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The Day Of The Triffids

3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 · rating details · 27,318 ratings · 960 reviews

The beginning of the end seemed harmless enough: a night of mysterious green flashes in the sky. When people woke up blind the next morning, civilization suddenly ground to a halt.

And then the triffids began to move in . . .

Facing loneliness, confusion, and constant threats from a world gone insane, one man must overcome his fear and discover a way to reestablish his world...more

Hardcover, 302 pages

Published 1977 by Michael Joseph (first published 1951)

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Sep 17, 2012 Richard rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review can now be found at Expendable Mudge Muses Aloud!

30 likes · like · see review

May 09, 2013 Megan Baxter rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For some reason, I had the impression that Day of the Triffids was about the sudden attack of man-killing mobile plants. So I was surprised when it was revealed that the triffids had been around for a long time and a worldwide case of blindness was the cause of the catastrophe - the triffids merely took advantage of it.

For the main character, laid up in hospital with his eyes bandaged, he missed the spectacular meteor shower that seems to have caused the problem, and is one of the few who can st...more

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Aug 15, 2008 Dan Schwent rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of survival horror and early sf

Shelves: early-sf

Everything seemed fine with the domesticated Triffids until the Earth passed through the tail of a comet, blinding much of the world's population. It was then the Triffids struck!

I love the proto-sf of the first half of the 20th century, when the lines between sf and horror were more blurred than they are now. Day of the Triffids is one of those books that many things that came later owe a debt to. The roots of the survival horror genre can be found within its pages, in my opinion. Many zombie f...more

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Jul 09, 2010 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, easton-press, horror-classic, science-horror, 1930-1953, monsters

4.0 stars. I am very glad that I finally got around to reading this classic post-apocalyptic novel. I really liked Wyndham's writing style and the way he presented the story. It was well written, well plotted and kept me interested throughout the book. As with most really good post-apocalyptic science fiction novels, the true point of the story is the exploration of human nature by showing how different people act when the society they have grown up in falls apart. Recommended!!!

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Dec 04, 2011 Jessica rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wyndham is an engaging writer but this is pretty silly stuff. Well, I could handle the comet or satellite-induced blindness and even the triffids, these walking carnivorous stinging murderous plants...but I wasn't prepared for this as a romance novel as well. More fantasy. The heroics of our hero got to me. Written in 1951, it is in some ways like a 19th century novel. I'd have liked more focus on the breakdown of society and formation of new ones...well, that is here to some extent, but in the...more

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Sep 05, 2011 I, Curmudgeon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-book, classic, creature-feature, really-good-read, science-fiction, thriller

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book should be considered a "hands down" classic of literature. It's a smooth read, written in 1951 that reads like the smooth victorian prose of E.A. Poe or the cultured tone of H.G. Wells. The writing both carried a subtely complex lesson wrapped in the riddle of the story. It is likely this piece of work that inspired many of the best zombie Appocolypse stories more than H.G. Wells, war of the worlds.

There is so much to talk about I'll warn you now. I want to talk about all of it so, th...more

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Sep 17, 2012 Mark rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: the-natural-world, world-going-to-hell-in-a-handcart

Read this for the first time years ago, must have been when I was about 15 but suddenly thought I would post a few Wyndham reviews whilst eating my lunch cos he is a brilliant writer; although John Wyndham and a comfortably swallowed lunch probably are not the best of bedfellows. The story in some ways is of a skewed natural world in all its many guises rising up and seeking revenge. Whether it be, initially, the comet shower which most people go out to gaze upon and are then blinded by its affe...more

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Sep 16, 2007 Penny rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I was about 14, I read my father's old Penguin classic copy -- a bright orange paperback from the 1950s. And absolutely loved it. I've read it countless times since, and is one of the books I think about most. Officially my favorite book.

Having said that -- it has no literary pretensions, most characters are fairly one dimensional, and the triffids themselves (walking, thinking, carnivorous plants) I have always thought of as a rather annoying distraction. What gripped me, and grips me sti...more

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Jan 31, 2008 Bill rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

The Day of the Triffids had such a great and promising start to it. A man wakes up in a hospital only to realize that he has been spared from a cataclysmic meteor shower that has left most of the remaining
population either dead or blind.
Somehow, this has something to do with the Triffids, a bizarre plant whose origins are a mystery. As the story progresses, more facts and history of the Triffids unfold to reveal sinister characteristics.

