Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
Earth Abides
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
review
kwmg40
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

This novel felt different from many other post-apocalyptic novels I've read, where survival is not necessarily characterized by suffering, heroic actions or unwavering optimism. Instead, the protagonist Ish is dismayed with the complacent, relaxed attitudes of his fellow survivors and descendants. Yet, they do survive and Earth abides, as the title suggests.

#ClassicLSFBC @RamsFan1963 @Ruthiella

Ruthiella Glad you finally got to finish it! It was well worth reading, I thought. 2mo
40 likes1 comment
review
Bookwomble
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Pickpick

#ClassicLSFBC
It was good to read a post-apocalyptic novel that didn't dwell on violence & murder (though it acknowledged those things), but rather told of how people went about surviving, preserving family and building community.
The study of the slow decomposition of the body of modern culture was interesting.
Stewart's presentation of xenophobia arising from a hygienic fear of disease & cultural contamination was plausible & sadly relevant. ⬇️

Bookwomble I expected there to be outdated attitudes to race and women, which were there but ameliorated to some degree by the interracial marriage of Ish and Em, and the strength of will and cohesive force shown by Em, and even if this was presented in a stereotypical “Earth Mother“ non-intellectual way, the community would have failed without her.
The outdated attitudes I found most disturbing were ableism and eugenic “purity“, the consequences of which ⬇️
(edited) 2mo
Bookwomble ... might perhaps have been more apparent to Stewart at the time of writing, in the immediate aftermath of the nazi “Final Solution“, though the resurgence of both xenophobia & attempted state control of reproductive rights shows that these abhorrent ideas are tenacious.
Getting off my soap box, this was a slow-paced, thoughtful book that took me a while to get into, but which I found rewarding. The last section about the Last American was an ⬇️
(edited) 2mo
Bookwomble ... especially poignant picture of old age and end of life.
Finally, I'm possibly unduly influenced by having recently read the Elder Edda, but rather than the cliché Adam and Eve, the names of Ish and Em were suggestive to me of Ask and Embla, “Ash and Elm“, the first man and woman of Norse myth, roots of the family tree, the Father and Mother of Nations. I've no idea if this was intended, but I do like the idea. 4.5⭐
(edited) 2mo
See All 9 Comments
TrishB Great review. 2mo
Bookwomble @TrishB Thank you 😊 2mo
quietlycuriouskate Picture looks like Gloucester after a bank holiday has wreaked havoc with the bins collection schedule. 2mo
Bookwomble @quietlycuriouskate Ha, ha! 😆 It's supposed to be post-apocalypse suburban San Francisco, but if Gloucester fits... 2mo
Lesliereadsalot Just read this will be on MGM+ in December. #Classiclsfbc 2mo
Bookwomble @Lesliereadsalot It'll be interesting to see how close they stick to Stewart's quiet, philosophical approach, or where they'll add in more peril and conflict. Hmm 🤔 almost definitely the second option. 2mo
38 likes9 comments
quote
Bookwomble
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

"He had always tried to impress the children with an almost mystical value of books. Still he kept the symbol of the burning of books as one of the worst things that men could do."
??? #UniteAgainstBookBans #ClassicLSFBC

AmyG Make Americans ignorant, fearful and hateful and you will believe anything. 2mo
BarbaraBB @AmyG so true 2mo
See All 14 Comments
dabbe @AmyG Agree 💯. 2mo
GingerAntics 🧡🧡🧡 yes! 2mo
The_Book_Ninja MAGAs: “Must ban books! Must have freedom of speech!…does not compute! Does not compute” 2mo
Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja This example of cognitive dissonance would suggest that rabid MAGAs actually have any form of critical functioning happening! 2mo
Bookwomble @bibliothecarivs I borrowed your Book Ban hashtag, which I hope is ok. I thought it it more as homage than theft! 😁 2mo
bibliothecarivs It's from UniteAgainstBookBans.org so feel free to use and share! 2mo
CatLass007 Yikes! That is one scary picture and we‘re all too close to it actually happening. 2mo
Bookwomble @bibliothecarivs Then it's a shared resource 😁👍 2mo
Bookwomble @CatLass007 Warnings from history! Hopefully this is not our future! 2mo
CatLass007 @Bookwomble Some days I feel more hopeful than others. 2mo
Bookwomble @CatLass007 We shall overcome ✊♥️ 2mo
36 likes14 comments
review
swynn
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Pickpick

