me—whose ‘me’, oh, I thought we’d met? I’m just another drone, employee, worker bee (no disrespect to those beautiful and productive creatures). I can help.

Read this, be careful, and spread the word!

" Animals in Suits is a satirical portrait of life in the Corporate Age—at once a searing indictment of corporate politics and a beautiful, elegant…"

No, no, no one gets seared, please just read.

"and hopeful exploration of the resilience and the power of books, it offers a comic and tragic vision of future life…"

No one can predict the future, okay, forget it…ah now you want to finish it?

"A corporation in the not so distant future. A revolving cast of characters avian, reptilian and mammalian amongst others. Mind numbing daily routine. What is the purpose and meaning of work? And conversely of life? And finally, the answer to the eternal question—do you want the free mug or shirt?"

210 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2019

Reviews

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/10 JENNY RECOMMENDS READING Animals in Suits!

Animal in Suits by Timur Raad is a satirical dystopian novel whose themes center on corporatism, materialism, technological control, exploitation, and corruption.

(SPOILER ALERT! Spoilers below! Read the book first, if you mind spoilers.)

Animals in Suits starts off with an honest dog named Jake. (Animals in Suits incorporates anthropomorphism, meaning that the diverse cast of animals would represent different humans in the real world.) Jake is a natural-born dog, which is unusual, because everyone else is artificially born in tubes in other factories. He is the last one.

From the get-go, we see the book’s theme of technological control. There are no family units. Animals are artificially born in separate factories from birthing tubes. (Later on, the management attempt to use A.I. to observe the workers, like Jake and his Octopus partner, in their tasks so that someday, they could replace Jake’s job with A.I.)

Once these animals are born, they are trained for the purpose of work, for the purpose of making profits for the corporation that they serve under. This is a dystopian, and a slavery system, however, the animals are constantly told that this system is much better than outright slavery; the animals are convinced that since they get to earn units (money,) from their work, that their lives are great, and that they should put up with it for their entire lives and continue working until the end.

This shows corporatism, in which the corporations claim ownership of these animals and make them work. There’s also the themes of materialism, in which there was an event Jake thinks about in his head, about how an animal was overworking as the best employee, getting paid in yellow umbrellas, until he finally dies in his home, alone and buried under the entire room of yellow umbrellas. It was a pitiful death, but no one cared or blinked, or worried that that would be them. They just kept working. That was an example of the materialism.

The boxes-on-tops (middle management, a.k.a. the bosses who supervise Jake and the other employees,) are openly trained by HR (Human Retirement) to exploit the employees and overwork them. Their goal isn’t to give the employees work solely for the purpose of getting the job done, their purpose is to over-exhaust and overexert the employees until they are essentially slaves and have no energy to think, or to protest. They punish protest, dissent, and any type of rejection, refusals, or individual thoughts. Cluster and the Tortoise box-on-top openly do this, so this shows the theme of exploitation and corruption. In the real world, this happens all the time in corporate settings. It has happened in the past, in America during the Civil Rights period, in which there was child labor, and factory workers were being paid below-living wages, a few cents a day. These factory workers formed unions and started strikes, until companies were forced to pay higher wages and policies and legislation was enacted to protect workers.

Here, in Animals in Suits, the boxes-on-tops actively sabotage these workers from unionizing, by incentivizing them to always spy on each other and report each other. This is similar to how, in the real world such as the U.S., company management employed labor spies to spy on their fellow employees, and report any employees participating in unions or planning on striking, or sabotaging them. In Animals in Suits, we see this happen in real time, in which Jake’s friend Billy, was betrayed by his “weak friend,” Joey. Joey reported Billy for dissenting thoughts and for sneaking outside of his home, (which was illegal.)

I was really relieved to see at the end, that Jake finally woke up to the corruption, and saw everything as is. Jake finally started openly dissenting. He talked back to Uniq-corn, he talked back to Cluster, and he finally left work and ran to the secret library. He self-educated himself on what the corrupt, corporate society did not teach him, and he learned about how everything from religion to God to society was corrupted by the current scoiety, and with his new knowledge, found freedom.

This book was incredible, deep, and worth reading in its entirety. There were many views, from the various animals, that made me stop and think of how I’ve seen this happen in real life. There was a scene in the book with Hassan how CEOs refused to let their kids use the materials (the technology) that the company created and mass-produced for children, because it messed with the kids’ brains and dopamine production levels. This is exactly what Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, and most Big Tech CEOs say about refusing to let their kids have technology or smartphones until they're adults. I learned so much from this book about keeping a distrustful eye on all corporations’ motivations; do not blindly trust them, they are not your friend and would gladly discard you (lay you off) like they did for the Tortoise.

Animals in Suits is worthy of being a best seller, for the modern day reader, and its knack in humanizing the animals, in personality and descriptions, made it a fun and relatable read. Many people have met people similar to these animals in real life.


(Dear Author if he notices this: Please do contact me at jyennnn@gmail.com if there are too many spoilers in this review and I will remove them!)