Unfortunately for me, my interest began to wane halfway thr...more

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Apr 28, 2010 Elliott rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Day of the Triffids is representative of a certain type of Cold War English novel. It goes like this: England is the last bastion of politesse and moral rectitude in a world awash in Communism and licentiousness. I'm sure there are similar narratives in the Cold War literature of other countries but it always strikes me as a distinctly English point of view. In these novels, the hero is the quintessential Englishman: "Dash it all, woman, you've got no sense! Miraculous how I can drink such l...more

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May 13, 2008 Chris rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: apocolypse, science-fiction, top-shelf

I have a long fondness for Apocalyptic novels. The Stand was one of my early favorites from junior high school, and I really enjoyed its cousin by Robert McCammon, Swan Song. There's something about the End Of The World that just grabs me and won't let go. Maybe it's the thought that, should the world end, I would be one of the survivors. The rule of law would break down, all shackles of modern life would be loosed, and I would finally be free to choose my own destiny. Which, knowing me, would p...more I have a long fondness for Apocalyptic novels. The Stand was one of my early favorites from junior high school, and I really enjoyed its cousin by Robert McCammon, Swan Song. There's something about the End Of The World that just grabs me and won't let go. Maybe it's the thought that, should the world end, I would be one of the survivors. The rule of law would break down, all shackles of modern life would be loosed, and I would finally be free to choose my own destiny. Which, knowing me, would probably be very short and end up with me getting shot by some kind of Mad Max pirate tribe.

I can say with some certainty, however, that in this book's scenario I would not be coming out on top. Because I love astronomy.

Let me explain. The end of the world came in two parts, one of which was definitely of our own doing.

It started with a comet. Or a meteor shower. Or something, but whatever it was, it lit up the sky. Green streaks of light brightened the night skies around the world, and everyone who could go and watch them did so. I'm a sucker for a natural light show, so I probably would have spent the night watching the skies and enjoying myself. And I would have woken up stone blind the next day.

That in itself - the vast, vast majority of the human population on Earth being blind - would have been a pretty good apocalypse. Wyndham describes rashes of suicides, accidental deaths and, of course, murder in just the first few days. Without vision, the carefully crafted world we've made kind of falls apart. But it would have been survivable. Co-operation groups spring up pretty quickly, both voluntary and otherwise, where sighted people assist the blind in surviving. It would have been tough, yes, but not impossible. If not for the Triffids.

While we don't know what caused the green comet, the Triffids were definitely our fault. Bioengineering gone haywire, the Triffids are ambulatory carnivorous plants with a poison sting that can kill a grown man from ten feet away. And while they're not intelligent, they are remarkably... aware. They follow sound, they learn and co-operate in hunting, and are very difficult to eradicate.

But by themselves, they're manageable. Their stingers can be removed, even though they grow back eventually, and they make interesting garden plants. And they're immensely profitable - the oil derived from a Triffid outdoes every other kind of vegetable oil available. In normal times, the Triffids are under human control.

Two problems, when put together, make for a truly terrifying end. And an exciting story. Wyndham has created a brave new world for us, with a wide variety of characters who all react to their new situation in different - and realistic - ways. From the girl who believes that the Americans will save her to the man who believes that polygamy is the way to a brighter future, everyone has an idea on how to survive.

But first they have to deal with the Triffids....(less)

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Aug 14, 2007 Cagney rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I don't know what my deal is with these post-apocalyptic yarns. This one is very insightful, but less theoretical and obtuse than The Road. I gave The Road a higher rating though because there are still moments and excerpts of it that cross my mind from time to time. And, although while I was reading Triffids I thought, "I think I like this one better," I ended up forgetting much about it by the time I was done. Perhaps, because it is plot driven and plot intricacies are often lost when they are...more

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May 24, 2012 Andreea Daia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2012, science-fiction, sf-masterworks, recommended, post-apocalyptic, classics

Maybe it's our jaded senses cause by the continuously bombardment by the television with death, gore, and violence... Maybe it's Wyndham's rather detached, impersonal, deadpan depiction of pain and sorrow... Or maybe (and this is I believe much of the cause) it is the author's deliberately attempted to portray a beginning rather than an end. Either way, while reading The Day of the Triffids I never felt daunted or shocked, let alone horrified of this version of apocalypse.

While he could have foc...more Maybe it's our jaded senses cause by the continuously bombardment by the television with death, gore, and violence... Maybe it's Wyndham's rather detached, impersonal, deadpan depiction of pain and sorrow... Or maybe (and this is I believe much of the cause) it is the author's deliberately attempted to portray a beginning rather than an end. Either way, while reading The Day of the Triffids I never felt daunted or shocked, let alone horrified of this version of apocalypse.

