

Loading... Earth Abides (1949)by George R. Stewart
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History was an artist, maintaining the idea but changing the details, like a composer keeping the same theme but dulling it to a minor or lifting by an octave, now crooning it with violins, now blaring it on trumpets. I chose to reread this Science Fiction classic because of the Coronavirus Pandemic and my fond recall of this story I had read as a teenager. With age comes much more appreciation for subtler things such as the interplay of history with 'reality' and the author's use of metaphor highlighting social and religious change. Isherwood Williams starts out as the seemingly sole survivor of a great infectious disaster wiping the Earth of most of it's inhabitants. Despite Ish's every attempt to raise the children as thinkers and to lead them away from superstition, his journey, as an intellectual overthinking philosopher, metamorphases into the leader of The Tribe, then ultimately, into a Deity. Earth Abides is a love story to Humankind, a sonnet to the power of resiliency and one of the most well written Science Fiction books I've ever had the pleasure of reading. Pandemic novels may be all the rage right now, do yourself a favor and take the time to read Earth Abides. You'll be uplifted and cheerful at the end, rather than scared and anxious. This reminded me of The Lord of the Flies. To me, it feels like its companion piece. While LotF feels the loss of civilization in a generation's span to be woeful (cf. Lovecraft), EA argues that the loss of civilization is necessary and proper (cf. R.E. Howard). Moving piece; biblical and grave in tone; a bit slow in execution, but a cornerstone piece of philosophical sci-fi! And don't even get me started on the rich symbolism of Ish's omnipresent hammer! Even sixty years ago the Earth Firster's were crying out how Man is destroying the planet I read a kindle edition that could have used some editing, but it was a decent story. Strange writing style, but the point came across. Nice to read a post-apocalyptic story that didn't devolve into war, war, war. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to Publisher SeriesHeyne Science Fiction & Fantasy (3071/3072) Science Fiction Book Club (3676) SF Masterworks (12) Is contained inHas as a reference guide/companion
An instant classic upon its original publication in 1949 and winner of the first International Fantasy Award, Earth Abides ranks with On the Beach and Riddley Walker as one of our most provocative and finely wrought post-apocalyptic works of literature. Its impact is still fresh, its lessons timeless. When a plague of unprecedented virulence sweeps the globe, the human race is all but wiped out. In the aftermath, as the great machine of civilization slowly, inexorably, breaks down, only a few shattered survivors remain to struggle against the slide into barbarism . . . or extinction. This is the story of one such survivor, Isherwood "Ish" Williams, an intellectual loner who embraces the grim duty of bearing witness to what may be humanity's final days. But then he finds Em, a wise and courageous woman who coaxes his stunned heart back to life and teaches him to hope again. Together, they will face unimaginable challenges as they sow the seeds of a new beginning. "One of the finest of all post-holocaust novels." -- The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction No library descriptions found. |
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![]() GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.52 — Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1900-1944LC ClassificationRatingAverage:![]()
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Cuando empecé a leerla por sugerencia de un amigo, pensé que no me iba a gustar, que iba a ser uno de esos libros que envejecen mal y que me iba a costar mucho empatizar; sin embargo, una vez la empecé apenas pude parar de leerla en cualquier rato libre que tuviera. El contexto no ha envejecido demasiado mal (un páramo post-apocalíptico es igual en casi cualquier época) y las preocupaciones del protagonista son tan semejantes a las mías que todo fluía rápidamente mientras hacía de su situación la mía. Aunque, como ya he dicho, su conclusión ha hecho mella en mis esperanzas; al menos ahora estoy preparado para nuestro propio yermo.
Sin conocerlo previamente, ahora lo considero imprescindible en cualquier biblioteca de ciencia-ficción que se precie de no quedarse solo en la superficie del género. De hecho se lo recomendaría a cualquier persona que sepa leer y que crea que los de su alrededor no: ratifica gran parte de nuestros temores. (