From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

Childhood’s End

Arthur C. Clarke

Start date: December 1, 2016

Finish date: December 25, 2016

Discussion: Book Discussions

Why we're reading this: Group Classic sf novel discussion topic December 2016
#49 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 p…more
[close] Group Classic sf novel discussion topic December 2016
#49 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#14 on Locus Magazines Best SciFi novels of the 20th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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Dec 10, 2015 Michael rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, read-in-2015

One of my big complaints about the current state of science-fiction and fantasy is the overwhelming need to make EVERY single concept into a trilogy or on-going series.

Which is what makes going back to the classics of the genre such a pleasure.

Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End is one of the most economic genre novels ever published. But I'd argue that the novel packs more ideas and punch into its two hundred pages than some on-going series have packed into their thousand plus (and counting) p One of my big complaints about the current state of science-fiction and fantasy is the overwhelming need to make EVERY single concept into a trilogy or on-going series.

Which is what makes going back to the classics of the genre such a pleasure.

Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End is one of the most economic genre novels ever published. But I'd argue that the novel packs more ideas and punch into its two hundred pages than some on-going series have packed into their thousand plus (and counting) pages.

In many ways, Clarke created the mythology of the alien invasion. The Overlords arrive in ships that hover over the greatest cities on Earth, saying that they are here to help humanity. The Overlords put an end to petty conflicts and help point humanity toward a better tomorrow -- but there could be a price to it all. They refuse to allow human beings to see them as they really are for the first fifty years of their overseeing our world. Instead, a single human is chosen as the intermediary for humans and Overlords.

Interestingly the plot I've described there only encompasses the first twenty-five or so pages of the novel. There are ideas galore packed into this one and Clarke quickly throws out one after the other, leaving it up to the reader to ponder the implications of them fully. Like many novels of this era, Childhood's End is full of big and exciting ideas. But it's not necessarily full of interesting, well-rounded or even the most dynamic characters. If you're looking for deep character development, you may need to look elsewhere. The characters aren't deep and they aren't necessarily the point of the novel.

Instead, it's the idea of a superior alien race showing up and trying to offer humanity a better way and how we react to it that is at the heart of this novel. Clarke attempts to debunk religions (not entirely successfully -- at least to this reader) as well as try to show humanity there is a better way to live and co-exist on our planet.

But what is really most remarkable about this book is how many touchstones of the alien invasion mythology spring from this text. As Clarke says in his introduction, Independence Day borrows much of the set-up of this book, if not necessarily the conclusion and certain revelations that are to come. The Overlords aren't here to blow up major structures across the world and unite humanity in a fight against a common foe. But they are here to unite us for an entirely different purpose.

If you haven't read this one in a while or you've never read it, I recommend giving it a try. SyFy recently aired their mini-series adaptation of the novel, updated and changing certain things and trying to make it a bit more character driven. It wasn't quite as successful an adaptation as it could have been. But my hope is that it will create curiosity among viewers to explore the original vision that Clarke gave us many years ago. ...more

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Dec 09, 2015 Scot rated it it was amazing

Shelves: scifi

Though I have danced around and near to Arthur C. Clarke's work for quite some time, this was my first foray and certainly will not be my last. A mesmerizing tale of a time in the not so distant future when alien overlord's come to Earth as healers and protectors with a hidden agenda. Filled with an interesting cast of characters and plot twists that are mesmerizing, I would recommend this highly as part of the great SciFi canon. It is an amazing window into the psyche of man, an exploration of ...more

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Sep 21, 2014 Tani rated it liked it

Shelves: scifi, male-author, 2014

This felt kind of like Foundation to me, in that it isn't really one fully united story, with a single set of protagonists, like you would normally expect. Instead, it spans a bit more time than the average novel, and features three different storylines that all address a common thread: the Overlords.

For me, the first section was the best. The plotline of the children dragged for me, despite its necessity. And then the conclusion, with Jan, briefly rose high, but didn't quite manage to outweigh ...more

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Apr 30, 2013 Byron Seese rated it liked it

At times the book felt dry and slow and clinically detached from it's own content, but I enjoyed for the most part. However, I found the last third of the book extremely depressing. Not only it what happened to the children and all the possibility they represented, but also in the way everyone reacted to the situation. Not with a bang, but a whimper. ...more

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Feb 08, 2023 Kivrin rated it liked it · review of another edition

Okay, I know it's a classic, and it is well written, but the story left me cold. I found no joy in it. No great characters to love or root for. Can't say I find Clarke's vision of the future in this book very satisfying. ...more

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