[Safiie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timur Raad’s book “Animals in Suits” is satirical novel that portrays and shows a dystopian society that responds with one of the important issues in a real-life society which is balancing life and work. These issues rise up because of the environment that pushes everyone to only pursue their career excellence without having anything else in their lives. However, in the book Timur showed workers not as regular people, instead there were animals who were pressured doing nothing else except work. Work plays one of the central roles in this novel. Animals in the novel represent workers, just like regular people, that know nothing but making money, and not just “doing good or bad” (Raad, 11). It is the most important thing from their opinion, and they are trying to persuade everyone that it is. Their purpose of life is to earn as much money as they could, and they cannot have or do anything that they want or love. That’s the life of capitalism. Unfortunately, the only fantastic thing in this book is that workers are animals instead of real people, everything else we can imagine of being a bitter truth. Regular people in real life can have the same amount of freedom as was in the book, they cannot even think of having their own life or doing something that they want. They cannot object, cannot make their own decisions. They can behave only as this demanding environment is structured, the same as Timur Raad described in the novel, with only exception that there were animals instead of people. These animals simply brainwashed. All these animals in the novel can think of is how to provide their family with their needs and how to not lose their job because without that they will not be able to survive. By being dipped and forced to work to provide their family, they do not even have time or any thoughts of their own personal happiness. They have been told that all their happiness can be to be better at their job and to work harder to make more and more money.
The main character in the book, Jake, is a wolf who understands all these unfair rules of life they live in, but the power is too strong and authorities and other people who stand above ordinary workers have their own rules and structures. He actually understands that something is missing, that all these workers have to have some of the happiness they deserve, the same as he is. He feels that there is no purpose of constant work without having any personal happiness outside of it. Everyone around him seems to be going with the flow and not realize that what they are doing actually is not giving them any happiness. All of them are simply pressured by the fact of not even thinking about what Jake thinks, because they may lose their jobs and not being able to be financially stable. Jake is feeling overwhelmed with not having even thought of personal happiness that is why he is losing strength and purpose in life. However, he wishes that everyone would recognize what he was thinking of too. I think the purpose of this book is to simply analyze for everyone their lives and think to themselves what they are doing and for what and to realize how important for any individual to have their own personal happiness and have the purpose of life. I believe the author may direct every reader in order to encourage everyone to choose their happiness over working simply for earning money in a corporate workplace. That is why everyone should read this book and understand for themselves what is actually important to them.

[Gabrielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals In Suits is an extremely persuasive and inspirational anthropomorphic satire, which exposes the evilness of corporations and the frightful impact that they have upon our lives. In some ways it parallels George Orwell’s 1984 and the horrific working conditions that existed prior to our government’s regulation of workers’ safety and health. Timur Raad masterfully, although sometimes repetitively tells the story from the point of view of animals, who in reality think and behave like human beings. He was striving to uncover the destructive nature that capitalism has on the relationship between work, personal identity and happiness. At the end of the day, all that the employers were concerned about were production and profit. “The only drive that mattered now was the drive to be productive, not to produce, but rather to persist through work. Was work a marathon or a race? Or was it a crawl? Who knew? Maybe both” (13). This in turn has led to a culture which has neglected the employees and their needs while focusing only on the corporations amassing wealth and power.

In a broader sense, Animals In Suits is a realistic foreshadowing of what we are soon going to experience if we continue to allow corporate culture to exploit and consume our lives and souls. We will be trapped, as were the main character Jake, a wolf and his fellow animals. They were unable to break free because of their fear of losing security. We too will no longer be able to bear any recognizable signs of individuality and creativity. Our lives will also be devoted solely to work, as were theirs’. Life will have virtually no meaning for us outside of the workplace, nor will our personal happiness be of any significance. Jake and his animal colleagues were confronted on a daily basis with loneliness, drudgery and the lack of any support from their emotionless supervisors. Jake was preoccupied with climbing the corporate ladder, but at the same time was constantly questioning the essence of corporate culture, its incompetence, exploitation, corruption and injustices.

Timur Raad has ingeniously challenged corporate culture and life. Just as we have seen how corporate conglomerates, such as Amazon are destroying small and medium size businesses. The quality of their employees' lives to a degree mirrors those of Jake and Billy’s. Animals In Suits is a wake up call for us. We must heed its warning before it’s too late for us to reclaim our beings, otherwise our future may look pretty bleak. The urgent message that Raad is trying to convey to us is that we need to readjust our lives and find an equilibrium between work and our personal lives, or else we will find our existence to be barren and purposeless. This point is brilliantly conveyed to us through Jake, who is ultimately on a quest to uncover the reality regarding life in the corporate world and to rediscover what life was like prior to the destruction of the individual, his freedom and creativity. It was Jake's friend Billy who triggered his curiosity to unfold the truth and redeem his soul and identity.

[Fei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is a satire of capitalism and the relationship between work and personal identity. The story takes place in a corporate and dystopian world where animals possess anthropomorphic characteristics and work in offices. Profit is God and everything is equipped to boost productivity. Society is governed by a few who try to maintain their monopolized power through exploiting laborers. Here, animals are strictly overseen by Box-On-Tops and trained to be “productive” workers who are blindly obedient to sophisticated rules that set up to sustain the system. Every day is monotonous to the point that animals are merely robots chasing after work without knowing their own values. In addition, freedom and dignity are deprived. They have to wear the mask of hypocrisy in the workplace, where they are posturing and forcibly keeping a good etiquette to avoid punishment. Many employees are going with the flow, brainwashed into believing that corporations are working for greater goods or even yielding to the corporations. It is an endless loop in which employees reproduce social inequality by consuming the products that corporations produce. It seems that corporations are trying to improve the qualities of life for all with the rigid system, but it is merely a justification for their domination over minority groups. The protagonist Jake, a stubborn wolf, has been through a lot of inner turmoil, where he is lingering between survival for work and personal happiness until he finally explodes when his friend, Billy is sent away. He realizes that the only thing that matters is to be himself again.

Raad provides a comprehensive portrayal of a corporate world by describing the daily life of animals, the working environment, the commands they have to obey and how various procedures are developed to support the corporations. I am able to picture those cruel scenes with vivid and detailed descriptions. They resonate with me deeply and I can feel the depression and suffering of people living under this circumstance. It is an inspirational book that I would recommend not only to those who are working in corporation but everyone. Raad argues that the meaning of life is not about pursing wealth or status, nor conforming to social norms, but is about being true to yourself and achieving infinite potentials. Although going against the fate will cost a huge price, if you turn a blind eye to known social issues and try to consolidate the system, you will always be a soulless zombie and a bound slave in prison.

