A Wrinkle in The Skin

Author: John Christopher
Published: 1965
Publisher: Cosmos Books (PA) (December 2000)
Pages: 256 pages
ISBN-10: 1587152355
ISBN-13: 978-1587152351
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Cosmos Books - A natural catastrophe wipes out millennia of human history overnight in a series of convulsive spasms. The shocked survivors roam the ruins in search of their past, not daring to dream of a future in this nightmare that turns man into beast.

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Aftermath

Author: Charles Sheffield
Published: 1998
Publisher: Bantam / Spectra
Pages: 547
ISBN-10: 0553577387
ISBN-13: 978-0553577389
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In the Ruins An unlikely supernova in Alpha Centauri disrupts earth's climate by means of constant "sunshine" in the Southern Hemisphere. Even worse is a gamma pulse that knocks out electronic functions worldwide, sending most folks back to mid-20th Century and beyond.

Sheffield's novel interweaves several storylines. A trio of cancer survivors search for the means to ressurect their cure. A band of Luddites led by a mass murderer try to establish an ugly new culture. And the President of the United States cobbles together a government in the face of those who would lose a Pax Americana - worldwide.

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Alas, Babylon

Author: Pat Frank
Published: 1959
Publisher: J.B. Lippincott Company
Pages: 279p
ISBN-10:
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In the Ruins A Florida family survives a nuclear strike by Russia and struggles to rebuild a normal, if sometimes brutal, existence in the ruins. This is a classic p.a. novel, and perhaps one of the best, if you can overlook the us-vs.-the-Ruskies mentality that, understandably, pervades the novel. More mandatory reading.

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Amtrak Wars (series)

Author: Patrick Tilley
Published: 1984 (Cloud Warrior) - 1992 (Earth Thunder)
Publisher: MacMillan; First edition (Cloud Warrior)
Pages: 291 (Cloud Warrior)
ISBN-10: 0727810952 (Cloud Warrior)
ISBN-13: 978-0727810953 (Cloud Warrior)
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FantasticFiction.co.uk: Ten centuries ago the Old Time ended when Earth's cities melted in the War of a Thousand Suns. Now the lethal high technology of the Amtrak Federation's underground stronghold is unleashed on Earth's other survivors - the surface-dwelling Mutes.

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Ape and Essence

Author: Aldous Huxley
Published: 1948
Publisher: Ivan R. Dee, Publisher (1992)
Pages: 213 pages
ISBN-10: 0929587782
ISBN-13: 978-0929587783
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Wikepedia: Ape and Essence is a novel by Aldous Huxley published in 1948. It is set in a dystopia similar to that of Brave New World. It is largely a satire of the rise of large-scale warfare and warmongering in the 20th century, and presents a pessimistic view of the politics of mutually assured destruction. The book makes extensive use of surrealist imagery, depicting humans as apes who, as a whole, will inevitably commit suicide.

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Bangs and Whimpers: Stories About the End of the World

Editor: James Frankel
Published: 1999
Publisher: Lowell House
Pages: 219
ISBN-10: 0737302712
ISBN-13: 978-0737302714
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FantasticFiction.co.uk: For as long as anyone can remember, we have speculated-with curiosity and dread-about the prospect of the world coming to an end. In this lively, reflective, and entertaining anthology, renowned science fiction writers Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Robert Sheckley, Howard Fast, and a dozen others spin fantastic scenarios that will keep readers riveted-at least until the end of the world!

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Beyond Armageddon

Editors: Frank M. Miller Jr. and Martin H. Greenberg
Published: 1985
Publisher: Bison Books; Reprint edition (May 1, 2006)
Pages: 390
ISBN-10: 0803283156
ISBN-13: 978-0803283152
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Amazon In Beyond Armageddon, the distinguished science fiction writer Walter M. Miller Jr. (1923–96) and the famed anthologist Martin H. Greenberg have together collected stories that address one of the most challenging themes of imaginative fiction: the nature of life after nuclear war. The twenty-one stories in this collection, by masters such as Arthur C. Clarke, Poul Anderson, Ray Bradbury, J. G. Ballard, Robert Sheckley, Roger Zelazny, and Harlan Ellison, explore a variety of possibilities of “life after.” These richly imagined stories offer glimpses into a future no reader will soon forget. Miller’s incisive introduction and a thought-provoking and irreverent commentary are included. New to this Bison Books edition is a postscript to the introduction provided by Martin H. Greenberg.

