Death of grass pdf

Though the announcements are made, little change is noticeable to John Custance and his fa The republishing in the UK of this classic, long out of print, is an unexpectedly good read, though its content is very, very bleak. Though the announcements are made, little change is noticeable to John Custance and his family in London.

But then, when the virus appears in England, it is realised that the extent of the problems in Asia have not been fully explained. Reading this book was a shock. Perhaps most anachronistic is the role of women portrayed here, with the female characters very much taking a backseat whilst the men sort things out.

It is a surprise what Christopher managed to pass by the publishers in the straight-laced context of the day, however. Rape is implied here, though without too much detail, unlike the surprises of murder, revenge killing and mercy killing reflected here. The book is shockingly logical and cold in its portrayal of such horrific events and that makes its effects so much the more effective. But before we get too carried away in emphasising the books prescience, there are places that bring us down to earth and remind us that this is a product of half-a-century ago.

Most obviously, communication is not what it is today. In Death of Grass, people predominantly listen to the radio for information, rather than watch the television. Perhaps more noticeably different, radio news broadcasts by the BBC are trusted by the masses at least initially as logical, sensible and unbiased.

How different from some of the views of today! Similarly, entertainment has clearly changed. On a wider scale, travelling between countries is more by boat than by aeroplane. Diplomacy between countries reflects this limitation in communication also. As the Cold War was distinctly chilly at this point, the problems are made worse by countries refusing to talk to each other until it is perhaps too late. And perhaps that is another situation that has come around again to bite us.

What is perhaps most shocking is, once it does happen, how quickly normal life deteriorates. Within the space of days, the characters go from upright members of the middle-classes civil servant, ex-military soldier to civilians shooting policemen, doling justice to criminals and killing people who get in their way in their escape from the big city. Less convincing, though perhaps understandable in the context of the times, are the actions of the politicians in the tale.

They also then, rather conveniently, leave to set up a provisional government in Canada not too far-fetched, that, as would the British government had the Germans invaded England in World War Two. This seems a little too incredulous today, yet understandable when compared with the Australian rabbit-proof fence policy or the farming analogy of wiping out all traces of disease in order to ensure the survival of the main plant.

What struck me most about this book was that if elements of the book are shocking now, in the context of when it was first published, this must have been an appalling book. Written in a lean style, pared to the bone, the story is exposed as even more shocking in its matter-of-fact delivery. There are no safe answers here, no truly happy ending, though the last words are weakly optimistic. What this book does is highlight to the reader of that, if nothing else, the breakdown of society it portrays is perhaps more relevant and more possible today.

And that is a frightening thought, in these days of global corporations and universal credit crunches. Aug 17, Lisa rated it did not like it. The premise of this book is interesting a grass-killing bacteria destroys grass-based crops and civilization collapses , though it would no longer work today and Those that could transition would and they would be enough.

Also, meat animals do not all need to be raised on grain. With grass dying, other weeds and, uh, legumes would spring up, some of which goats, at least, would be able to thrive on and smaller meat animals would still be available. So the actual situation the book is set on is unbelievable to me. Then other things happen like the main character John's confrontation with Perry and his wife M-something who has just tried to seduce him. I was going to say conservatives, but even amongst people with open relationships, she'd be violating boundaries.

John gave her a 'no' and instead of respecting that, she kept coming and then you quietly find a way to get rid of this other guy because he's fucking nuts. You do not tell him she's his wife who should be obeying him and green light murder. You do not then let him "marry" the teenage girl whose father he just killed and bonus give him the night off from guard duty so he can rape her without disruption on their "wedding night".

And also fuck his wife for condoning him condoning all this shit. He was not right. Everyone who had come with him to his brother's farm to hole up told him that he and his family could go and they'd keep moving on.

He only had to eliminate Perry or bring him with him. Instead he attacked the farm with his group and got his brother killed. Because he is a piece of shit human being.

I condemn the author for doing the opposite of implying so. Fast forward to the future where John has a family and Dave has never even married. The bacteria is a known thing that starts in China. Millions of people die despite foreign aid.