[Shanni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raads’ satirical work of fiction “Animals in Suits” was an artistic approach of connecting the animals in the novel to everyday society in the workplace. In the corporate workplace, Jake, the protagonist of the novel, is “one of the many worker drones... created solely for the purpose not of doing good or being loved, but to make more money” (Raad 11). The individuals and employees in the corporate workplace are all used to serve for the assets of wealth. Raads’ novel goes on to discuss critiques of capitalism. I highly encourage all students, managers, and even prospective business owners to explore the ideas and thoughts expressed by Raad. This is because just as in the workplace today there are people in higher authorities than the employees, the novel explores the relationship between status and titles. “Managers feel no guilt, no shame, and no remorse in delegating all manner of work to the employee” (Raad 21). Authorities are considered high ranking compared to their inferior employees, which is characteristic of the conventional structure of the workplace.
In current society, many people struggle with work and personal happiness. The corporate workplace in which Jake was working at did not provide him with personal happiness. Jake was constantly being told “what was right and what was wrong” by the corporation (Raad 207). His freedom of choice was being limited as he was being forced to just listen to the corporations rules and commandments.At the end of the novel, Jake chooses to quit his job to find his true self. Leaving the corporate workplace allowed Jake to discover and to free himself from the ties of the workplace. Jake goes on to explain how he is “an animal first, in between and last... The nature of organic creatures is to attach worth and happiness and emotion to people and to events. Corporations take that nature and manipulate it” (Raad 204). I truly believe that this final note made by Jake is a realization that so many people in the current work environment must be made aware of. The final line essentially sums the overall message communicated by Raad, whereby he encourages his readers to enlighten themselves on the complex interaction of work, personal happiness, and self. The read is highly enjoyable, and the metaphorical comparison of animals to human beings in the workplace will be interesting and highly relatable amongst us all. I hope that this review has inspired you to pick up this book and read!

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Timur Raad’s Animals in Suits displays an intriguing, yet poignant satirical illustration of how contemporary society falls under the concentration of wealth and power. Throughout the novella, the reader follows the story of Jake, a wolf, who struggles to achieve self-fulfillment as he navigates through a tyrannical collectivist institution. The author stylistically chooses an anthropomorphic representation to connote their behaviour to humans, representing our submissiveness and replaceability--a part of the working class. The protagonist questions the fundamental and moral principles of how privatized bodies of power can exploit the masses. Thus, this sets the foundation for the novel.

Through such a corporatized structure, there is a hierarchy. And the offices’ social hierarchy is what Jake adheres to. He is dependent on the privileged and powerful sectors. Thus, the readers visualize this as a direct representation of the real world. Corporations have become the bedrock in sustaining society. Furthermore, those higher on the corporate ladder are referred to as the “Box-on-Tops,” closely observing each employer “in the octopus-like organizational chart of command…[it] always seemed to have the same effect of being swallowed by some ancient beast (p.1).” {Spoiler} As the story progresses, Jake gradually becomes self-aware of his environment, leading to an eventual paradigm shift.

The animals, like us, work as mindless slaves in cubicle farms, performing tasks with no long-term meaning towards societal contribution. Altogether, Raad wants to fundamentally change the reader’s perspective and incite a shift in awareness towards the red flags of such totalitarian institutions.

Conclusively, Timur Raad's satirical representation of corporate life and its destructive principles raise thought-provoking circumstances, allowing the reader to self-reflect on their dynamic. He connotes the protagonist, Jake, to the everyday person. Hence, it is the mission of the individual to become conscious of the toxic American work culture. It is our duty as the people to rewrite the framework of working culture and then to focus on fulfilling our own pursuit of happiness. This naturally leads to a greater sense of purpose. Ultimately, the author constructively utilizes a message in the attempt to awaken the reader of this concentrated private power before it can destroy us.

[Yan Chen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is a very interesting book that provides the audience a deeper understanding of the meaning and purpose of work and the relationship between work and self. The author uses animals as characters in the novel to represent the beast that individuals release during corporate work. To survive in the business world, employees have to bring a certain level of dedication to their work. However, Jake, the wolf, the main character in the novel, brings into light the basis of corporate culture and its functions. He raises concerns about corporate structure, how the management executes authority, the top leaders' morals, and the true meaning of work. He logically and vividly displays a tale of one's self-discovery and purpose related to work and the corporate world. Jake believes that engaging in work should inspire a sense of fulfillment and allow individuals to advance their experience, knowledge, attitude, and understanding of different phenomena. As he embraces positive energy towards learning new phenomena, he expects his environment to offer a conducive foundation for such aspiration. However, the reality is not what he expects, and Jake believes that society exerts extreme pressure to force people to align with specific professional standards. So, Jack reexamines the relationship between work and self. He realizes that work should be a platform for enhancing human connectivity with self and environment rather than infringing human freedom. A healthy work and self-relationship allow one to become aware of diverse phenomena and instigate self-discovery. Jack also believes that "the nature of the organic creature is to attach worth and happiness and emotion to people and events."
Conclusively, in this book, the author Raad criticizes the negative, oppressing, and suppressing corporate culture that the corporation uses on its subordinates, which does not inspire a sense of purpose or self-fulfillment. It implements strict rules to promote detachment among employees. Moreover, a healthy relationship between work and self-prompts a person’s well-being from mental growth to emotional stability. As employees engage and socialize, whether at work or from work, they release stresses that could result in a mental breakdown. Therefore, as people strive to attain a sense of purpose in their work, businesses must establish a conducive environment to encourage productive and elevating relationships among employees instead of detachment.

[Sahiti Kovvuri · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the novel Animals in Suits, Timur Raad speaks to the concept of productivity in his satirical dystopian novel. While the novel is about the main character Jake and his role as an anthropomorphic depiction of the scarcity mindset, readers can draw many inferences about Jake and his purpose in Raad’s novel. Jake's brainwashed coworkers, strict management, and challenging means of moving up in the rigid corporate social system all support the ever so grueling and draining life working for the higher-ups. Raad outlines the complexities of work-life balance (or lack thereof) though out the novel from Jake's perspective. At the beginning of the novel, we see Jake learning the daily goals and tasks present in his role through a repetitive cycle of mundaneness. The boxes represent a work hierarchy present where no one has privacy, supervised, and can be questioned at any time. The “Box-on-Tops” refers to the higher-ups and correlates to a sense of dictatorship that is present in this corporate setting. Raad uses this repetitiveness to show the daily tasks, to emphasize how lonely and drained Jake is in the work he is doing. “The impending workday always arrived without fail. Jake knew no other life; he was bred for this one (Raad,2). In this quote, we see the use of the word “Breed” which is satirical to the concept that Jake is an animal and when using the word breed, one typically refers to the ability to be designed to perform certain work. Even though Jake is an animal in this society, there is no difference in the way that the corporate social structures in today's world are designed where people are in fact breeds of corporate work culture. We see in the novel that Jakes' work is not only a comment on the structures in place to optimize capital gain but to show that is only possible through the subordinate ruling of the working class. Personal happiness not only is non-existent in Jakes' life, but this absence allows readers to draw on how much of life cannot solely be working to make money.

