I read it back in late 2000, and although at the time I was in too much of a JW mental fog to make any solid connections, I think the book worked on me in ways that I may not have been completely aware of at the time.
*Spoiler ahead for those who haven't read it*
The end was especially haunting, when Winston gives in to the brainwash - "He loved Big Brother". The emotion that I felt as I read about the complete loss of freedom and autonomy that he experienced at that moment may have been a tipping point for me. I didn't last another year as an active JW after reading that.