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The Death of Grass

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The Death of Grass

By: John Christopher
Narrated by: William Gaminara
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About this listen

A viral strain has attacked rice crops in East Asia, causing massive famine; soon a mutation appears that infects the staple crops of West Asia and Europe, such as wheat and barley, threatening a famine engulfing the whole of the Old World, while Australasia and the Americas attempt to impose rigorous quarantine to exclude the virus.

Christopher's classic post-apocalyptic novel follows the struggles of architect John Custance and his family as they make their way across an England that is rapidly descending into anarchy, hoping to reach the safety of John's brother's farm in an isolated Westmorland valley. Along the way, they find they must sacrifice many of their morals in order to stay alive.

Here is an unusual and absorbing piece of science-fiction about the relentless transformation of civilisation when the balance of nature is upset.

©1956 Samuel Youd (P)2011 Audible Ltd Fantasy Fiction

Critic Reviews

"I admire The Death of Grass. It was published at roughly the same time as The Day Of The Triffids. In my judgement, it is by far the better book. It is a thrilling and sensible work." (Brian Aldiss)
"Gripping! Of all science fiction's apocalypses, this is one of the most haunting." ( Financial Times)
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An end of civilization novel by John Wyndham that raises interesting questions. Are we doomed to repeat the actions of the past? Where does a person's loyalty lie?

Very English but oh so good

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Starts with a lot of manners, descends quickly into barbarism. Plenty to make you cringe, but a classic.

A very British apocalypse

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This remains a genuinely frightening book. The story is spare and perfectly plotted. A minor weakness that is not of it's own making, is that when written the war was recent history that would be expected to shape the responses of people at large. It is harder to feel confident in how groups would respond today. A closer to this day analogue is The Road, but it really dodges the question of the first day, which this book fearlessly tackles

superb, but grim

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Clever depiction of a dystopian world and what it takes to stay alive and seek a way forward.

Clever depiction of a dystopian world

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.