[Jacob Asherian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Timur Raad’s fictional work of satire “Animals in Suits” portrays the barrier that is placed between desired happiness and working a corporate job. Jake, the protagonist wolf of the novel, seeks to consistently climb the ladder of hierarchy in his career, even though it is one he does not enjoy. His corporate occupation that “he [spends] half his free time thinking about” (Intro, Raad) gives him a sense of purpose in life which he feels needs to be filled and put before pleasuring himself. As a “worker drone” (Intro, Raad) all aspects of his day revolve around work and how one thing can stem to another and ultimately relate to his corporate job, refraining him from having time for himself.
The party the chain of power above him that Jake seeks to join is a central theme of the novel and the root of the wolf’s dread of his work. This unnecessary sense of obligation to do the best he possibly can in a field that he is not passionate about limits his personal happiness, choosing the path of productivity as opposed to enjoyment and delight. Raad illustrates this message of the relationship of work to personal happiness to the reader as nonexistent and consequential. Jake is able to identify the evil morals of the “Box-On-Top”, in other words, the top of the ranked chain, like their sole desire to make money negligent of the slave-like treatment employees at the bottom of the ladder are facing to make the people in power rich. With a work environment of this manner, evidently, difficulty arises in attempting to find purpose or amusement.
Ultimately, the many themes and messages Raad depicts in his novel is very intriguing. Raad illuminates the importance of obtaining happiness by describing the hatred Jake must endure daily faking his way to smile and “Look happyyyy” (Raad, Chapter 2). College students like myself in today’s society face similar situations as Jake in the workplace. Ultimately, Raad’s novel is a great read for those looking to really find their true purpose in the world.

[Nazmun Ety · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits is a satirical novel that explores the egregious exploitation in a dystopian corporate society. Raad introduces the protagonist- Jake, a wolf- as he tries to gravitate through the complex, exhausting, and unforgiving business world. Jake often questions authority's structures, their significance in his career, and the overall pursuit of life. The office management subjects Jake and the other workers to energy-sapping activities without concern for their social welfare. Jake constantly deliberates on abandoning the job and pursuing his happiness. Animals in suits is notably an intriguing novel that satirizes high-end positions in the futuristic perspective.
The nexus between the themes of employment and welfare are prevalent in Jake's monologues and thoughts. Life is beyond recourse for anyone in the corporate world. The theme of jobs is projected by the association between Jake and his tasks. He is constantly frustrated and depressed while working. This provides a grim picture juxtaposed by the senior workers in the novel who are arrogant and work-oriented. On the other hand, the theme of welfare is constantly evoked through the strenuous life of Jake. He is compelled to develop a façade of happiness and satisfaction, albeit the actual circumstances.
Animals in Suits are critical, satirical, and informative in developing its themes in relevance to their antagonists and protagonists' circumstances. It is very much related to the conventional corporate age where workers function from dawn to dusk with limited freedom to explore and pursue their lives` priorities besides their jobs. The current social welfare is depressing, while employers and managers stand out as sadistic and ignorant of their oppression and value of motivation at work. Animals in Suits has factored and captured these elements of the conventional world in its dystopian society to provide a precautionary tale of corporate cultures.

[Yash Devarshi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is a wonderful satirical exposition of the corporate culture many individuals are victim to, as they find a difficulty in balancing work and life due to the pressures from this demanding environment. The author ironically utilizes animals as the employees who are faced with these issues. The protagonist, Jake, is a wolf who is victim to the corporate world and their abuse of their employees bandwidth. Jake becomes contempt of his jobs controlling nature as he feels a loss of purpose and a lack of happiness. This book depicts the realization of Jake an ordinary corporate employee who loses happiness and purpose due to the society many people fall victim to. The constraints of Jake’s real world problems translate to many individuals who work unfulfilling jobs. Jake is dependent on this job financial so he becomes a slave to his environment and is taken advantage of subliminally by his employer. The emotions that Jake evokes are relatable to most people who work similar jobs as they face the same issues such as working to climb the corporate ladder and having to appease those of higher positions. In this story, the work load for Jake becomes daunting as he loses himself in his meaningless job and becomes lost from his true ambitions and happiness. The author portrays themes of the corporate culture in many successful companies and the victimized employees forced on an unfulfilling path to corporate hierarchy through financial dependency. Raad utilizes Jake in order to depict the harsh realities of corporations and the importance of individual happiness and freedom. The author exemplifies these themes through provoking the reader to follow Jake through his journey out of the system in order to encourage individuals to prioritize happiness in life. Raad’s Animals in Suits incredibally uses satire in order to highlight twenty first century problems of work life balance and hopefully to inform the drawbacks of corporate jobs.

[Susie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits is a novel by Timur Raad meant to be a critique of the culture of work in a society that values productivity above all else. It takes place in the far future, with different animals as the story’s characters, representing the diversity of workers that’s overshadowed by the push to be a seemingly ideal worker in the corporate world. The novel shows a depiction of the world if it were to be completely governed by corporations, rather than by governments as we see them today. Raad wrote the story surrounding Jake, the fictional main protagonist of the novel, and his experiences of being a worker at the corporation BLC. Throughout the novel, Jake undergoes the pressures as an employee—to put up a facade of happiness, to constantly be focusing on getting tasks done, etc.—while being completely miserable and wanting to stand up to authority.