(1949) This was a first read for me, though it's been on my TBR list forever. I'm content to have waited so long because I'm pretty sure its lack of plot and character development and its long expository pages would not have appealed to Younger Me. But Now Me dug it, less as a novel than as an extended meditation on relationships among individuals, civilization, and the planet. Very dated in spots but for what it is it's also surprisingly engaging

Aimeesue Ish! 3mo
34 likes1 comment
blurb
Bookwomble
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

Halfway through the August #ClassicLSFBC book, so unlikely to finish before tomorrow, but I'm settling in with a Perry's Puffin-label Somerset cider, classic cheese balls snack, and a bit of John Coltrane to try and make some headway. It's possible I will be too chilled to actually read, but it's a risk I'm prepared to take 🫡

CoffeeNBooks This looks perfect! Coltrane is great! 🎶 3mo
Bookwomble @CoffeeNBooks He was a good choice for my mood 😊😎🎷 3mo
The_Book_Ninja No to cheesy balls✋🏼🛑 3mo
Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja You strike me as a person with a healthy diet, so I wouldn't be surprised to find you noshing on the Man from Del Monte's plums 🍑 (with apologies to Julian Clarey for blatant joke theft! 😄) 3mo
The_Book_Ninja @Bookwomble 🤣🤣🤣🤣 3mo
41 likes5 comments
blurb
Ruthiella
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

A few questions if anyone wants to discuss this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC 🦠 pick.

Question 3: I think for any Litten, the loss of literature would have been devastating…could the parents have at least read picture books to their children to keep stories alive? Or would this have been too strange, given that the world depicted in many of the story books would not make sense to the children given their extremely limited society?

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm Honestly this grated on me SO much. Stories are so inherently part of being human that we‘ve been telling them around campfires pretty much since we came into existence. I cannot fathom just giving up on keeping literature alive and accessible. If Ish had really cared so much, I think he absolutely could have made more of an effort of getting the younger generation interested. 3mo
Lesliereadsalot I never understood why all the members of the tribe didn‘t go to the library every day! What a waste of a resource that undoubtedly could have helped in so many ways. I enjoyed this book even though I would have liked to see all the characters “Do something!” Was nobody else thinking about the future?? #LSFBC (edited) 3mo
Ruthiella @Lesliereadsalot @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I knew I‘d find kindred spirits here! My first thought about getting the children interested in reading and writing was to read to them and encourage them to tell and write their own stories. 3mo
See All 8 Comments
Bookwomble I'm late to the discussion, but for what it's worth... books would have been available everywhere the post-disaster people were scavenging, and given Ish's love of books it seems inconceivable that he would have relegated all of them to the 'sacred' space of the university library. A love of reading is passed from parent to child, so this would have happened. I can conceive it dying out, perhaps, over time, but not in the first generation. ⬇️ 2mo
Bookwomble A narrative device, then, to represent the loss/shift in culture. 2mo
Ruthiella @Bookwomble It‘s never too late! I‘m glad I wasn‘t the only one who found the lack of literature odd. You might be right about it being a narrative device to speed up the development. 2mo
kwmg40 This aspect was, to me, the least plausible part of the novel. I\'d expect that the survivors would have sought out books, for entertainment if not for instruction. Maybe it just feels that way to us Littens who, faced with a scary unknown situation, would immediately want to read up on it! 2mo
Ruthiella @kwmg40 Right? It‘s maybe doubly hard for us to understand how this pleasure in life could have been overlooked. I would like to assume there‘s other communities elsewhere that kept literature alive. 2mo
40 likes8 comments
blurb
Ruthiella
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

A few questions if anyone wants to discuss this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC 🦠 pick. If you want to be tagged next month or untagged from the distribution list let me know.

Question 2: What about little Joey? Had he survived, do you think he could have influenced the trajectory of the tribe where Ish was unsuccessful?

