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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41913.The_Children_of_Men?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="The Children of Men" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169779918m/41913.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41913.The_Children_of_Men?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">The Children of Men</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/344522.P_D_James">P.D. James</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/18734943?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>I don't know what I think about this book. It's undeniably VERY well-done, but aside form that I'm unsure. I felt like at times she was patching a bit purple, but it was all right. The character of Theo is well-done, but there's little explanation for why he's become the way he is: he waxes all morose about himself for being unable to feel the emotion of love, but I seriously doubt that anyone would just so casually become that way. Albert Camus' Mersault didn't feel love, but we find that more believable because he didn't feel much else, either. Theo just moons around moping about how he's never loved, and I got a little sick of that. She tried to explain it by showing how no one ever showed him love, and that's generally enough of an explanation for me, but I still thought it was pretty irritating after a while.
<br/>She really thought through this whole idea of what a gradually-dying society would be like. I generally found it extremely convincing. I have a few small quibbles-- if Xan keeps the society so safe, why do the Painted Faces exist, and why do they roam at large? Shouldn't he be able to quash them? Also, I fail to see why the Church of England should have fallen apart and abandoned traditional masses. It doesn't make sense. Other religions clearly survived the Omega, but for some reason she's got England operating as a society that, while remaining wholly religious, seems to contain no religions. It doesn't make sense. The religious leaders who run the fads, in the beginning of the book, seem reasonable, but the idea that the CoE should have abandoned the traditional mass and fallen into total disrepair strikes me as a contrivance. It probably means something to Brits that I can't identify-- perhaps it's supposed to symbolize the collapse of the British political system as it was originally known?
<br/>I have no quarrel with the fact that she chose not to reveal the reason for the Omega, and I don't mind that she stopped the story at the birth and did not go on to explain the rejuvenation of society. The book is about the people and about the ideas, not about the situation.
<br/>LAST complaint, I swear: WHY the f is Xan named that? There's absolutely no reason for it. None whatsoever. It is a jarring factor. The rest of the book is so typical: she's trying to show what would happen to REGULAR people if this happened to them. But throw in someone named 'Xan' and all the verisimilitude goes out the window. Stupid-ass decision, in my opinion. Better to have given him a real, though unusual, first name. She did well enough painting him as the totally-pragmatic, emotionless dictator; why did she feel the need to screw with him like this? Oh well.
<br/>I reccommend it. It's not spectacular, but it's fascinating and it holds attention. I suppose it should be read.
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/350677?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Laura's review
rating:
bookshelves: fiction, sci-fi

I don't know what I think about this book. It's undeniably VERY well-done, but aside form that I'm unsure. I felt like at times she was patching a bit purple, but it was all right. The character of Theo is well-done, but there's little explanation for why he's become the way he is: he waxes all morose about himself for being unable to feel the emotion of love, but I seriously doubt that anyone would just so casually become that way. Albert Camus' Mersault didn't feel love, but we find that more believable because he didn't feel much else, either. Theo just moons around moping about how he's never loved, and I got a little sick of that. She tried to explain it by showing how no one ever showed him love, and that's generally enough of an explanation for me, but I still thought it was pretty irritating after a while.
She really thought through this whole idea of what a gradually-dying society would be like. I generally found it extremely convincing. I have a few small quibbles-- if Xan k...more I don't know what I think about this book. It's undeniably VERY well-done, but aside form that I'm unsure. I felt like at times she was patching a bit purple, but it was all right. The character of Theo is well-done, but there's little explanation for why he's become the way he is: he waxes all morose about himself for being unable to feel the emotion of love, but I seriously doubt that anyone would just so casually become that way. Albert Camus' Mersault didn't feel love, but we find that more believable because he didn't feel much else, either. Theo just moons around moping about how he's never loved, and I got a little sick of that. She tried to explain it by showing how no one ever showed him love, and that's generally enough of an explanation for me, but I still thought it was pretty irritating after a while.
She really thought through this whole idea of what a gradually-dying society would be like. I generally found it extremely convincing. I have a few small quibbles-- if Xan keeps the society so safe, why do the Painted Faces exist, and why do they roam at large? Shouldn't he be able to quash them? Also, I fail to see why the Church of England should have fallen apart and abandoned traditional masses. It doesn't make sense. Other religions clearly survived the Omega, but for some reason she's got England operating as a society that, while remaining wholly religious, seems to contain no religions. It doesn't make sense. The religious leaders who run the fads, in the beginning of the book, seem reasonable, but the idea that the CoE should have abandoned the traditional mass and fallen into total disrepair strikes me as a contrivance. It probably means something to Brits that I can't identify-- perhaps it's supposed to symbolize the collapse of the British political system as it was originally known?
I have no quarrel with the fact that she chose not to reveal the reason for the Omega, and I don't mind that she stopped the story at the birth and did not go on to explain the rejuvenation of society. The book is about the people and about the ideas, not about the situation.
LAST complaint, I swear: WHY the f is Xan named that? There's absolutely no reason for it. None whatsoever. It is a jarring factor. The rest of the book is so typical: she's trying to show what would happen to REGULAR people if this happened to them. But throw in someone named 'Xan' and all the verisimilitude goes out the window. Stupid-ass decision, in my opinion. Better to have given him a real, though unusual, first name. She did well enough painting him as the totally-pragmatic, emotionless dictator; why did she feel the need to screw with him like this? Oh well.
I reccommend it. It's not spectacular, but it's fascinating and it holds attention. I suppose it should be read....less

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