I recommend Raad’s novel to those interested in imagining the possibilities of what the future entails. In the case of Animals in Suits, Raad combines the current realities of workplace culture where people constantly emphasize productivity and work, with the qualities of an authoritarian society where people lack individual freedom and all aspects of their lives are devoted to (in this case) corporations. The novel reimagines modern capitalism and takes it to an extreme, making parts of Jake’s experiences relatable to many readers while also showing disadvantages and potential risks of such lifestyle. As someone who believes in hard work for one’s passions, I appreciate the novel’s reminder for the readers to respect their own and others' wellbeing and individuality. Thus, even if readers disagree with the novel’s interpretation of the future, they can still take into account the messages to their daily lives as they navigate their careers.

[Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timur Raad’s Animals in Suits is a satirical novel about the dystopian reality of a society commanded by corporations. The novel follows Jake, the wolf protagonist, working through his daily tasks and responsibilities living in this corporate society. The reader can comprehend that this society puts an emphasis on individual productivity and results in undue burden and pressure on the employees. The corporation must become each employee's number one priority and softens the mistreatment of its employees by giving away useless trinkets to neutralize any negative opinions of the corporation. Dedication to the corporation is a priority and is illustrated through Raad’s description of the employees' motives to keep coming into work in an abusive and at times exploitative environment. The relationship between consumption and labor reflects the dysmorphic work-life balance that is a point of conflict and is a part of many peoples' reality that live in capitalistic societies, which this novel takes inspiration from. Animals in Suits is a reflection of the unrealistic and unnatural demands the modern-day workplace requires of its employees. The individuals at the top, known as “Box-On-Top”, spend their days policing and exploiting the workers below them. These characterizations are an integral part of incorporating the accurate aspects of a corporate environment. The novel’s depiction of the corporate ladder is a direct tribute to the workplace many people must endure. The irony is evident throughout the Animals in Suits, as its function is to wake up those stuck in the monotonous grind of corporate life in the modern-day. The novel takes the seriousness of late-stage capitalism and approaches it with a sense of sarcasm that makes it digestible, allowing the reader to examine how it may apply to their experience.

[Chelsea Mejia]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is a commentary on work life and its effect on motivation and our human experience. Although the book is fiction and seems quite fantastical, it's very real in it’s criticism of corporate life or to further generalize, a capitalist society. Jack, the main character is described as “one of many worker drones” ridding him of any of his human or in this case, fox qualities. Already Timur is making a statement about humans by creating a story where the creatures are animals. We humans often put ourselves on top of animals because we are able to pass down information and therefore build onto it. However, with Raad’s parallels he uses animals to describe us humans as creatures that follow instructions such as foxes or dogs. Jack cannot think for himself, he must always be on top of his work, never arriving late to work, and keeping productive. In the first chapter, where we get an insight into his morning routine, we see that it’s exactly that, a routine. Everything he does is planned out to ensure high productivity for his day, everyday. He isn’t allowed spontaneity and one can argue that without it, life is boring and monotonous. He isn’t allowed to live a life for himself because he lives it for Profit. In our capitalist society, we often feel the pressure to constantly work in order to even survive all the while helping those above us stay above us. And you can't have one without the other. If you stop helping the big man obtain his profit you can’t sustain yourself. The book was an easy read. With lots to take in but it felt like I had lost track of time while reading it. I think this was somehow intentional and if not adds to the book's theme. While reading it I could feel Jack’s anxiety and stress, in a way, making me a character in the story as well.

[Nourhan Mostafa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals is suits was written by Timur Raad, it was published in 2019. The book argues the corporate life in a unique way that makes the reader engaged. Timur Raad illustrated how employees are treated, viewed, and respected based on their position in the corporate hierarchy. Levels of management are represented as boxes, Boxes-On-Top are executives and top managers while Boxes-On-Bottom are those who supposed to leverage themselves and extend their abilities to produce beyond their physical and mental abilities; employees are the least beneficiaries and corporation exploit them to maximize profitability. Moreover, this book shows how employees’ performance and other criterions are unfairly assessed. Artificial intelligence was a critical point discussed in this book and how employees consider it a threat that will probably raise the unemployment rate in the near future while Boxes-On-Top consider AI an opportunity to cut off labor costs and increase productivity and profits. Top managers treat employees like machines that should not complain, ask questions, nor make problems. A rule to be followed by everyone within the corporation is to be happy and smile regardless of any difficulties. In my point of view, the vocabulary choice is fabulous; first of all, the name of this book is catchy and thrilling and gives readers an insight about the content of the book. The word “boxes” was a perfect here as it indicates to employees and positions at the same time. whereas “Animals” points out to how employees should react and obey corporate rules without thinking or interfering with the decision-making process. Animals in Suits is a well written piece that states the realistic, brutal truth about corporate life and authority distribution. And I believe no one could have put that in words any better.

[Ken Kamiya · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Animal in Suits” by Timur Raad is a fictional satire that focuses on the separation of one’s own personal life and work. Although the title of the novel may seem silly the novel does have a deeper meaning. In the novel instead of people are replaced by talking animals where working is the most important thing to do. As you read the novel you learn the main character, Jake, is a wolf who works in a corporate office. Throughout the novel Jake tries to earn a promotion and climb through the ranks. In the dystopian world that Jake lives in your job is your life. Jake tries to learn a balance between life and work to gain happiness that isn’t through his work. The executives in the novel see the lower employees basically as machines that can be replaced. No matter how much work or effort you put in it does not matter.
Raad does a great job really representing how most people and businesses are in the real world. There are some cases where executives will not even notice the work you put in at their business and nor will they ever. Some people have been raised to believe that money will bring happiness to be able to buy needs and necessities, but if all you think about is money and you start to ignore your family then what is the point. Raad expresses the importance of one’s own happiness. Although getting a promotion or earring a higher salary is not a bad goal it should not be your only goal. Let’s say you achieve your goal then what did it truly make you happy or was it just another achievement. There is no purpose of working so hard and having no happiness outside of work. If you are not happy at work or outside of work then what are you feeling? Raad encourages readers to not only think about what kind of job you will have in the future, but what will make you happy outside of work whether it be family, a hobby, or video games.