Dave is established as a practical man who prepares his farm for the coming collapse of civilization and cold-heartedly states that all the countries should be reserving supplies for their own people instead of providing aid. The women are established as soft-hearted idiots who spout altruistic platitudes without the least grasp of economics and reality. The usual government cover-ups on how fucked everyone is ensues and then the politician friend tells John that someone else is taking over the country and plans to mercy-bomb the cities, leaving those in the rural areas with enough food supplies to survive uhhh most doctors and scientists live in cities so maybe this is a bad idea?

Women are once again proven to be domesticated ninnies who need their male protectors with their ever-practical penises of thinking-ahead as the men commiserate on the silliness of wives who want to put the kettle away properly in a house that will soon be bombed.

They gather and attempt to leave the city during the day, but blockades have already been set in place. The men get guns and they return at night with sharp-shooter Perry and his wife, shoot the three guards and escape the city.

They stop and collect John's son from an all-boys boarding school. It is observed that the headmaster is not up for caring for so many boys in a crisis and he will soon abandon them. An argument ensues over whether or not to take the son's best friend. John's wife says no but the politician's wife decides to take him in their car.

As they are driving down the road, they pass a toll. Naturally, it is an ambush and his young daughter and wife are kidnapped. The other cars return and son's best friend proves the worth of male children by pointing out they can find the car by the trail of oil drops it leaves behind. The women are thusly rescued after "mild" trauma. To make up for lost supplies, they raid a house the party comes across, killing a man and his wife. John's wife insists that the teenage daughter is to go with them.

The family's guns are acquired. Next they run into another barricade before reaching some town where the citizens have decided to be careful early. All their guns, food, petrol etc.

Perry reveals he has hidden his gun in his bedroll and so they are still armed. Perry then kills his wife when she attempts to seduce Dave with Dave's consent. The wives are told to just shut up and keep going because they "need" Perry. Perry decides that he will marry the teenage girl because he is now a widower and wishes to have a wife.

The women protest and are told they can do nothing and must go along with it. Then there's lots of hinting that maybe the teenage girl will all do them a favor and kill Perry herself hint hint give her access to knives instead of a gun because girls can't handle firearms. John realizes their group is too small to make it to his brother's farm and stops to recruit more people. He rejects the first group because he perceives them as weak and only one of their women is kinda fuckable , even though they beg to join up with him.

Before the first group can leave, a second group arrives and they are well-armed. John tells the group about his brother's farm and asks them to join. They eventually agree but the other group's leader tries to assert his authority. Perry shoots him dead. The rest of the group, including the earlier group, all decide to stay with John and his pet murderer. The group holes up in a house while Perry gets excused from guard duty so he can rape his teenage "bride".

Another well-armed group approaches the house and there is a fire-fight. Perry helps to drive them off by firing at them from outside but declines to come in and let people know he's alive because he's busy rapin! The group finally arrives at the brother's farm and are promptly fired on.

No one dies but Perry is shot and his teenage bride is the one who exposes herself to fire and pulls him off the road. Because Stockholm syndrom is a real thing. Ask my cat. John approaches and talks to the defenders and eventually his brother. It is revealed that Dave has let all his neighbors in and there is not even enough in the way of food to sustain them, let alone the addition of John's family.

But Dave has always insisted that he's to be let in. There is no room for the 34 other people John has collected. John decides that he has to save his little group as well even though they all tell him he and his family should go and they'll continue on.

Instead they attack the farm through the river using a sandbar that John found while almost drowning as a boy. Dave and Perry both die in the attack leaving the biggest shithead to rule the farm. John's wife, who before the battle condemned him for his behavior, tells him he was right all along and she is sorry she didn't realize it earlier.

Because she is a Stepford wife. The end. Jul 02, Marvin rated it liked it Shelves: science-fiction. Very good post-apocalyptic novel that realistically depicts the break-down of society in the wake of a global disaster. In this obscure but classic sci-fi thriller, the breakdown is caused by a virus that annihilates all grasses on earth. But while civilization devolves into dog-eat-dog, I couldn't help thinking how our protagonists were so damn polite about it. Every time they took a savage reaction they would verbally explain it to others.

I guess that's the British for you. But seriously Very good post-apocalyptic novel that realistically depicts the break-down of society in the wake of a global disaster. But seriously, I think we would have a compulsion to explain ourselves even in the midst of catastrophe. After all, civilization may go down fast but it doesn't go down easy. Nonetheless, this is one of the earlier and best of the 50s post-apocalyptic novels.