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I think Ish focusing so much on one child‘s strengths was detrimental to Joey and the society as a whole. If things had continued the way Ish had been, all I think he would have accomplished would be cloning his unhappiness at the inadequacies of The Tribe into Joey. The boy would have grown up miserable, isolated, and possibly become a sort of danger himself. Ish‘s self-importance imposed upon Joey could have concluded with a tyrant or zealot. 3mo
Lesliereadsalot All the children must have had one strength or another as all children do. I felt like there could‘ve been lots of things for Ish to develop in the children, besides bows and arrows. To think Joey would have been the tribe leader was wishful thinking on Ish‘s part based solely on what he saw in Joey, ignoring what the other children night have had to offer. #LSCFBC 3mo
swynn Ish's idea that there should be some visionary leader who could preserve the pre-apocalypse's knowledge was never realistic: the Tribe did not share his vision so it wasn't going to happen whether it should have done or not. At best Ish was setting Joey up to be a Cassandra, at worst a scapegoat. 3mo
See All 7 Comments
Ruthiella @swynn @Lesliereadsalot @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm The more I think about it, the more I think that it‘s circumstances that make leaders who rise to the challenge and not mantle passing from parent to child (look at heredity dynasties ) As Leslie points out, every child has their talents and some of the others had what was needed collectively at that moment. As Steve and Meagon indicate, Ish was setting Joey up for probable failure. 3mo
Bookwomble @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm @Lesliereadsalot @swynn @Ruthiella Although not mentioned in the text, I had the impression Ish was aiming for something like Plato's Atlantean governmental system of Philosopher Kings. 2mo
kwmg40 I was of two minds regarding Joey\'s potential, as I\'m not sure myself whether great advances in civilization are made by individuals or circumstances. I expect that it\'s often some combination of the two. I don\'t think Ish had the answer either but had the same thoughts swirling through his mind. 2mo
Ruthiella @kwmg40 I think you are right, this is the same question that Ish was considering- are leaders born or made or a combination thereof… 2mo
31 likes1 stack add7 comments
blurb
Ruthiella
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

A few questions if anyone wants to discuss this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC 🦠 pick. If you want to be tagged next month or untagged from the distribution list let me know.

Question 1: Earth Abides is speculative fiction - a thought experiment exploring how humans might change and adapt to an End of Days scenario. Did you find Stewart‘s depiction plausible? What did he get right and/or wrong?

Bookwomble I'm still reading it - 49% through. So far I'm enjoying it but I'm not gripped, hence the rather slow going. I'll try to maintain focus and get it done! 3mo
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I think he got people‘s complacency right, as much as it irked me through the whole thing. I like to think people would be more proactive about survival, but I honestly don‘t know. Scavenging premade things seems easier than investing in long term solutions, so why do anything? I found the lack of conflict within The Tribe unrealistic. It seemed a little too quaint and perfect, even for “solid, good people”. 3mo
Lesliereadsalot I was surprised at how little effort the tribe made to hook up with other tribes. It took so many years to even find one other tribe! And I also found the lack of conflict infuriating. Everybody seems to have this happy-go-lucky attitude that isn‘t realistic. #LSFBC (edited) 3mo
See All 12 Comments
swynn @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm This was the thing that most surprised me, and was most insightful. In my imagination 1949 is full of self-sufficient post-WWII "can-do"ers who could meet the end of the world with grim competence. But after forty years of mostly-ignored climate change warnings and COVID's lesson that the expression "avoid it like the plague" has no source in actual human behavior, I think Stewart gets it right 3mo
Ruthiella @swynn @Lesliereadsalot @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm He indicated however that other communities were more proactive (in the south and southwest). I do think that some humans would have been less willing to rely only on scavenged resources. Just not those Ish hooks up with. 3mo
swynn @Ruthiella Fair point. And the rapid development of very distinct cultures is an interesting prediction, that I think depends on the level of group isolation, which, as @Lesliereadsalot points out, is extreme in Ish's group. 3mo
kwmg40 I started reading this book and was enjoying it but only got about halfway before having to return it to the library. So I'm on the waiting list again and will return to these questions when I finish it! 3mo
Bookwomble @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm @Lesliereadsalot @swynn @Ruthiella I did find it generally plausible, given the premise that most people died, leaving the survivors in an environment of scavenger abundance. The introduction of Charlie illustrated the potential for a more stereotypical "Mad Max" dystopian post-apocalypse. I think in this scenario, there just weren't enough people to warrant resource hoarding, other than considering people as resources. 2mo
Ruthiella @Bookwomble I think too he‘s demonstrating (intentionally or not) how poor humans are at long term planning. We have trouble seeing more than a generation beyond our own and the sacrifices we should make to ensure they abide. 2mo
Bookwomble @Ruthiella Agreed 👍🏻 It does seem an intentional pussy of the narrative, given Ish's often stated and then unrealised plans. 2mo
kwmg40 I finally got this book back from the library after a lengthy wait and finished it, so I\'ll chime in, even if it\'s very late. I found Stewart\'s depiction very interesting, as it;s so different from other post-apocalyptic books in which survival is often tied in with optimism and heroic deeds, rather than the complacency of Ish\'s tribe. 2mo
Ruthiella @kwmg40 it‘s never too late to chime in! I agree, the author‘s approach was different from anything I have read so far in this sub genre. 2mo
38 likes1 stack add12 comments
review
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Panpan