[Jena Samaan]

The book in “Animals in Suits” by Timur Raad which is a Satire Fiction mainly focuses on the theme of how society works, where people are robotic, and constantly go to work for the sake of money, personal happiness was not being accounted for daily. In this book the animals who are the characters working in a company show us what the lack of identity is. The main character Jake is a wolf that worries about losing his badge in the beginning of the story and sees that losing his badge can lead to “no work, and no purpose” . We can sense from this part of the story that the environment that the animals are in lack the ability to think about what truly interests them. The main reason for not being able to seek interest on their own is because of a hierarchy that is present in the workplace, the bosses stress factors like lateness which can possibly lead to many losing their position if not followed. The animals are prioritizing their job more than their internal happiness. In the workplace we can see supervisors being too controlling, making the animals have a foreclosed identity status which is the animals miserably working in the company to have a purpose and follow the repeated societal routine, this causes them to forget about their personal goals. This book serves the purpose of showing us how being controlled and being miserable can lead to completely losing ourselves, instead we should explore our interests to have successful identity and feel achieved . This is very similar to the Industrial Revolution where many factory workers were working long harsh hours and receiving little pay, the focus was to increase the wealth of the country, instead of focusing on the health and rewarding the workers with the wage they deserve, but people continued to work for the sake of surviving financially, once again the focus was making money.

[Iqra Zaheer]

Timur Raad's Animals in Suits depicts corporate life's actual reality through the eyes of animals within a satirical dystopia. The novel revolves around Jake, the protagonist's perspective on the corporate world. The book describes many of the animals' daily lives and how they continue to work nonstop. Jake is one of the corporate employees who has chosen to speak out about the injustice. He witnesses the abuse that many of his colleges are subjected to. He works 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is never given a moment to himself. The animals are unconcerned about their emotional or physical wellbeing. Many people do not choose to speak out against injustice, but Jake does, and he, too, is silenced and told to follow orders. Jake decides to reevaluate his work life and realizes that there is more to life than working around the clock. Nobody is on Jake's side, but he is determined to make sense of his life. He wants to explore other aspects of his life and give everything the attention it deserves. Money alone isn't everything. There is more to life than money. The entire plot is a direct reflection of our own lives. We've grown accustomed to daily corporate life and don't give much thought to our emotional and physical well-being. We're trapped in a spiral with little to no way out. I recommend this book to everyone because it allows us to think outside of our own lives and opens our eyes to what is really going on in our lives. This book may even be able to assist those who are having difficulty balancing their work and personal lives. This is a great read that will help you understand what many corporate businesses have done to their employees and how to live a happy and successful life; we all need to find a good balance. The importance of balance cannot be overstated.

[Itzel Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel takes the work life into an extreme dystopia. Work is the only thing that matters in society and expectations are set high to uphold the quality and dedication of employees. It goes as far to condition the employees to behave in a way that benefits the corporation.Work is all there is to survive. To think, act , or say anything contradicting is dangerous grounds. Jake finds himself in an environment where he can't even express himself. His anger or lack of enthusiasm is something he must contain because even showing hints of dissatisfaction can get him a bad look. Jake doesn't really ever get a chance to to think or live outside of work since his world is work. He constantly faces annoying situations he has to deal with. He is stuck in this box in which he has no real freedom and has no opportunity to explore and find happiness. He can't risk losing his job that he hates because he needs to survive. It isn't until he leaves his job that he decides to find his personal happiness.

This novel does a good job in portraying a theme about the relationship of personal happiness and society. It reflects a reality that many people especially young adults experience. It reveals the struggle of living in a society where a certain lifestyle becomes the standard and everyone is expected to be part of it. People become tied to good paying jobs to be able to afford a decent life even if that means they have to work a job they don't enjoy. Like Jake , we struggle to find happiness when we confine ourselves to a society that restricts freedom. This story shows change and an impactful character development that hopefully encourages readers to find their own personal happiness.

[Raymond Tawil · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Animals in Suits” by Timur Raad is a satirical story that really captures the relationship between work and personal happiness. Jake, the protagonist in the novel, works among the other animals in his workplace, and strives to make it up along the social hierarchy of the corporation’s employees. There is this extreme focus on productivity and generating a profit, that it leaves no room whatsoever for the characters in the novel to even ponder about their own personal desires and passions. Even in Jake’s free time, he is busy thinking about his corporate job and the different functions that it entails. Raad emphasizes this heavy mundaneness that is present in Jake’s corporation through the repetitive remarks about the daily tasks that must be performed. The higher individuals in the hierarchical spectrum of the corporation are identified as the “Box-On-Tops” and they are depicted as evil, being that they take most of the money that is generated through the work of the lower individuals in the social hierarchy. A work environment that is structured solely around productivity hinders the “animals in suits” from pursuing any personal endeavors that they may be passionate about. Furthermore, through this depiction of a society that heavily values productivity, Raad is able to paint a picture of what some corporations today are structured as. He is able to convey the idea that these large corporations in America are not only taking advantage of the “laborers” who’re completing most of the work yet don’t receive much recognition, but more importantly aren’t allowing for their employees to expose some of their personality due to the massive emphasis on productivity and generating a profit.

[Christopher Bivona-Maldonado · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Animals in Suits”, by Timur Raad, is a satirical take on corporate life and what it does to an individual’s well-being. Although silly and lighthearted in nature, with the cast consisting entirely of animals; “Animals in Suits” isn’t afraid to tackle very real problems that exist in a corporate society. With conundrums such as: the balance between work and life, the balance between work and one’s personal relationships, and the balance between work and one’s freedom and sense of happiness, “Animals in Suits” is truly much more than a simple tale of animals taking up roles traditionally filled by humans. Raad manages to create a complex corporate structure where the bosses are at the top in what is referred to as the “Box on Top”, while the lowly employees are bound to a life of never-ending work, where they hardly reap the fruits of their labor. A structure such as this seems all too relatable for an individual who worked a monotonous corporate or minimum wage job. The message of “Animals in Suits” is that we all only have one shot at life. You can choose to spend that period of time working forever, never building deep relationships and truly enjoying your life, or you can instead choose to take the wheel on the course of your own life. Near the end of the novel, Jake has chosen the latter, and with that decision, he has discovered true freedom and happiness. I personally believe that one needs to find a fair balance between work and living one’s life to the fullest. Although it is relieving seeing Jake free himself from the shackles of his never-ending work, such an option is not very practical in the world we live in. As long as you have that balance, you won’t end up like Jake, Geraldine, or any of the other animals in “Animals in Suits”.

