Alas, Babylon

[olympia]

Anyone read this?  I was expecting chintzy, but the book was surprisingly well done.  Given that it was written in 1959, the female characters were really well-done (take note, Kunstler).  And it was well-written.

[EWHM]

Anyone read this?  I was expecting chintzy, but the book was surprisingly well done.  Given that it was written in 1959, the female characters were really well-done (take note, Kunstler).  And it was well-written.

We read that one back in Junior high.  I recall enjoying it.  It's considered something of a classic as I understand it.  There's a fair bit of useful information to be mined out of it if you're looking.

[Broil]

Outstanding book, my first doomer novel.  I was a young teenager when I first read it, but still enjoyed it on re-reading as an adult.  It was realistic and had some good practical advice too, despite a somewhat "deus ex machina" ending.

[Tropicalgirl]

Anyone read this?  I was expecting chintzy, but the book was surprisingly well done.  Given that it was written in 1959, the female characters were really well-done (take note, Kunstler).  And it was well-written.

Loved it, I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in PA novels.  

Another really great book for women characters in a PA world is called Into the Forest by Jean Heglund.  I listened to it (unabridged book on CD) years ago, before PO aware, and it stayed with me, I checked it out again recently, it is awesome.

Thanks for reminding us about Alas, Babylon.

[olympia]

^Yeah, I loved Into the Forest.  Definitely recommend.
The author of Alas strikes me as ahead of his time.  Along with the women, the black characters were fully written.

[maurice]

The female characters were so well written in Alas, Babylon that I had
assumed the author, Pat Frank, was a woman.

[PostApocalypticTribe]

It was my first doomer book back in seventh grade. I've read it probably 5 times in my life. I really loved it.

I like the fact that the protagonist makes so many mistakes (such as buying a butt load of meat) and works through them. In some doomy novels the lead guy always knows exactly what he's doing but in real life it wouldn't work that way. Even we doomers would make mistakes in such a for instance.

I give it three and a half thumbs up.

[TLR1138]

There's a good article on it at Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alas_Babylon

[Tropicalgirl]

Not to keep thread drifting with the book "Into the Forest" but....   - wasn't that a great scene when the dad and daughters go into town to shop at the  big box grocery store?  That scene haunts me, nothing left in the store, except a few broken down bags of flour and dented cans.  Good PA shopping plan, take your duct tape and strap together whatever you can to salvage the trashed groceries!  That scene haunts me....

[pamplemousse]

Yes, a doomer classic for sure.  I loved the lack-of-salt scenes.

[white_stone]

Alas, Babylon - the best book ever. 

I read it aloud to my husband last summer and he loved it. I have probably read it 10-15 times since. Grew up in Tampa and first read it during the Cuban Missile Crisis. When I read the part about the bright flash being MacDil AFBl it touched a nerve.

Another really good book is 'On the Beach.' Real end of the world stuff there. The book was far better than the cheesy movie they made of it.

Regards,
white stone

[Tropicalgirl]

Alas, Babylon - the best book ever. 

I read it aloud to my husband last summer and he loved it. I have probably read it 10-15 times since. Grew up in Tampa and first read it during the Cuban Missile Crisis. When I read the part about the bright flash being MacDil AFBl it touched a nerve.

Another really good book is 'On the Beach.' Real end of the world stuff there. The book was far better than the cheesy movie they made of it.

Regards, white stone 

WS - I live in S. Florida on the Atlantic side, so when the story takes place "close to home" it does tend to touch a nerve.  The book really holds up well, IMO.  There are lots of good survival tips to be learned.  Definitely we were a kinder, gentler people back in the day this was written, although there was a kind of MZB group robbing the people traveling on the country highway.

Will look for On the Beach, thanks for the recommendation.

[SabreKai]

Yeh, its one of my earliest favourites. I still have the same old tattered paperback copy my dad bought when it came out.


Sabre
69 days n a wake up.

[kathyprepper]

It was interesting to read about things like breast feeding and canning as "old fashioned" notions. I loved thatn the librarian became so important, especially in the arena of research on wild edibles. I thought the race relations were very well handled. One of the best in my opnion.

[SabreKai]

Come to think of it, aside from Lucifers' Hammer, this is the only doomer book I've read where someone realizes the value of a library. Most of the other ones have the MZBs trashing libraries n burning books.


Sabre
68 days n a wake up