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grubbyknees's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
luxjudit's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
blocalbertain's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
ceiling___'s review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
katrinajr's review against another edition
5.0
5 stars because this book is so real. It's frightening. The story is apocalyptic speculative fiction, but it's the characters that I loved. They are so flawed and crazy and good and noble. Try reading it without sobbing at the end. I bet you can't.
georgewbscott's review against another edition
5.0
What a great introduction to post-apocolyptic science fiction!
bonnybonnybooks's review against another edition
4.0
"Well, that’s what I think. I mean, I couldn't bear to – to just stop doing things and do nothing. You might as well die now and get it over.”
Moira nodded. “If what they say is right, we’re none of us going to have time to do all that we planned to do. But we can keep on doing it as long as we can.”
A very 1950's view of the apocalypse. Published in 1957, it imagines a near future in 1963 where escalating tensions have caused countries to release 100s of nuclear weapons that have wiped out all life in the Northern Hemisphere. In this world, nuclear fallout produces some kind of circulating killing gas that does not dissipate. The Southern Hemisphere is unaffected for now, but they know the gas is coming, sweeping down on the global air currents. Our heroes in Melbourne live in a world that is forecast to end in September.
While some people get drunk and others get into deadly high speed races, for the most part people continue on with their lives as before. One of the main characters is Australian submariner Peter Holmes, who has a wife and young baby. His wife spends most of the book in denial, planning to plant flowers and trees that she will never see grow.
This book is both more nihilistic and more optimistic than most modern apocalyptic novels. Nihilistic because every last human being dies - no one goes into space or underground or in a submarine to survive. Humanity is completely wiped out. But also more optimistic because of the stiff upper lip and good nature of the humans we meet, despite their impending doom. I am not sure if all of Melbourne would be this genteel about the whole thing, but it is certainly one of the individual responses that would likely occur. Human beings do often allow inertia to pull them forward, or they continue on in a state of denial. Even if we were told that the world would end in a few months - and other cities and continents have already blinked out - there would still be people trying to maintain "normality."
Moira nodded. “If what they say is right, we’re none of us going to have time to do all that we planned to do. But we can keep on doing it as long as we can.”
A very 1950's view of the apocalypse. Published in 1957, it imagines a near future in 1963 where escalating tensions have caused countries to release 100s of nuclear weapons that have wiped out all life in the Northern Hemisphere. In this world, nuclear fallout produces some kind of circulating killing gas that does not dissipate. The Southern Hemisphere is unaffected for now, but they know the gas is coming, sweeping down on the global air currents. Our heroes in Melbourne live in a world that is forecast to end in September.
While some people get drunk and others get into deadly high speed races, for the most part people continue on with their lives as before. One of the main characters is Australian submariner Peter Holmes, who has a wife and young baby. His wife spends most of the book in denial, planning to plant flowers and trees that she will never see grow.
This book is both more nihilistic and more optimistic than most modern apocalyptic novels. Nihilistic because every last human being dies - no one goes into space or underground or in a submarine to survive. Humanity is completely wiped out. But also more optimistic because of the stiff upper lip and good nature of the humans we meet, despite their impending doom. I am not sure if all of Melbourne would be this genteel about the whole thing, but it is certainly one of the individual responses that would likely occur. Human beings do often allow inertia to pull them forward, or they continue on in a state of denial. Even if we were told that the world would end in a few months - and other cities and continents have already blinked out - there would still be people trying to maintain "normality."
bellebcooper's review against another edition
Nice quick read, with some interesting ideas.
dee9401's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.0
Like Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep, I'd seen the movie version of On the Beach (1959) before I read this book. As usual, the book is better than the movie.
The premise is really intriguing. What happens after a nuclear war, especially to those in areas not even remotely targeted? The book chronicles that last few months of people's lives in southern Australia. A nuclear war, which lasted only about a month, devastated the northern hemisphere. Radiation makes living there impossible. What's worse is that a cloud of nuclear fallout is spreading southward, into the southern hemisphere and killing all in its path. The novel addresses how people react to the news that the end of the world is not just near but has a target date.
Suicide, dangerous lifestyle choices and denial are explored at a top-level. Shute doesn't develop his characters much beyond two-dimensions and he often avoids any outright emotional expressions by his characters. It's almost as if they are all queuing up for death, in a nice orderly fashion. Some people expect the end, others deny it, and still others drift back and forth, but it's done in a very calm, collected fashion, as if they were just deciding on whether to have a whiskey or a brandy. The treatment of the female characters as weak, in ridiculous denial or in desperate need of a man to save them is sexist, but in keeping with a book written by a man in the 1950s.
I enjoyed the psychology of the premise, but not so much as how Shute develops the story. There's no chance to delve into the inner thinking of the characters, such as how they internally struggle (or don't) with the impending end of not just all human life, but their own specific life.
Given all that, I still think it's worth a read in order to open up thought avenues. Many of the themes are still present today (weapons of mass destruction and nations willing to use them). While not a perfect tool to explore these theme, it is a useful starting point. I'd suggesting reading both On the Beach and John Hershey's nonfiction work, Hiroshima, to being exploring these issues.
The premise is really intriguing. What happens after a nuclear war, especially to those in areas not even remotely targeted? The book chronicles that last few months of people's lives in southern Australia. A nuclear war, which lasted only about a month, devastated the northern hemisphere. Radiation makes living there impossible. What's worse is that a cloud of nuclear fallout is spreading southward, into the southern hemisphere and killing all in its path. The novel addresses how people react to the news that the end of the world is not just near but has a target date.
Suicide, dangerous lifestyle choices and denial are explored at a top-level. Shute doesn't develop his characters much beyond two-dimensions and he often avoids any outright emotional expressions by his characters. It's almost as if they are all queuing up for death, in a nice orderly fashion. Some people expect the end, others deny it, and still others drift back and forth, but it's done in a very calm, collected fashion, as if they were just deciding on whether to have a whiskey or a brandy. The treatment of the female characters as weak, in ridiculous denial or in desperate need of a man to save them is sexist, but in keeping with a book written by a man in the 1950s.
I enjoyed the psychology of the premise, but not so much as how Shute develops the story. There's no chance to delve into the inner thinking of the characters, such as how they internally struggle (or don't) with the impending end of not just all human life, but their own specific life.
Given all that, I still think it's worth a read in order to open up thought avenues. Many of the themes are still present today (weapons of mass destruction and nations willing to use them). While not a perfect tool to explore these theme, it is a useful starting point. I'd suggesting reading both On the Beach and John Hershey's nonfiction work, Hiroshima, to being exploring these issues.