1984 George Orwell

I was in the library the other day when a book catches my eye. 1984 there stood with big, bold red letters. It made me stop and think, what happened in 1984? I personally love history, so curiously I picked up the book and read the blob.
As far as I understood, a man starts a journal, on his thoughts about "the Party", where he writes his rebellious thoughts against them. If this journal was found, it would result in his execution.
I still am not 100% aware of the story line of the book, but it seems very interesting. I am suggesting it as a class book, or else, I shall get it myself as my next reading book!