Three and a half stars. A disturbing and at times deeply depressing novel about how quickly the veneer of civilisation disappears when a catastrophe strikes.

This book is widely regarded as a classic and is often compared with novels such as Day of the Triffids which I read last year and Lord of the Flies which I really must get around to reading soon. However, I felt it also had a resonance with the recent film Interstellar - this is the part that the film never really got around to exploring, being too busy trave A disturbing and at times deeply depressing novel about how quickly the veneer of civilisation disappears when a catastrophe strikes.

However, I felt it also had a resonance with the recent film Interstellar - this is the part that the film never really got around to exploring, being too busy travelling in space and time don't get me wrong, I loved the film. This then is the story of how our world dies and how we as people react to that death, given that we will likely die alongside that world. The answer, according to this book, is not very well. While there is a slow build-up with the grass killing virus devastating the far east first, it takes a very short space of time when it hits the West in the form of the UK for our civilisation to collapse into murder, rape, looting and anarchy.

Chief culprits seem to be our "heroic" band as they attempt to reach a possible safe haven, a farm in the Yorkshire Dales. There is a certain amount of racism in the first part of the book, as our end of Empire heroes criticise the less civilised countries like China and India who cannot beat the virus. This is wholly justified as it lays out in the latter parts of the book that we are no better than our yellow, brown and black cousins when it comes to eliminating a virus that kills the most important food crops on the planet, thus causing millions to starve to death.

The sexism in the novel is harder to stomach. Written as it is in the s, women have yet to enjoy many of the freedoms of the sexual revolution in this story, yet even these limited freedoms are quickly swept away as people rapidly revert to a more primitive state of being, one which regards women as chattel. It might have helped if there was a strong female character to protest these changes more strongly, but the only woman who might have fit this bill, a sexually liberated woman is view spoiler [murdered by her psychopathic husband so he can take a child bride as the spoils of war, having murdered the child's parents just a few chapters earlier.

The fact that no one really seems to care that much makes the blow even harsher hide spoiler ]. This is a book that I must have read as a young teenager though I can't remember any details about it, except one.

In an idle moment, when thinking about a catastrophe befalling us and how I might survive, my mind tends to drift towards a farm in an isolated valley somewhere in the Northern fells, with steep cliffs all round and a narrow entrance that can easily be defended.

It seems that this novel is where I got that image from, and it's a powerful one to have survived nearly 40 years in my mind. Sep 30, Tamahome rated it really liked it. Shows what happens in an apocalypse when all grass is dead and everyone has to fight for the leftover potatoes. Unfortunately the cattle live on grass so they die out too. Wait, don't the factory farms feed them corn and soymeal?

Moral lines become fuzzy, hell they're obliterated. Not exactly a light, breezy read, but well done. Short and dialog driven, 'Scalzi-an'?

Goodreads says it's only pages. Who writes novels that short these days? I h Shows what happens in an apocalypse when all grass is dead and everyone has to fight for the leftover potatoes.

I hear the movie adaption from the 70s is terrible. What's the Cain and Enoch reference? Excuse me while I listen to my gramophone. Sep 27, E. Introduction --The Death of Grass. Recommended to Preeti by: Stephen. Shelves: post-apocalyptic , goodreads-reco. On the back cover of the version I own, there is a blurb from the Financial Times: "Gripping I would also add scary and horrifying.

The story follows the family of John Custance as they travel across England to try to make it to his brother's farm, after a virus ravages the world, ridding it of all forms of grass.

This includes the entire family of Gramineae , all 10, species o On the back cover of the version I own, there is a blurb from the Financial Times: "Gripping This includes the entire family of Gramineae , all 10, species of grass, including major crop plants such as wheat, barley, oats, and rye.

You can imagine the effects of something like this, basically leading to famine. The story starts off as the virus begins its spread in Asian countries, not having reached the Western world. It's quite amusing, and like looking into a mirror, when you read how the various characters react to the events "over there," somewhere far away.