[Shaurya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Animals in Suits, by Timur Raad, is a satirical dystopian novel about the relationship between work and society, and work and self.

The novel takes place in a corporate and dystopian world where animals possess anthropomorphic characteristics and work in offices. The story follows the main protagonist Jake, a wolf, who struggles to gain personal happiness as he navigates through a totalitarian institution that exploits their workers to maintain their wealth and monopolized power. Raad depicts the horrid nature of corporations that work their employees, who are blindly obedient to their supervisor’s directions, to the bone. The workers act as mindless drones, brainwashed into believing that their corporations serve the greater good, and work consistently without understanding their own personal values. It acts as an endless cycle where employees reproduce social inequality by believing the propaganda spread by corporations. Jake eventually understands a life beyond work is a necessity towards his self-fulfillment. Furthermore, Raad utilizes an anthropomorphic representation to depict the worker’s submissiveness. He attempts to draw comparisons to the daily life of animals through them blindly obeying the commands of their owners and performing tasks with no long-term meaning towards societal contribution.

Raad argues that the meaning of life is not about achieving wealth or status, nor conforming to social norms, but about self-fulfillment and personal happiness. It is imperative for workers to become aware of the toxic American work culture and rewrite the working culture structure to better prepare ourselves in our own pursuit of happiness, which will lead to a greater sense of purpose.

[Michelle Lung · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits is a dystopian fiction that incorporates satire to depict a corporate lifestyle. It features a humorous take on workplace environments, specifically large corporations featuring a pyramid organizational structure. It shows a hierarchy of employees, with “worker bees” reporting to lower management, who feed off of fear and power yielded to them. Ironically, they are also employees who one minute may be bossing someone around, and another minute turn around and feed fear to higher level managers, who they report to, in turn.

Timur Raad has readers follow the life of Jake, who is a natural-born canine, a rarity in his world. Animals in Suits features anthropomorphism, incorporating each animal’s qualities on how they impact work. Getting to work on time isn’t the issue, with his natural ability to sprint fast on all fours. Problem is when co-workers or bosses, also known as The Box-On Top’s, talk to him, keeping him when he should be making his way to a meeting! I’m sure readers can relate, whether it’s trying to get to work on time when trains are delayed, or getting to class on time when buses or elevators are full and you have to wait for the next one. Essentially, work is many of these animal’s lives, which is why they were given life in the first place: to work. Making money is all they know.

As one aware of this never-ending cycle of working to live and living to work, Jake faces constant scrutiny by The Box-On Top’s who try to keep him in check. Animals in Suits provides a funny twist on the workings of a corporate environment. However, while these animals don’t seem to have much choice, readers have the freedom to choose their own path, and what work-to-life balance they want for themselves.

[Sydney Sarway · Rating 4 out of 5]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is a satirical novel where animals are the citizens of the world and their day to day in corporate life, specifically from the point of view of Jake, the main character. Right away, the book dives into a day in the life of a corporate worker- getting up at the crack of dawn to make it to work on time, shifting through the endless rows of cubicles to get to your own to continue working and fulfilling your role. Raad does an amazing job really explaining and breaking down into detail how the offices and employees work and operate. I really enjoyed this book and felt Raad successfully embodied corporate life in America perfectly. From the point of view of the main character, work is everything and the only reason to get up in the morning. Raad is essentially bringing up the issue of working to live or living to work. The main character, in the beginning, is living to work, revolving everything he does around working and not enjoying the extras life has to offer. There is no extra effort or passion put into any of Jake’s work, leading him to dread it even more. I felt the ending was a bit cliche considering Jake moves on and decides not to continue suffering in his corporate job, however not a lot of people in our world are able to have that realization and get stuck in corporate life with no movement, constantly unhappy and miserable. I think by the end Raad illustrates the idea that you should not aim to do something where you will be sad and miserable but rather do what you love and enjoy every day doing it. Work is not something that you should dread, but rather something you should be looking forward to.

[Jonathan]

The novel “Animals in Suits” by Timur Raad is a humorous satire that portrays the dullness of working a corporate job. Jake, a wolf who works in BLC, questions his corporate life and critiques the working environment. He is frustrated by his unexciting life work alongside those he describes as animals disguised as people. Everyday they go to the office where they do repetitive work and are observed by their bosses. The novel critiques the bland, unfulfilling job that has those working consumed in it. At certain points Jake becomes aware that his job is meaningless but, nevertheless, still works as all the others do for the sole purpose of making money. Though he questions the morals and standards of the workplace, Jake goes back to focusing on superficial aspects of life, as he and his coworkers are hardwired to do subsequent to their work.
Raad depicts unfulfillment that comes from the endless work. Working this type of job can bring about a life of no happiness. What is the point of the futile job if you are unhappy and are also unable to enjoy anything that you have as a result? Why have the big house, nice car, pretty wife, if you cannot enjoy and hate what enabled you to have it in the first place? Raad makes the reader ask these questions and prevent him from making the same mistake as many miserable employees. He provides the reader with hope when he feels there is no way out of his misery as it is common that we hear of miserable corporate employees. This satire functions as an attempt to critique corporate culture and guide people to find a purpose in life.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Animals in Suits, brought to us by ex-financier turned author Timur Raad, is the story of your average Joe (or in this case Jake) trying to find his place in what can arguably be viewed as a not too distant, corporate-dominated dystopian future. That is, if all humans were suddenly replaced by talking animals of all shapes and sizes. Raad’s story follows the day-to-day work-life of a wolf named Jake Schäferhund and his experience in an overbearing, overburdening and arguably to some characters, soul-crushing society where ones only purpose is to serve the machine that is corporate society and its leaders referred to as the “Boxes on Top”. A society that much like ours, requires one to work hard for the sake of another’s dream and conform to the repetitive, unchanging and creatively unfulfilling, lifestyle (or lifeless-style) that is so heavily prescribed to us today.