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Canticle for Liebowitz, A

Author: Walter M. Miller Jr.
Published: 1959
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 368
ISBN-10: 0553379267
ISBN-13 978-0553379266
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In the Ruins Centuries in the future, a monk in Utah uncovers a fallout shelter and discovers a note by one Isaac Liebowitz, the patron saint of his order: "Pound pastrami, can kraut, six bagels--bring home for Emma."

This novel -- actually a trilogy of novellas spread over a thousand or so years -- is at times humorous, but more often chilling. It explores issues of faith, Catholicism, the cycles of civilization, abortion, euthanasia, man's inhumanity and the double-edged sword of scientific knowledge. A classic. Required reading.

Amazon.com Walter M. Miller's acclaimed SF classic A Canticle for Leibowitz opens with the accidental excavation of a holy artifact: a creased, brittle memo scrawled by the hand of the blessed Saint Leibowitz, that reads: "Pound pastrami, can kraut, six bagels--bring home for Emma." To the Brothers of Saint Leibowitz, this sacred shopping list penned by an obscure, 20th-century engineer is a symbol of hope from the distant past, from before the Simplification, the fiery atomic holocaust that plunged the earth into darkness and ignorance. As 1984 cautioned against Stalinism, so 1959's A Canticle for Leibowitz warns of the threat and implications of nuclear annihilation. Following a cloister of monks in their Utah abbey over some six or seven hundred years, the funny but bleak Canticle tackles the sociological and religious implications of the cyclical rise and fall of civilization, questioning whether humanity can hope for more than repeating its own history. Divided into three sections--Fiat Homo (Let There Be Man), Fiat Lux (Let There Be Light), and Fiat Voluntas Tua (Thy Will Be Done)--Canticle is steeped in Catholicism and Latin, exploring the fascinating, seemingly capricious process of how and why a person is canonized. — Paul Hughes

Wikepedia Some critics assert that the book espouses a pessimistic, cyclical view of history — that is, that history inevitably repeats itself — not unlike the cyclical visions of William Butler Yeats. However, the ending of the book is somewhat ambiguous. Humanity has again reduced itself to an impoverished remnant, but this remnant is moving out to colonize the stars. Does this represent a fundamental new development in the story of humanity, or will they simply repeat the same blunders on other worlds? Miller doesn't say ....

The third section, Fiat Voluntas Tua, takes a strong stance against euthanasia (assisted suicide). Walter Miller, himself mentally ill for years, committed suicide several decades after publication of his masterpiece. Just as the Order of Leibowitz in the book could not prevent the death of civilization on earth, the enormous success of the book could not prevent Miller's own suicide. [3] And yet in the book the Order lives on, giving meaning and value to humanity even as it questions its own behavior, just as the book itself lives on after Walter Miller's tragic death — asking similar questions of us all. As Duncan Lawie noted, the book has become its own metaphor.

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Children of Men, The

Author: P.D. James
Published: 1993
Publisher: Alfred Knopf
Pages: 243
ISBN-10: 0307275434
ISBN-13 978-0307275431
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In the Ruins Beyond James' trademark, impeccable observations and her novel's studied tone, The Children of Men is, at it's heart, a post-apocalyptic novel. Since 1995, no one has given birth to a child, worldwide. Science is at a loss for an explanation. Historian Theodore Faron witnesses the quickening decay of institutions and rejects his previous life for a new role as a revolutionary. At the same time, he struggles to deal with tragedy in his past. Inner and outer conflicts mesh wonderfully in James' most talented hands. ITR note: I have yet to see, but have heard good things, about the movie based on this novel. My recommendation is to read first, view later, as the book can more than stand on its own.