When the virus finally makes its way over to the Western world, particularly Europe and England, that's when the depth of the problem reaches home - literally and otherwise, I guess. I found this book enthralling because it takes a look at how humans might actually react in the face of such an apocalypse. I feel that books can and tend to be more savage, and thus, more realistic than what you might find in movies. Movies are usually trying to appeal to a broader audience, and often "need" to have non-bleak outlooks, whereas I don't think books suffer from the same confines.

This is definitely true here. I just couldn't put the book down. I ended up finishing the whole thing in the night, finally putting it down at am because I kept thinking, only a couple more pages! I bought and read this one thanks to Stephen, who has, as usual, a way better review than mine that you ought to take a look at. While I don't remember much in detail, I do recall liking them. This is definitely a great book, and recommended for post-apocalypse genre fans. I think interest is rising in it again originally written in the s and it's been republished.

The version I have is new - a Penguin Modern Classic. There is an intro at the beginning of this version which is worth a read.

To end, quite an apt quote, especially in light of what's going on in the world today: In a way, I think I feel it would be more right for the virus to win, anyway.

For years now, we've treated the land as though it were a piggy-bank, to be raided. Jun 08, Lee Osborne rated it really liked it. Some years ago, I read Empty World, another of Christopher's post-apocalyptic novels, and I loved it. I heard about this one and really wanted to read it, but it's been largely out of print for some time, and quite hard to get hold of. I was very pleased to spot a copy on the shelf of my local library. The Death of Grass was one of Christopher's early successes, and it's bit of a pioneer in the world of post-apocalyptic fiction.

The plot revolves around a virus that destroys all grass-related pla Some years ago, I read Empty World, another of Christopher's post-apocalyptic novels, and I loved it. The plot revolves around a virus that destroys all grass-related plant life. It originates in China, but rapidly spreads, reducing the countryside to a barren wasteland. As it takes hold in Britain, the government tries to reassure everyone that the situation is under control, but soon rationing is introduced.

John Custance and his family do their best to cope but assume the dangers will soon pass. However, his friend Roger, a civil servant, hears rumours about things rapidly getting worse, and they decide to leave London, heading for a remote and easily-defended valley, where John's brother has a farm.

In a very short space of time, the government loses control of society, and law and order breaks down. Violence and looting breaks out, and armed bands roam the countryside, fighting over the remaining meagre resources. The action of the book follows the progress of the group across the country, and what happens when they reach the valley. Let's just say the body count ratchets up fast.

It's pretty grim but very gripping stuff, and I hugely enjoyed reading it. Very, very atmospheric and creepy, and probably a pretty accurate explanation of what would happen if the consent by which we're governed broke down. Suddenly the ones with the guns get to decide how things are done. The book was written and set in England in the mid-fifties, and it's a product of its time - it does feel like quite an old-fashioned read, as England back then was a very different place.

The book reflects the rigidly-defined class structure, culture, morals and ideas prevalent at the time, so the men are a bunch of patriarchs and the women do the chores. It's interesting that many of the characters were active participants in the Second World War, and some incidents and scenes in the book probably reflect the chaos that these characters would have seen during fighting in mainland Europe.

The sense of splendid isolation and British stiff-upper-lip resilience permeates the pages, but it does find itself under severe strain as conditions deteriorate. It hasn't aged brilliantly and won't be to everyone's taste, but it's a great piece of atmospheric writing that feels utterly credible. It is dystopian or doomsday tale where the world is facing death by starvation. This is a disease that starts in China and kills off all grass species — not just the grass on the front lawn but rice, wheat, barley and rye.

In England John and his friend Roger continue to eat their bread and cakes feeling safe. John dismisses this and returns to his home in London. He believes the government when it assured Britons that a genetically engineered bio-weapon has been found to destroy the virus.

Gradually John and Roger realise that the government has been lying, and the genetically engineered weapon has made things much worse. The virus has arrived and Britain now has little to no footstock to feed its residents. Almost immediately they learn that the government has come up with a plan to reduce the population, the two families have to get out of London and fast and head for the farm.

Life for the characters quickly becomes survival of the fittest and that life quickly gets very brutal. John and his friend are now heading north with their young family as society falls apart both civilly and morally, picking up guns and stragglers to strengthen their numbers. Will they reach safety?

