On The Beach (Structural Readers) (Reed Audio) (Vintage International)

by Nevil Shute

After the war is over, a radioactive cloud begins to sweep southwards on the winds, gradually poisoning everything in its path. An American submarine captain is among the survivors left sheltering in Australia, preparing with the locals for the inevitable. Despite his memories of his wife, he becomes close to a young woman struggling to accept the harsh realities of their situation. Then a faint Morse code signal is picked up, transmitting from the United States and the submarine must set sail through the bleak ocean to search for signs of life.

On the Beach is Nevil Shute's most powerful novel. Both gripping and intensely moving, its impact is unforgettable.

• ISBN10: 0099530252
• ISBN13: 9780099530251
• Publish Date: 3 September 2009 (first published June 1969)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Vintage Publishing
• Imprint: Vintage Classics
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[Michael @ Knowledge Lost]

The world is slowly dying as a result of a nuclear holocaust, and the people of Melbourne Australia are doing what about it? Nothing! No one is struggling with knowing how much life is left for them, no one is trying to find a way to survive; they are just sitting there waiting for the radiation to float towards them. For a post-apocalyptic book, there is nothing happening in it; all the characters are playing nice and not even living life as though it would end in a few months (they continue to buy presents for their children, plant their garden, etc.) While I did enjoy the fact that I knew the cities in the book – Townsville gets a lot of mentions – I don’t think the plot progressed enough to recommend this book to anyone. If you want a slow moving post-apocalyptic book then I’d recommend Cormac McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Road; it’s dark, beautiful and has great characters.