The Children of Men by P.D. James - I had no knowledge of this book until I was sucked in by the photo of Clive Owen on the cover. The photo is from a new movie by the same name.
I was very interested in the premise of the story... England in 2021, coping with the decline of society and man. There have been no children born since 1995 because males have become sterile. The plight of the elderly and infirm is at a critical point, pushed toward "voluntary" group suicide by the ruling Warden of England. The aging population loses interest in sex and fills its emotionaly barren existence with elaborate christening rituals for kittens and slides away from Christian ways into a revival of paganism. The Warden's cousin, Theo Faron, an Oxford professor, well-to-do, divorced and emotionally constrained, lives an increasingly isolated and bleak existence until he meets a group of dissidents. The small group plots against the Warden's control of the country and a govermental policy of enslavement of immigrants and abandonment of criminals on an island of horror. When they are threatened with exposure, Faron helps them to escape and ultimately falls for one of the group members. In finding love, he also finds a reason to care about life.
While I believe this book was well-written, it moved very slowly and I struggled to stay with it. I tend to invest myself in a story and I am not easily discouraged by a slow pace. In the end, I was very disappointed in this book and I don't recommend it.
I was very interested in the premise of the story... England in 2021, coping with the decline of society and man. There have been no children born since 1995 because males have become sterile. The plight of the elderly and infirm is at a critical point, pushed toward "voluntary" group suicide by the ruling Warden of England. The aging population loses interest in sex and fills its emotionaly barren existence with elaborate christening rituals for kittens and slides away from Christian ways into a revival of paganism. The Warden's cousin, Theo Faron, an Oxford professor, well-to-do, divorced and emotionally constrained, lives an increasingly isolated and bleak existence until he meets a group of dissidents. The small group plots against the Warden's control of the country and a govermental policy of enslavement of immigrants and abandonment of criminals on an island of horror. When they are threatened with exposure, Faron helps them to escape and ultimately falls for one of the group members. In finding love, he also finds a reason to care about life.
While I believe this book was well-written, it moved very slowly and I struggled to stay with it. I tend to invest myself in a story and I am not easily discouraged by a slow pace. In the end, I was very disappointed in this book and I don't recommend it.
2 comments:
Hi Joy!
I haven't read the book, but I had to take the movie back yesterday without watching it- didn't have time. I was thinking about rerenting it later, but now I don't know if i'll bother, because usually the book is better than the movie.
Hi Dorlana...
Thanks for viewing my blog. I still plan to see the movie though I agree that books are usually better than the movies. Since I am intrigued by the premise of the story, I'm curious to see what the movie makers done with it... (to it?)
My daughter has just started the book and I'm curious to see what HER reaction is.
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