Earth Abides

De: George R. Stewart

Narrado por: Timothy Andrés Pabon

First published in 1949, award-winning Earth Abides is one of the most influential science-fiction novels of the twentieth century. It remains a fresh, provocative story of apocalyptic pandemic, societal collapse, and rebirth.

The cabin had always been a special retreat for Isherwood Williams, a haven from the demands of society. But one day while hiking, Ish was bitten by a rattlesnake, and the solitude he had so desired took on dire new significance.

He was sick for days—and often delirious—waking up to find two strangers peering in at him from the cabin door. Yet oddly, instead of offering help, the two ran off as if terrified. Not long after, the coughing began. Ish suffered chills and fever, and a measles-like rash on his skin. He was one of the few people in the world to live through that peculiar malady, but he didn't know it then.

Ish headed home when he finally felt himself again—and noticed the strangeness almost immediately. No cars passed him on the road; the gas station not far from his cabin looked abandoned; and he was shocked to see the body of a man on the roadside near a small town.

Without a radio or phone, Ish had no idea of humanity’s abrupt demise. He had escaped death, yet could not escape the catastrophe—and with an eerie detachment he found himself curious as to how long it would be before all traces of civilization faded from Earth.

©1946, 1976; 2020 George R. Stewart. Introduction by Kim Stanley Robinson (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

Odd story

I am a fan of the post apocalyptic story. I rarely finish one because they all seem so similar. World ends...it seems only bad people remain except one soldier with PSTD and guns and one damsel in distress. Fights ensue with excruciating detail, blah, blah, blah. Rarely does something different come along.
This story was written decades ago, and is different. It assumes most people are not evil. Most people would band together to make things work. Most people would be concerned with living and not hunting others out to take their stuff.
The story is a bit naive, and the writing is simplistic and silly in many places...but I do believe in reality there would be something between fighting hoards and simple folks. I did at least finish this very long story.
It would be nice to see more stories written that look for some good and talk more about the struggles of life after an extinction event. There are a few, but I am thinking I must have read them all, because I can’t find one now.

must listen if you're into civilization

absolutely loved it

save the introduction to the end of the story. I felt like it spoiled some of the storyline for me

The birth of a genre

From what I understand, this is the first of the "post-apocalyptic" genre that is now so popular. the story itself is a little dry and at times slow, but that is more than made up by the character development of its main character, Ish. I came to this book from the video game series "The Last of Us" , where a minor character is named after this story's protagonist.

Great listen, Now I can watch the TV Show

I really enjoyed this audio book. I wanted to listen to be prior to watching the new TV adaptation. Hopefully the show will be comparable or identical to the original (book).

sooo good

I first read this book in middle school in the early 90sthere are a few dated themes in the book that are tooth gmashingly uncomfortable to sit through like with concerns about the chsractereviewe would call them ableist andsugenecist today but the book was ahead of it's time in. lot of ways such a good one the narrator did a fine jobthis was an enjoyable listen I definitely recommend!

An element story, read wonderfully

An excellent "post-apocalyptic" story. What's best is that it doesn't try to box you down with the details of how it all started. It's purely about after the fall. It also moves time along very quickly but without seeming rushed, and yet the book never drags.

A Post Apocalyptic Level Set

I live in the PA genre. From the EMP of One Second After to the Missile Silo of Wool, I've nearly read them all. With a publish date of 1949, I'm thinking Earth Abides will be a simple nostalgic romp written at the dawn of modern science fiction. Instead, I got a well written literary classic filled with compelling characters telling a meaningful story. I love it when that happens!!! The best part is the plot trajectory. You end up at a place where no modern PA story ever takes you; and suddenly the title, with associated Bible verse, all makes sense. At first, I wasn't real accepting of the ending, but after a few days of contemplation, I realized that George Stewart absolutely nailed it. This book needs to be on your list!

Through time, it still holds true with modern society.

I didn't realize how old this was until I looked it up after I started listening. The story is amazing, it's much better than any modern post collapse story we have watched or read. A great story that everyone should read.

Underwhelming and naive

The story is incredibly naive and simplistic. Plot is for middle schoolers. The language is for college grads. Yes, it is an old book and among the first but still.. underwhelming.

the ending was amazing

it was good. I hate being forced to make review based on word count