It's no satire—Duke Classics has a fresh release of Aldous Huxley's Those Barren Leaves. Set in Italy—minus the culture—Huxley's story mocks those who see themselves as the cultural elite, but who are actually little more than pretentious poseurs. The reader is merely an observer in the conversation of characters who seek to find importance and meaning in their lives.

An unnamed paralegal, brought back to life through a controversial process, maneuvers through a near-future world that both needs and resents him. As the United States president spouts anti-reanimation rhetoric and giant pharmaceutical companies rake in profits, the man falls in love with lawyer Faustina Godínez.