While he could have focused, like in José Saramago's Blindness, on the crumbling of a civilization, John Wyndham chooses instead to write about building of a new world. He is at times melancholic about the loss of the old world, but covertly he seems to consider the disaster a fortuity meant to give humanity a fresh new start: All the old problems, the stale ones, both personal and general, had been solved by one mighty slash. The entire story is imbued with hints that what happened might be for the best because it gives society a chance to redesign itself: "We have not simply to start building again; we have to start thinking again."

Because of course in the end, it wasn't a comet that destroyed the civilization as we knew it, it was humanity itself by hoarding mass-destruction weapons. There is more or less subtle criticism of the militaristic trend across the entire novel, but in the end it become quite overt:

“Do you think we could—do you think we should be justified in starting a myth to help them (Note: the children)? A story of a world that was wonderfully clever, but so wicked that it had to be destroyed—or destroyed itself by accident? Something like the Flood, again? [...]

“Yes...” I said, considering it. “Yes. It’s often a good idea to tell children the truth. Kind of makes things easier for them later on—only why pretend it’s a myth?”

Yet, nowhere John Wyndham stops proffering his conviction that humankind deserves and can be saved. The Day of the Triffids is an great novel, hinting at humanity's need to change its ways before it's too late.(less)

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Apr 13, 2009 Ubik rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own

WOW! This was so absolutely amazing and not what I thought it was going to be. I avoided it for years thinking it was "killer plants taking over the world 50s B-movie style" but I was fnugging WRONG. If ever there was a piece of literature (or any other media for that matter) that so understated yet made so believable such an at-first-glance ridiculous premise, it is this novel. The characterizations were wonderful. I really knew Bill, Coker, and Josella right off the bat in fewer words without...more

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Jul 16, 2008 Raegan Butcher rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: horticulturalists

First read this in the sixth grade and it has always been a rather fondly recalled experience.I'm a sucker for good first lines and Day of the Triffids has one of the best in the sci fi genre, right up there with the opening lines of I Am Legend.
"When a day that you happen to know is Wednesday starts off by sounding like Sunday, there is something seriously wrong somewhere."

7 likes · like · see review

Jun 02, 2007 Gabriel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone interested in what makes people tick

The scariest part of this book is not the man-eating plants, but the surrounding circumstances. John Wyndham (whose novels have only impressed me) knows the focus of his book lies in dealing with the destruction of a society based on sight, not on the attack of the plants, and this raises the level of what could have been just a B Movie book to classic status.

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Jun 12, 2007 John rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Probably doesn't deserve a five star rating but I loved it. Fans of zombie/post-apocalyptic fiction should enjoy. There was a great BBC mini-series based on this book made during the seventies I think.

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Mar 10, 2013 Oscar rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Okay, this post-apocalyptic novel turned out to be not what I expected. Judging by the name of the book, and after reading its back cover teaser, I was expecting it to be centred on triffids slowly taking over the world. That is to say, huge, venomous, walking plants eating people left and right. But triffids, in spite of their scary physical appearance and even scarier displays of intelligence, do not play as big a role in the story as themes such as the universality of morals (whatever that is...more

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Mar 26, 2013 ^ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Lovers of classic science fiction

Shelves: science-fiction, fiction, no-isbn, books-with-10001-to-100000-ratings, review-liked

The BBC TV adaptation of “The Day of the Triffids” has remained at the back of my mind for many years now. It was only relatively recently that I found a half-decent ‘pre-owned’ (several owners I should imagine) Penguin edition (I just so LOVE the cover art) of John Wyndham’s book, at an all too tempting price in a charity (thrift) shop. It dawned on me that here was a text I’d not read before.

Six months later, reminded by the recent Chelyabinsk meteorite (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic....more The BBC TV adaptation of “The Day of the Triffids” has remained at the back of my mind for many years now. It was only relatively recently that I found a half-decent ‘pre-owned’ (several owners I should imagine) Penguin edition (I just so LOVE the cover art) of John Wyndham’s book, at an all too tempting price in a charity (thrift) shop. It dawned on me that here was a text I’d not read before.

Six months later, reminded by the recent Chelyabinsk meteorite (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic...) and recalling nightmares about triffid stings, I started reading.

