Finished Tu 5/14/13
My post on Good Reads-
There's something almost comforting about reading a book about the end of the world that occurs in the 1980's. It's almost like we've collectively dodged a bullet....The Big One.
DOWN TO A SUNLESS SEA is a straightforward Action/Adventure tale of a nuclear apocalypse, and relates the adventures of the brave band of men and women who beat the odds and live to fight another day. The author's background is in aeronautics, and most of the action happens in the cockpit of a large airliner. The writing style and character development are pedestrian at best, yet the compelling storyline demands your attention. Nevil Shute's, ON THE BEACH and Pat Frank's ALAS, BABYLON offer the same story, yet so much better delivered. And, I'm sure there are many, many other examples, but if you are a fan of the genre, DOWN TO A SUNLESS SEA will not disappoint.
Notes about the book-
The story begins as Captain Jonah Scott has landed in NYC on a rainy October evening in 1985. The American dollar has tanked, and the US is plagued with domestic turmoil, and not a tranquil place. After picking up some stowaways, the captain begins the flight to London England, and while they are airborne nuclear war begins in the Middle East, and rapidly becomes a worldwide conflagration.
They end up in Antarctica and find that the Earth's axis has shifted, and in the future, the land will have the climate of Hawaii.
The title of the novel is from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, Kubla Khan
No comments:
Post a Comment