As a senior college student entering the financial world myself, it’s easy to relate to Raad’s literary reflection of his own time in the corporate world and with corporate America facing some of the highest employee turnover rates in history, it’s probably safe to say he’s not the only one left feeling dissatisfied with its current structure. Overall, I was personally pleased with this novel and in particular, with Raad’s choice to not condemn working as a whole, but instead acknowledge that one should strive to work in a way that is in harmony with one’s own individuality. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a strong, personal, somber and yet somewhat hopeful social critique of the capitalistic, corporate system.

[Aslan Shaken · Rating 5 out of 5]

The novel “Animal in Suits” by Timur Raad is a story about the corporate system in these days through the eyes of main character Jake. It's an interesting story about Jake’s life and how he portrays corporate life. The corporate life has a strong hierarchy without rights for humans and without freedom. Workers don’t have enough time for themselves because they spend more time working in corporate. In this story Jake is a wolf, who got stuck in a cycle of bad corporate life and his freedom. He carries the same tasks everyday and his employer forces him to work hard.
It affects his personal life negatively. Every single day Jake is extremely under pressure. Even though he puts all his time into his work, it doesn’t make any sense for his life. He is still unhappy. We all know that most corporations use systems to brainwash their employees by providing them motivations for the best employee of the month and with health benefits. However, the truth is employees become animals after the brainwash. These days many people try to survive and are afraid to lose their job, and that is why they do everything the employer asks. They just forget what they love to do. They follow the corporate rule. They circle around the job and home.
This novel is a critical response to the corporate culture and how people struggle during the work days. In this kind of world we are living today. Mostly, it’s experienced in the USA where employees get manipulated and trapped by work. I think this book is worth the read for all young generations. It shows a great example of the true corporate culture and targets social issues.

[Estela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Timur Raad’s “Animals in Suits” is a satirical novel depicting humans as animals working long and tedious hours in the corporate world. Raad makes sure to carefully describe the corporate culture and the toll it has on workers, especially on the protagonist, Jake. Readers get to see how Jake can’t manage a work-life balance since most days look the same; they’re repetitive, demanding, and stressful. Even in his free time, Jake is still thinking about his job and doesn’t take time to explore his passions. Jake has little motivation to work and isn’t content with his job.
People who do end up in today’s corporate world would have similar experiences as Jake’s. A corporation's main goal is to make a profit and to do so, their workers are constantly overworked. Workers may sacrifice happiness and personal freedom from having a corporate job. Also, there is a culture in the corporate world that is toxic. Raad raises awareness of such a culture. The “box-on-tops”, who are the higher-ups on the corporate social hierarchy (directors, managers, etc.) often get away with ridiculing those of lower status and are paid more, while those of lower status are overworked and have little chance of going up the social ladder. Workers are only evaluated by their productivity and the profit they generate. Ultimately, overworking is something workers take pride in despite the mental and physical impact it may have on oneself. Raad paints the picture that workers are taking advantage of and that workers need to prioritize their health. At the end of the novel, Jake does just that and makes a decision he believes will bring him freedom.

[Karma Dawa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The novel “Animals in Suits'' by Timur Raad is a satirical dystopian novel that reveals the corrupt and oppressive side of corporate jobs. The novel presents a striking representation of corporate jobs and its control over one's identity and personal happiness. The novel also portrays a theme of systematic oppression and loss of identity. In the novel, Jake, the main protagonist along with other animals live in a capitalistic society that revolves only around work. There is no sense of personality and identity in society as everyone shares the same goal and ambitions of increasing productivity and making profits for their corporate job. Their corporate jobs dictate and control everything the animals do in the society. In other words, the animals are being oppressed and restricted by the corporate. In doing so, Jake and the other animals don't have the opportunity to find their own likings and personal happiness. Their wants, needs and desires are suppressed by the corporate. Hence, the portrayal of the theme of loss of identity. The animals don't have an identity, their sole purpose in society is to work and satisfy their corporate job. Overall, this novel not only illustrates the corrupt and oppressive side of corporate jobs but, it also sends a very clear message. Working in a hostile work environment can take a toll on one's personal happiness. In result, it will make it difficult for people to find their identity in society. So it's best for people to move on from oppressive jobs because ultimately, personal happiness and discovering true self is what matters the most.

[Gurnoor Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Animals in Suits by Timur Raad is an engaging satire that gave us a glimpse of the corporate world and the lifestyle attached to it. As amusing as it is, it holds a lot of truth. Being in NYC’s finance world myself and having many friends work in the industry, it was interesting to see how our everyday lives come across to other people. The story focuses on Jake, who shows us just how easy it is to get caught up in your career and forget about your personal life and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. People are compared to animals because their behavior and freedoms start to replicate them. They have the animals dressed in business suits and act like humans. A work environment when you have multiple authority figures telling you what to do, controlling your hours of freedom, and not truly caring about your opinion on any of it can feel like you’re on a “leash” of sorts. Many don’t try to leave because they want or need the money attached to it. I’ve had the same pressure on me to get my work done and stay at the office until late, in hopes of knowing I will secure a bonus. Forgetting about self-care, social hangouts, and time with family, can happen in any job, it is just extremely common in the corporate world. I enjoyed seeing how Animals in Suits draws attention to this unhealthy balance. After seeing the social hierarchy, the way companies treat employees, the lack of morals, etc., Jake goes through many realizations as the book goes on. He finally starts to understand the importance of life outside of the office. It’s a good reminder that making money isn’t everything and pleasing your company should not come before your own happiness and wellbeing.