I enjoyed John Wyndham’s writing. He writes an unsettling, rattling & entertaining story; questioning expectations of, and about, what is ‘normal’; what strengthens human society, and what unpicks it. As with all good sci-fi, it’s definitely safer not to drill down into questioning too closely the believability of the reality and accuracy of it all. Read as a warning against arrogance and complacency, this is a great book. Read as a survival guide, well, there are just too many potential pitfalls.

Wyndham produces some really neat new definitions, such as a “spizzard” (pg.89); a cross between a spiv and a wizard. I can only surmise that J.K. Rowling hasn’t read “The Day of the Triffids” because if she had, she surely would have identified “spizzard” as ‘must-have’ wizard school slang.

Every so often I was delighted to find a really good UGGH moment, such as the wonderfully matter of fact statement: “Triffid stems do not snap – but they can be mangled. This one was mangled thoroughly before I stood up” (p.74). As an expression of one species pure hatred of another I thought it the final word.

The overall value, post two World Wars, post-Hiroshima and post-Nagasaki, of “The Day of the Triffids”, is firmly focussed onto the optimism and maintenance of hope; even though for much of the time the odds of a future assurance of human life on Earth do appear to be uncompromisingly less than evens. Has much changed since? All manner of examples of more recent evidence can all too readily be recalled to support a distinctly unsettling feeling that our human race is indeed intrinsically incapable of avoiding the destruction of its own species.

Despite a too readily available tendency to wallow in doom & gloom, there remained an intangible something, a quality of hope uplifting in Wyndham’s writing that left me … well, … feeling considerably upbeat, cheerful and happy to be a human; and NOT a triffid!

Classic.
(less)

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May 27, 2007 Simon rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sf

You know, I was going to give this a two, but it really started to grow on me.

I'm still not sure it deserves its status as 'classic SF', unless it is as an example of one of the first of the 'post-apocalyptic' sub-genre. It's definitely readable, but something about the whole nature of the catastrophe doesn't really ring true-- as a recent documentary observed, it's a very middle class sort of apocalypse.

The worst, or most jarring, part of it is the highly dubious display of sexual poitics, mo...more You know, I was going to give this a two, but it really started to grow on me.

I'm still not sure it deserves its status as 'classic SF', unless it is as an example of one of the first of the 'post-apocalyptic' sub-genre. It's definitely readable, but something about the whole nature of the catastrophe doesn't really ring true-- as a recent documentary observed, it's a very middle class sort of apocalypse.

The worst, or most jarring, part of it is the highly dubious display of sexual poitics, moreso for being delivered apparently without irony. Whilst I can accept that this was very much of its time, reading it today you can't help but wince over the very clear gender roles all the character adopt, and the disapproval with which anyone breaking out of them is treated. For all the characters' talk of creating a 'new world', some things are assumed as simply the order of nature.

On the more positive side, I hadn't read the book before, so I was a little surprised by the way the Triffids are handled. After a summary of their history, they barely feature in the first half of the novel, and when they do occur they are deliberately played down as an immediate threat. They really only come into play as an explicitly malign (perhaps even malevolent) force in the final 30 or so pages, but since the reader has been clued in by the very title of the book, there is a remorseless inevitability to their gradual rise and ultimate control of the situation.

Particularly effective is the sense of mystery about Triffids in general, which eventually overwhelms the reader's sense of how ridiculous the concept is. Their origin is described in deliberately confused terms, and the reader never really finds out much about them (to what extent can they really communicate? how intelligent are they?) so they become a force of nature.

The book resembles nothing so much as the modern zombie film, in terms of threat and range of characters. The genre is at its best (or purest) when the characters struggle against, but eventually succumb to, their inevitable destruction. Happy endings never seem to work. So given the open end of the novel, I really don't hold out much hope for the Masens' long term survival...(less)

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May 24, 2011 Katie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"It is that those of us that start on this task will all have their parts to play. The men must work. The women must have babies. Unless you can agree to that, there can be no place for you in our community."

Remind me when the end of the world comes to hold up in a Sam's Club and shoot anything with a cock that comes near me.

The amusing thing is that the women aren't mortified by the idea of forced breeding, but the abolition of *gasp* the marriage law! Good old 1950s sexism.

Josella said, "If yo...more

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Shatchan Oh Lord, how I agree with you! If I had to choose between fending for myself in a world of Triffids, or living a "secure" existence of being chained t...more
updated May 22, 2012 09:39am

Joz Hunter I didn't read it like that. I read it as an exploration of such an idea, such a society, in a book about exploration of societies. Like most post-apoc...more
Apr 17, 2013 06:16pm

Jul 22, 2010 Petra rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I think I liked this story more now than the first time I read it.
John Wyndham sci-fi stories are the perfect post-apocolyptic stories. His characters are real, the situations they find themselves in are real (or would be real if they happened), there's always a strange "something" to give a twist (in this case, the Triffids). Always, Wyndham's books are hopeful, giving the humans who survive the opportunity to rebuild.
Now I want to reread the rest of Wyndham's books!

