Trav B

Reading this 1950s classic as a teenager in the 70s was devastating, but it resonates on a whole different level now that I am in my late 50s with a wife and grown children. It is literally about the end of everything told in a matter-of-fact style from the point of view of different characters living out the last few months of their lives in Melbourne, Australia — the last place on Earth untouched by a shroud of radiation following a nuclear holocaust. The northern hemisphere is lifeless and the rest of the planet, including Melbourne, will be soon because weather patterns are carrying the radiation south. How these characters - including an American sub captain struggling to accept the loss of his Connecticut-based family in the war, a middle-age Aussie party girl lamenting what she never did in life, and a young married couple with an infant daughter facing the looming reality of a future family suicide to avoid the agony of radioactive poisoning — live the final months of life on this planet is moving and intense. Nevil Shute tells his story in simple, straightforward prose and that somehow makes it more devastating. A mysterious radio signal from Seattle leads to a sub mission back to the States. The resolution of that mystery is compelling and a shock. In the end however, you are reading about not just the end of these people, but the end of all life on the planet and millions of years of evolution because of our utter stupidity. It is a compelling and well written story that is absolutely unforgettable. The original movie adaptation is top notch. This is not an easy read but it is well worth the time.