1 ⭐️
Unpopular opinion, but I really didn‘t like this book. Ish is an absolutely insufferable protagonist and I couldn‘t connect with him or any of the other members of The Tribe. Every time I thought something interesting was actually going to happen, it doesn‘t or it‘s skipped over. Ish‘s self-importance and how he looks down on everyone around him drove me insane.

I was THRILLED when a glimmer of conflict came but that was also quickly ⬇️

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm washed away. The final section was the most interesting to me, but it couldn‘t salvage the majority of the trudge through the most boring post apocalyptic story I have ever encountered. And I LOVE the post apocalyptic genre. From The Postman to The Stand, Mad Max to the Fallout franchise, I love it all.

I hated how Ish would think, “Gee, I should really do something about (insert x problem here),” and then proceed to NOT do anything about it. ⬇️
3mo
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I‘d rather read a book about Jack or the black family Ish contemplated turning into slaves (WTF?!?!) than about the narcissist “god”.

The only good thing to come out of this book was that it apparently inspired Stephen King to write one of my all time favorite books ever, The Stand.

#ClassicLSFBC
3mo
Ruthiella Hot take! I liked it but the sexism and racism were difficult and I wasn‘t sure if it was the author‘s view or only Ish‘s. 3mo
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm @Ruthiella I also didn‘t appreciate how the character of Evie was handled. I always try to go into a book giving the author the benefit of the doubt. Just because people write certain morals/beliefs into their characters doesn‘t mean they themselves hold to them. But Stewart made it really difficult for me not to wonder… I haven‘t looked into the author, and I don‘t plan to, honestly. 😅 So I don‘t know what his true views were in life. 3mo
28 likes5 comments
review
Lesliereadsalot
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Pickpick

#LSFBC
@RamsFan1963

Really enjoyed this post-apocalypse story about one man who survives and starts civilization over again. As he ages, we read beautiful passages about other species and structures aging. He has such high hopes for the future when he‘s a young man, and we find out what happens to those hopes as the years go by. I found this book to be very thought provoking.

Ruthiella I enjoyed the contemplative sections between the chapters as well. 3mo
Lesliereadsalot @Ruthiella Yes, I really looked forward to them! 3mo
18 likes2 comments
quote
Bookwomble
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

"Fifth Avenue makes a beautiful corpse."

#ClassicLSFBC #postapocalypse

The_Book_Ninja That‘s a pic🙌🏼 3mo
BarbaraBB Great quote too. 3mo
Aimeesue Wow, I haven‘t read this one in years. Still remember parts of it vividly, though. 3mo
See All 6 Comments
Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja It really caught the feel of the passage in the book 😊 3mo
Bookwomble @BarbaraBB I thought it really evocative of the quiet desolation of the post-pandemic abandonment of the city. Si much cooked up in so few words. 3mo
Bookwomble @Aimeesue I'm about ⅓ through and really enjoying it 😊 3mo
44 likes6 comments
quote
Bookwomble
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

#ClassicLSFBC @RamsFan1963 @Ruthiella I've just started this; already enjoying it ?

"I like to be alone at times, need to escape from all the problems of dealing with people." (snap)

"During ten thousand years, [human population has] been on the upgrade in spite of wars, pestilences, and famines. This increase in population has become more and more rapid. Biologically, man has for too long been rolling an uninterrupted run of sevens." ???