Publishers Weekly In this convincingly detailed world--where kittens are (illegally) christened, sex has lost its allure and the arts have been abandoned--James concretely explores an unthinkable prospect. Readers should persevere through the slow start, for the rewards of this story, including its reminder of the transforming power of hope, are many and lasting.

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Children of the Dust

Author: Louise Lawrence
Published: 1985
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 183 pages
ISBN-10: 0060237392
ISBN-13: 978-0060237394
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Wikepedia The Children of the Dust is an apocalyptic fiction, written by Louise Lawrence. The book details a family history across three generations during the aftermath of a nuclear war and the horror it entails. The story covers in detail the three characters, whom through their actions are the last hope of their race.

The book focuses on the horrors that occur after the bombing. The survivors of the blast must suffer through radiation, nuclear winter, feuds between rival groups and mutation. The new race, named as homo-superior, have adapted to the loss of the ozone layer and the extra radiation to become the dominant species on the planet.

The book is broken up in to three sections for each generation. The novel offers some hope that humanity could survive the horrors of war (as an allegory for the current age) in order to form a new world.

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City of Ember, The

Author: Jeanne DuPrau
Published: 2003
Publisher: Corgi Yearling Books; New Ed edition (2005)
Pages: 179
ISBN-10: 0552552380
ISBN-13: 978-0552552387
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Amazon.com (Young Adult Fiction, ages 9- 12) It is always night in the city of Ember. But there is no moon, no stars. The only light during the regular twelve hours of "day" comes from floodlamps that cast a yellowish glow over the streets of the city. Beyond are the pitch-black Unknown Regions, which no one has ever explored because an understanding of fire and electricity has been lost, and with it the idea of a Moveable Light. "Besides," they tell each other, "there is nowhere but here" Among the many other things the people of Ember have forgotten is their past and a direction for their future. For 250 years they have lived pleasantly, because there has been plenty of everything in the vast storerooms. But now there are more and more empty shelves--and more and more times when the lights flicker and go out, leaving them in terrifying blackness for long minutes. What will happen when the generator finally fails?

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Damnation Alley

Author: Roger Zelazny
Published: 1969
Publisher: Berkley Medallion Books
Pages: 157
ISBN-10: 0743486625
ISBN-13: 978-0743486620
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ITR Master storyteller Zelazny undertakes the post-apocalyptic genre with the kind of glee that boys in junior high express when blowing up model cars. Rebellious Hell Tanner and by-the-book Denton grapple with the perils of the Alley, a slightly navigable route across Middle America that detours urban nuclear hot spots. Under a seething, multi-colored sky, they encounter tornados, radiation, desperados and unfriendly mutated fauna. This was made into an exquisitely bad (or good) movie that failed to appropriate Zelazny's singular style.

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Dark Universe

Author: Daniel F. Galouye
Published: 1961
Publisher: Bantam Books (1971)
Pages: 154
ISBN-10: 0575071370
ISBN-13: 978-0575071377
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Fantastic Fiction The survivors live underground, as far from the Original World as possible and protected from the ultimate evil, Radiation. Then terrible monsters, who bring with them a screaming silence, are seen and people start to disappear. One young man realises he must question the nature of Darkness itself.

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Day of the Triffids

Author: John Wyndham
Published: 1951
Publisher: Modern Library; Reprint edition (2003)
ISBN-10: 0606297855
ISBN-13: 978-0606297851
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SciFi Weekly The Cold War was clearly preying on Wyndham's mind when he wrote The Day of the Triffids. The triffids themselves, although seemingly extraterrestrial, are given a flashback origin in the depths of biologically irresponsible Russia. The hero attributes the comet debris-induced blindness to satellite weapons systems. But the trick of catalytically combining these ingredients into an Armageddon scenario is what really gives the book its tension. Early on, Wyndham drops clues like mad, as the hero reflects on his coworker's distrust of the triffids: "We can see, and they can't. Take away our vision, and the superiority is gone."

