georgeleeclifton

Reading this book was a bit strange for me. I grew up in the late 70's/early 80's, at the tail end of our nation's fear of a nuclear attack from the USSR. I had a real fear of the Soviet Union. It was understood that they were the enemy. I didn't fully understand what that meant but I knew the adults in my life were worried. I remember having bomb drills when I was in elementary school. At first we were told to crouch under our desks. It was then decided that that wouldn't protect children from an atomic bomb so our new policy was to sit in the hallways with our heads between our knees. I don't think anyone knew what to expect from an atomic bomb. If we had ever been hit, no hallway or desk would have helped us. While this book took place in the late 50's, it hit close to home. The fear was the same even if the social climate was a bit different. And the results of a nuclear holocaust would have been the same no matter the year. The first 2/3 of the book was very intense, with the bombings and everyone's desperation to survive. The final third was calmer although no less emotional. Frank did a wonderful job of taking the reader through the emotional roller coaster that one would feel is a world destroyed right before one's eyes. Frank's use of language and ability to create truly dimensional characters made me feel as if I was there. I cared for the characters. I wanted them to survive. I worried and fretted over them, even when I wasn't reading. Frank's writing is effortless. There wasn't any jarring transitions or descriptions that threw me out of the book so I was able to seamlessly remain in the story. That, and the fully developed characters, are what made this book so fantastic, in my opinion. Definitely a must read for everyone, whether you are a sci-fi fan or not. I can certainly see why this is a classic.

2022-11-14 17:04