Alas, Babylon (Perennial Classics) in Easley Library Bookworms

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Mar 20, 2008 Werner rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction

Even as a kid and a teen, I've always had a keen interest in fictional and dramatic post-apocalyptic scenarios; I've never tried to analyze why, but perhaps the appeal of this kind of speculation is that it speaks to deep-seated modern fears and concerns about the future that all of us feel. It's a theme that's been around in science fiction since the early 19th century. In the aftermath of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and under the tension of the Cold War, fear of nuclear war was pervasive, not only Even as a kid and a teen, I've always had a keen interest in fictional and dramatic post-apocalyptic scenarios; I've never tried to analyze why, but perhaps the appeal of this kind of speculation is that it speaks to deep-seated modern fears and concerns about the future that all of us feel. It's a theme that's been around in science fiction since the early 19th century. In the aftermath of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and under the tension of the Cold War, fear of nuclear war was pervasive, not only in the SF community but among the general public, and nuclear holocaust became the typical agent of apocalypse in this sub-genre during that era. This is one of the earliest and best novels with this premise.

There's some set-up of our small-town setting (Fort Repose, Florida) and introduction of important characters at the beginning of this novel, and some treatment of the nuclear war itself. But it's over in less than a day; the concern of the author is how people cope in the aftermath. Not a military target, Fort Repose wasn't bombed. But overnight, the electrical power grid is gone, the economic infrastructure that brought in food and fuel, etc. from outside the community is gone, and paper money is worthless. Deadly radiation is a potential problem. Food (not to mention insulin for diabetics) can't be refrigerated anymore. If you want to get anywhere, you walk or pedal a bike. Most of these conditions would exist in any small American town in the event of a technological collapse today; so for a 1959 book, it's surprisingly relevant to present possibilities. (The main difference, of course, is that in Fort Repose there are no computers and no Internet to disrupt, so that isn't an issue.)

This is sociological science fiction at its best, a revealing look at how individuals and a community might cope with unprecedented challenge and hardship. (Or fail to cope --some people commit suicide or descend into madness.) For some people, it's an opportunity to turn into murderous brigands. Not everybody who tries to survive sanely and decently will live to do so. But others rise to the challenge of day-to-day survival and find strength to go on. And for our protagonist, hard-drinking and rather feckless young lawyer Randy Bragg, the crisis is the catalyst that brings the latent leadership abilities and sense of responsibility he didn't know he had to the fore. For all the survivors of Fort Repose, the lesson of their harsh new world is that to overcome, the things you need most are cooperation, community, family loyalty, guts, capacity to take adversity without whining and self-pity, and willingness to work hard. Those are the virtues we most need in any setting. One of my Goodreads friends called the book "depressing;" other reviewers have complained that it's too "cheery," in that it's not pessimistic enough (since Frank refrains from annihilating the whole human race, or doesn't kill off enough characters). But I wouldn't use either term. It treats the horror of the situation too realistically to be Pollyanna-like. But the author's trust in the capacity of human nature to meet the challenges facing it keeps the reader from despair.

Set as it is in the Jim Crow South (at what, in the real world, was the cusp of the Civil Rights movement), race issues play a role in the novel. Frank, and through him Randy, both exhibit relatively enlightened attitudes for white Southerners of that era (at least, I'm surmising that Frank was a Southerner, since he evokes his setting with the ease of someone who was apparently at home there). It's interesting, and one of the better messages of the novel, to see some of the segregationist attitudes of the book characters dissolve in the face of the common peril and need. Though this isn't a Christian novel, religion is treated respectfully here (one character is a black preacher) and the role of faith in the community is portrayed positively. There's not much bad language, no explicit sex (and no glorification of loose sex; the romantic content promotes serious, committed love), and no graphic violence, though violence takes place. I really liked it, and would give the author high marks. The only reason I didn't give the full five stars was that, even though Randy was well-drawn, (as were the other, supporting characters) I found him a tad hard to relate to, and I'm not sure why. Maybe differences in social background was part of it, though I'm not usually that much influenced by demographics. (Despite the gender difference, the one character I identified with the most was Alice, the town librarian.)

If you're a fan of post-apocalyptic fiction, this should be on your reading list. Ditto if you just like character-driven fiction with a compelling plot and a good set of messages! ...more

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Jun 10, 2016 Crystal marked it as to-read

Shelves: get-from-the-library, dystopian, 2020dystopiareads

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Dec 01, 2010 Ryan Moore rated it it was amazing

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