Ruthiella I‘ve not started yet! 😬 3mo
Lesliereadsalot On my shelf ready to go! 3mo
Bookwomble @Ruthiella I was wondering whether to leave it until next month, tbh, as I've a lot of other books on the go, but then picked it up anyway, and it is good so far. Anyway, don't get book-club stress - it's supposed to be fun 😊 3mo
Bookwomble @Lesliereadsalot Ready for lift off! 🚀😄 3mo
35 likes4 comments
review
rwmg
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Pickpick

#ClassicLSFBC
@RamsFan1963

I first read this in February 2020 when Covid was starting to arrive in Indonesia and have now re-read it post-pandemic (August 2024). Then, it was possible to imagine that this was the future we were facing, although we now know that Covid wasn't as fast or as deadly as Stewart's pandemic. ⬇

rwmg Since the bulk of the book was the post-apocalyptic situation and the fictional pandemic is only sketched in as Ish reconstructs what was happening after his hiking holiday (presumably informed by the author having lived through the Spanish Flu and his historical awareness of the Black Death and its after-effects), the book has not lost much if any of its power. 3mo
RamsFan1963 I think one of the things that really hit me hard about the book that I'm not able to forget is that it seemed all too real. I've read plenty of post-apocalyptic fiction, full of ultra competent men and women ready for the challenge, ready to rebuild society. This seemed more real to me, people just going day to day, scavenging off the past, not really giving much thought to the future. It depressed me greatly. 3mo
26 likes1 stack add2 comments
blurb
rwmg
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
review
RamsFan1963
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

83/150 I will definitely give this book a pick, because its beautifully written and descriptive of a world after a pandemic has wiped out most of mankind. With that said, I can't say I enjoyed the book, it left me with deep feelings of melancholia and sadness. Ish was an odd protagonist, strangely aloof and clinical when everyone he's known and loved is dead. Even when he becomes a part of a community, he is always the observer. #ClassicLSFBC

RamsFan1963 I also found Ish's little community to be a great source of frustration and anxiety. Even after several crises, they kept this attitude of just live for the day, no plans for the future, just let happen what happens. The slow slide back to a primitive was depressing. 3mo
RamsFan1963 3 ⭐⭐⭐💫 83rd book finished for #Readaway2024 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES @Andrew65 3mo
DieAReader 🥳Fantastic! 3mo
62 likes1 stack add3 comments
blurb
Blueberry
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
33 likes1 stack add
review
Blueberry
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

Published in 1949 the writing did not feel dated at all and the story relevant today. 3.75 ⭐

@NataliePatalie

55 likes2 stack adds
blurb
Blueberry
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
43 likes1 stack add
blurb
Blueberry
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

Currently reading.

MaCa McCurdy's title cracks me up. Hope it's as funny as it promises to be 2y
57 likes1 comment
blurb
TheSpineView
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

#Movie2BookRecs @Klou
Prompt: The Quiet Earth

PageShifter Looks intriguing! AGAIN xD 2y
TheSpineView @PageShifter A good one if ypu enjoy post-apocalyptic stories. 2y
Klou Fantastic!! 2y
TheSpineView @Klou 👍🤩 2y
34 likes1 stack add4 comments
review
Estrblmkr
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️⭐️ The story is interesting from a societal or psychological or maybe even anthropological view point. I was not a fan of the main character or his viewpoint on the people around him, however, experiencing the end of civilization as he knew it was intriguing. Making connections from the book to today‘s goings on, was thought provoking, and while I will not read it again, it makes for a fun book club read.

review
Nelnjali
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

3.5🌟 I wouldn't call this an enjoyable book, exactly, but I did find it an interesting read with plenty to discuss. It made for a very good book club read. Ish, the MC, is not a likeable character, but it was fascinating to see the fall of civilization due to disease through his eyes. I'm not sure I will ever have the desire to read this again, but I am glad that I have read it.

Ruthiella This is on my list! 4y
12 likes1 comment
blurb
Nelnjali
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

Smokey is being very stubborn with his affection. How dare I not let him lay on both of my hands? What do I mean I need at least one hand to turn pages?