What is safety? May 28, Jenny Reading Envy rated it liked it Shelves: post-apocalypse-and-dystopia , read , sff-audio. We discussed it on the SFF Audio podcast. This story revolves around a virus that kills rice in China first, then rapidly morphs into a resilient virus that takes out most grains worldwide.

This leads to famine and chaos. A small band of people are trying to make it to one person's brother's home in northern England, where they plan to live on pork and root vegetables. The Death of Grass was published in and it shows in some ways. The Chinese crisis is dismissed and several racist terms are used , and the familial structure quickly morphs into male-dominated gun-slinging. Other elements of the book made it just as relevant now - the world still struggles with plant disease leading to famine, and there is an element of distrust of government preparation for actual disaster..

I still hold that a smarter group would have migrated to the coast - it is closer and doesn't have the danger of plant viruses wiping it out. Hindsight, I suppose. This book has themes of suffering, desperate measures, and government vs. This is the "grandfather" of post apocalyptic novels, written in , it tells of an environmental disaster which seems all to real and just as relevant now as it may have seemed in a different post second world war 's world.

A virus which attacks all strains of grasses grass, wheat, barley, rye begins to ravage Asia there seems no cure to it. First wave hits China and South East Asia hard, wiping out all grasses including rice, mass food shortages and panic and riots take hold ending in This is the "grandfather" of post apocalyptic novels, written in , it tells of an environmental disaster which seems all to real and just as relevant now as it may have seemed in a different post second world war 's world.

First wave hits China and South East Asia hard, wiping out all grasses including rice, mass food shortages and panic and riots take hold ending in massive populations dying. A smug Europe looks down on it all thinking it can not happen to them but the following Spring it arrives and takes hold. Britain circums fast causing massive food shortages, rioting and anarchy on the streets.

John Custance and his family battle their way out of London heading for his brother, David's small holding situated in a geographically isolated valley in the remote hills of Northern England.

David had prepared for what was coming and erected a stockade and ripped up his wheat crops and planted potatoes instead. Can John and his family and a group of individuals following him reach the farm before chaos overtakes the land?

A brilliant read, fast at just under pages quite tense and shocking in places and definitely a novel before its time. Highly recommended. Readers also enjoyed. Science Fiction.

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Winter is brutal, the locals are hostile, and Simon and Brad know they have to escape. But can they? The adventures in store—from Vikings to a completely unexpected civilization—put their will to survive to the ultimate test. Upon his father's death, thirteen-year-old Luke becomes the ruler of a primitive future world.

When it comes to alien invasions, bad things come in threes. Three landings: one in England, one in Russia, and one in the United States.

Three long legs, crushing everything in their paths, with three metallic arms, snacking out to embrace—and then discard—their helpless victims. Three evil beings, called Tripods, which will change life on Earth forever. The final battle for the Earth has begun, as the human resistance strikes back against their alien Tripod masters. Will Parker and his friends prepare to lead daring commando raids against the cities of the invaders, with nothing less than the fate of the world at stake.

The thrilling conclusion to John Christopher's classic dystopian series is available for the first time as an ebook. A thought experiment in future-shock survivalism' Robert MacFarlane 'Gripping At first the virus wiping out grass and crops is of little concern to John Custance. It has decimated Asia, causing mass starvation and riots, but Europe is safe and a counter-virus is expected any day.

Except, it turns out, the governments have been lying to their people. When the deadly disease hits Britain, society starts to descend into barbarism.

As John and his family try to make it across country to the safety of his brother's farm in a hidden valley, their humanity is tested to its very limits. A chilling psychological thriller and one of the greatest post-apocalyptic novels ever written, The Death of Grass shows people struggling to hold on to their identities as the familiar world disintegrates - and the terrible price they must pay for surviving.

John Christopher was the pen name of Samuel Youd, a prolific writer of science fiction. His novels were popular during the s and s, most notably The Death Of Grass , The World in Winter , and Wrinkle in the Skin , all works depicting ordinary people struggling in the midst of apocalyptic catastrophes.

In he started writing science-fiction for adolescents; The Tripods trilogy, the Prince in Waiting trilogy also known as the Sword of the Spirits trilogy and The Lotus Caves are still widely read today.