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Jun 19, 2011 Debra rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sai-king-recommends, horror-supernatural, apocalyptic-dystopian, mystery-thriller

Stephen King recommended author as his "favorite in the field" (science fiction) mentioned in Chapter 2 of the Berkley's 1983 paperback edition of Danse Macabre.

This book noted as "important to the genre we have been discussing" from Danse Macabre, published in 1981.

I can't believe I managed to miss this one when I was growing up. I don't even remember seeing the movie. A story ahead of it's time and very intriguing. I raced through it caring deeply for the protagonists and their chances of sur...more

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Sep 16, 2007 Elsa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: apocalypse junkies

A survivor narrates, telling us how an odd new plant cultivar and a terrible celestial accident intersect to bring civilization to its knees.

Though it's easy to dismiss this book as trite sci-fi schlock, author John Wyndham focuses less o the whiz-bang elements of science and more on the crumbling of society's agreements --- the slim line of the social contract that keeps us safe. (If you were were chilled by the military compound Danny Boyle's film "28 Days Later," you may find its inspiration...more

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Jan 29, 2008 Keith Rainville rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-time-favorite

An often overlooked modern classic, and any fan of the zombie genre should read this. It's predicament done right - danger with a sense of gravity, scary and leads the imagination to even scarier places.

What's worse than a world infested with aggressive carnivorous plants? A world where 99% of the population has gone blind and is at their mercy. Those "lucky" enough to have retained their sight face a whole new series of dangers.

An author that really thought through the ramifications of the pred...more

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Aug 09, 2011 Jesus added it · review of another edition

Una historia interesante centrada, sobre todo, en la fragilidad de lo que llamamos 'el sistema'. Todo funciona perfectamente, como una maquinaria bien engrasada, para que nuestra vida sea fácil y cómoda (todo lo posible). Los logros de la Civilización son asombrosos, todos sustentados sobre la base de 'el sistema'. Pero 'el sistema' es extremadamente frágil, todo marcha a la perfección hasta que surge un problema y todo se desmorona rápidamente sin posibilidad de recuperación. Se clasifica el li...more

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Sep 27, 2010 Teresa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Before I read this classic novel by John Wyndham, all I knew about it was that it involved killer plants. In actuality, the plants, which are known as triffids, are merely a complication; the sudden onset of blindness among most of the world population is the more serious problem. There are some suggestions that the triffids are somehow behind the blindness, but these suggestions are not explored in much detail. Survival of the human race is the paramount issue for the people of this book; why t...more Before I read this classic novel by John Wyndham, all I knew about it was that it involved killer plants. In actuality, the plants, which are known as triffids, are merely a complication; the sudden onset of blindness among most of the world population is the more serious problem. There are some suggestions that the triffids are somehow behind the blindness, but these suggestions are not explored in much detail. Survival of the human race is the paramount issue for the people of this book; why they are in this situation is beside the point.[return][return]Because survival of the human race is at stake, the people in the novel find that they must rethink all of their assumptions about right and wrong and how society should be structured. If, for example, women vastly outnumber men, and humanity is dying out, does monogamy continue to make sense? If an entire segment of society needs such extensive care that others have no time to pursue any activities other than caring for those in need, does it make sense to continue to provide that care? And in such a situation, who really has� or should have� the power to make decisions for the good of all?[return][return]Wyndham� s novel has all the strengths of the best science fiction. It raises difficult questions without giving obvious answers. It provides moments of terror and glimmers of hope. It forces readers to question their most basic assumptions about what it means to be human and what it means to be good. It deserves a place among the sci-fi classics.[return][return]Triffids is not, however, a perfect book; it has many of the flaws typical of science fiction. The central characters are likable enough, but they rarely rise above being types. Throughout the book, William Masen, the main character, moves from place to place, witnessing many different groups who have established their own ways of coping with the crisis. In most cases, he leaves quickly, sometimes just as things are getting interesting. I sometimes found this frustrating, but I think it� s a limitation inherent in the use of first-person narrative. Either Masen sees lots of different groups of people for a short time each or he only encounters a few, leaving certain interesting ideas out of the narrative completely.[return][return]Overall, I liked this book quite a lot and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys science fiction or dystopian fiction.[return][return]See my complete review at my blog.(less)