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Deathlands (series)

Author: James Axler, Laurence James, Mark Ellis, et. al.
Published: 1986-2006
Publisher: Gold Eagle 1997 (No. 1 - Pilgrimage to Hell)
Pages:
ISBN-10: 0373485956
ISBN-13 978-0373485956
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Wikepedia The Deathlands is a series of novels that takes place almost a century after a nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union in January, 2001. For the most part, the series follows the travels of seven characters as they make their way through a violent, post-apocalyptic world. The stories are structured in a similar manner in that the seven characters are put into a challenging situation and forced to use their minds and muscles to reach safety. Many of the novels begin with the seven arriving in a new, unknown location by means of a matter transmitter.

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Deus Irae

Author: Philip K. Dick and Roger Zelazny
Published: 1976
Publisher: Vintage reprint (2003)
Pages: 192
ISBN-10:1400030072
ISBN-13978-1400030072
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philipkdick.com In the years following World War III, a new and powerful faith has arisen from a scorched and poisoned Earth, a faith that embraces the architect of world wide devastation. The Servants of Wrath have deified Carlton Lufteufel and re-christened him the Deus Irae. In the small community of Charlottesville, Utah, Tibor McMasters, born without arms or legs, has, through an array of prostheses, established a far-reaching reputation as an inspired painter. When the new church commissions a grand mural depicting the Deus Irae, it falls upon Tibor to make a treacherous journey to find the man, to find the god, and capture his terrible visage for posterity.

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Dhalgren

Author: Samuel R. Delany
Published: 1975
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 879
ISBN-10:
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ITR This novel is definitely post-apocalyptic, although the nature of the disaster is not clear. The City is in ruins, a gigantic sun rises occasionally, and time doesn't really hang together. Into this mess comes the Kid, without memory and purpose, to find friendship and solace among a ragged bunch of survivors. This is a novel of the early 1970s, and Mr. Delany is generous with psychadelic imagery and free love. The story is gritty, street-wise and compelling.

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Down to a Sunless Sea

Author: David Graham
Published: 1979
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 345
ISBN-10: 0449445097
ISBN-13: 978-0449445099
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Alibris A collapsed economy and an increasingly savage society were causing thousands to abandon America. Captain Jonah Scott was a pilot, hired to fly some lucky refugees to London. But once in the air, nuclear war broke out, and Scott became responsible for the entire human race.

New York Times "Down to a Sunless Sea" is a page turner. It has more than enough plot, and the reader is compelled to turn the pages quickly to keep from lingering on the undistinguished dialogue, the indistinguishable characters and the prose, which manages to be both turgid with cliches and stylistically flaccid. It richochets from the crude to the sentimental - one character, for instance, responds to the news that 50 Russian woman jumped out of the hatch of their overloaded plane so the rest could climb above fallout levels by saying, ''Those crazy goddam people. I never heard of anything so tragic - and wonderful. Yet in this lunatic futile world, it makes some sort of sense.

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Dr. Bloodmoney

Author: Dr. Bloodmoney
Published: 1965
Publisher: Vintage reprint 2002
Pages: 304
ISBN-10: 0375719296
ISBN-13: 978-0375719295
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phiipkdick.com Dr. Bloodmoney is a post-nuclear-holocaust masterpiece filled with a host of Dick’s most memorable characters: Hoppy Harrington, a deformed mutant with telekinetic powers; Walt Dangerfield, a selfless disc jockey stranded in a satellite circling the globe; Dr. Bluthgeld, the megalomaniac physicist largely responsible for the decimated state of the world; and Stuart McConchie and Bonnie Keller, two unremarkable people bent the survival of goodness in a world devastated by evil. Epic and alluring, this brilliant novel is a mesmerizing depiction of Dick’s undying hope in humanity.

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Dust

Author: Charles Pellegrino
Published: 1998
Publisher: Avon (March 1, 1999)
Pages: 464
ISBN-10: 0380787423
ISBN-13: 978-0380787425
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ITR This scientifically vetted story of ecological collapse involves this frightening doomsday scenario: a hardly noticeable loss of species higher in the food chain allows a variety of dust mite to overpopulate and fulfill its new niche through mutation ... becoming deadly. As people are basically eaten alive and the world's institutions implode, paleobiologist Richard Sinclair tries to understand the mechanics of the disaster.

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