Survival planet: A Novel of the Future

by Arthur R. Tofte

Stated first printing. A fine copy in a fine dust jacket.

187 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Arthur Reginald Tofte was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 1902.

He also used the pseudonym Arthur Tofter

Reviews

[Jon Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this as a scanned paperback copy on the Internet Archive. Published in 1977, it's a sequel to the author's "Crash Landing on Iduna" which was one of the early offerings in Harlequin's short-lived Laser Books line. In the first book, the Everson family escapes an overcrowded and polluted Earth and travels through space looking to find a new home. Their ship crashes on a planet they name Iduna, and the five family members establish a bucolic Swiss-Family-Robinson-style existence. In this sequel, years have passed when a ship from Earth unexpectedly arrives in space over Iduna, loaded with a desparate group of government officials. Conditions on Earth have deteriorated even further and those in power have fled to Iduna where they intend to establish a colony. The newcomers clash with the Eversons, and by means too complicated to describe in this review, three of the family and two defecting crewmen hijack the newly-arrived starship and make the 6-month voyage back to Earth. There they find chaos - food supplies have completely run out and billions are starving and turning to violence and savagery. Cannibalism is rumored. So after barely a day on Earth, they turn right back around and make the 6-month return trip to Iduna. They arrive barely ahead of 3 additional ships that have fled from Earth with the remaining top government officials. Things are getting crowded for the Eversons. I doubt that anyone who might read this review will then be interested in reading the book, but I won't give any further spoilers as to how it all ends. The book is a short read at less than 200 pages. The story had some odd juxtapositions. There are rhapsodic descriptions of the peace and beauty of Iduna, but there is also a surprising amount of violence. Many, many people are burned to cinders with laser rifles, crushed under the treads of tanks, or beaten to death, but it's all described non-graphically. The whole book seemed off-kilter. Looking through the listing of the author's other books, it doesn't appear there's a third entry in the series, and that's probably a good thing. Three out of five stars.