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Mar 26, 2009 Steve rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Day of the Triffids. First read in my teenage years, this was a 20-plus year return to Wyndham and a welcome reunion with a favourite author of that time. This novel is more relevant to today’s society than when I read it first time in the early 1980s, and it offers a remarkable poignancy to the science fiction given that John Wyndham penned this novel only a few years after the end of the second World War. The title comes from the rise of genetically modified killer plants, the Triffids, a...more

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Feb 28, 2009 Dreadlocksmile rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Back in 1951 John Wyndham first published his novel "The Day Of The Triffids". Since then the novel has been hailed as a sci-fi masterpiece and has become one of the cornerstones in the post-apocalyptic fiction subgenre.

Within "The Day Of The Triffids" Wyndham explores humanities need for power and its inevitable downfall towards its own destruction. Wyndam probes away at our lustful need for supposed `civilised development' whilst pointing towards greed as the real motivation towards such adva...more Back in 1951 John Wyndham first published his novel "The Day Of The Triffids". Since then the novel has been hailed as a sci-fi masterpiece and has become one of the cornerstones in the post-apocalyptic fiction subgenre.

Within "The Day Of The Triffids" Wyndham explores humanities need for power and its inevitable downfall towards its own destruction. Wyndam probes away at our lustful need for supposed `civilised development' whilst pointing towards greed as the real motivation towards such advancements.

Tackling the idea that humanity could potentially wipe itself out with not just one dramatic incident but the combination of two or more events feeding off each other, the novel's fictional premise holds key ideas for the state of the real world.

The tale follows the character, Bill Mason, as the world around him slowly collapses leaving just a few survivors who were lucky enough to escape blindness by not witnessing a once in a lifetime event. With ninety-nine percent of the world's entire population now sightless, the remaining visually sighted are left with an enormous moral dilemma as well as the seemingly impossible problem of survival.

The storyline delivers twists and turns throughout the tale, as groups of individuals attempt to reclaim what is left of humanity. The reader quickly learns that no two answers are right, with difficult decisions often seemingly harsh, are perhaps the only real solution.

From the outset, "The Day Of The Triffids" keeps up a fast and nail biting pace, that never seems to let up. With each decision comes an unforeseen outcome that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Running for just 272 pages, Wyndham crams in a tight storyline that will swallow you in to this desperate new world.

Like in much post-apocalyptic fiction, the story has a bleak and downbeat atmosphere, with every positive action bringing a beaming ray of hope. Wyndham cleverly plays on this, until finally ending the novel with a question mark to the final outcome of humankind's survival.

This is an important and powerful novel that can be enjoyed by all ages. It's a book that you'll find yourself returning to time and again. This is one of the best pieces of post-apocalyptic fiction ever.(less)

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Jan 31, 2009 Mia rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2009, sf-f

Let me get this straight. You have a country of teachers, doctors, farmers, soldiers, leaders, etc., and when most of them become blind they all pretty much become entirely useless and irrational and incapable of planning or thought? I mean, the author does layer extra complications onto the plot -- the titular triffids (which are ominous (and apparently all the Russians' fault)), an unexplained plague -- but come on! And that's not the only unwarranted presumptuous premise that gets presented....more

2 likes · like · see review

Ubik Do you really think that if 99% of the population became blind even if they were all scientists that they would be able to function? Really picture th...more
updated Apr 13, 2009 10:37pm

Eric Troy How are the Triffids "titular"? I mean, they may be titular plants, but they can't be titular Triffids. That's like saying a "titular elm".

Anyway, yo...more
updated Sep 01, 2010 07:57am

Shatchan Totally agree. I can imagine that the fallout of a "pretty-much-everyone-is-blind" scenario would be huge and devastating, but Wyndham went a little t...more
May 21, 2012 08:46pm

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About John Wyndham

John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris was the son of a barrister. After trying a number of careers, including farming, law, commercial art and advertising, he started writing short stories in 1925. After serving in the civil Service and the Army during the war, he went back to writing. Adopting the name John Wyndham, he started writing a form of science fiction that he called 'logical fantasy. A...more

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Quotes from The Day of the Triffids

“When a day that you happen to know is Wednesday starts off by sounding like Sunday, there is something seriously wrong somewhere.” — 49 people liked it

“It must be, I thought, one of the race's most persistent and comforting hallucinations to trust that "it can't happen here" -- that one's own time and place is beyond cataclysm.” — 42 people liked it

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