#catsoflitsy

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Lol!!! My cats do the same thing!! 4y
Nelnjali @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks They have to remind us that they are the most important things in our lives! Lol 4y
14 likes3 comments
blurb
Estrblmkr
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
This post contains spoilers
show me
post image

With this passage (starting with “as for man...”) I am strongly reminded of the state of the world. I would also like to say, zombies? Can there be zombies? In the book at least?

Nelnjali Yeah, I was a little chilled by parts of this due to the state of the world right now. It is a timely read.
4y
Estrblmkr It‘s also fascinating. Written in 1949, the Spanish Flu epidemic was just over 30 years ago and this tale is about a post-apocalyptic world where a virus wipes out the planet. Everyone who read this then, had literally experienced something like this. And to have it happen again, with a release of the book not that long ago... *shudders* 4y
Nelnjali @Estrblmkr Oh yeah, that is quite fascinating. I hadn't actually thought about the fact that survivors of the Spanish Flu would have been reading this. Wow... One of the things I actually love is the way fear and discomfort is created in this book. Can you tell I'm amped to talk about it? lol 4y
Estrblmkr @Nelnjali Yes, I can tell. I‘m not very far into it, but it‘s already created an interesting atmosphere. :D 4y
3 likes4 comments
blurb
Estrblmkr
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

Rain storm and reading: the perfect way to start the day.

Nelnjali Hope you enjoy it. I'm looking forward to talking about it tomorrow! 4y
Estrblmkr I‘m waiting for the zombies 😆 4y
Nelnjali @Estrblmkr Lol. I get that. Now you know why I got creeped out by the number 19! 4y
Estrblmkr @Nelnjali You know always I‘m down for zombies lol. 4y
5 likes4 comments
blurb
Nelnjali
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

You know you've read too much Stephen King when you can't help but notice the number 19 in the post-apocalyptic book that you are reading. Even if it was written decades before anything by King.

blurb
BestDogDad
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

1. 📖 Earth Abides
2. 🖊 Jenny Erpenbeck
3. 🎥 Edge of Tomorrow
4. 🎸 ELO
5. 🎶 Eight Easy Steps

#ManicMonday

@JoScho

JoScho Thanks for playing 💜 5y
Crazeedi ❤❤ ELO!!! 5y
13 likes2 comments
review
rwmg
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
Pickpick

A very powerfully told post-apocalyptic novel with a focus on Ish's activities as he drives from San Francisco to New York and back and eventually becomes the centre of a community of survivors and on Ish's anthropologically and historically informed thoughts about people's reactions to the disaster and how the community should best face the future.

It's not an emotional book, but I did get weepy in the last 30 pages or so. An enthusiastic pick

quote
rwmg
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

1949

blurb
rwmg
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

#coffeeandabook #mycover

Perhaps not the most sensible choice of book in the present circs

blurb
Aimeesue
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

On sale in US ebook stores today - the new Becky Chambers stand alone and Stewart's Earth Abides, which is one of my fav post-apoc books. Plus a lot of sci-fi and fantasy.

review
twohectobooks
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image
Pickpick

This is a fascinating but flawed sf classic that I‘ve wanted to read for a while and picked up because of my #bookclub. After a disease wipes out the vast majority of humanity, young geography student Ish is one of the few survivors to pick up the pieces. This book does a bad job when it comes to women, race, and disability, but a great job of considering the methods in which civilization would decay after an event like this.

quote
twohectobooks
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

...the Year That We Sang.

Can someone with a better grasp of English #grammar please explain to me what the problem is here?

BookishMarginalia 🤷🏻‍♀️ 6y
Melissa_J I would have left out the word ‘that‘ and written it as The Year We Sang. But I don‘t know why the way it‘s written could be considered wrong? 6y
Kimberlone “That” implies we sang about the year rather than during the year, I believe 6y
twohectobooks @Melissa_J @Kimberlone I‘ll go with your suggestions! I had a feeling “that” would be the key to this phrase. My grammar skills are mostly intuitive so I couldn‘t figure it out. Time to pick up a copy of Strunk and White I suppose! 6y
11 likes4 comments
review
Geeklet
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
Pickpick

Each time I read this book, I find something new to adore. I love the smart choices Stewart made with this book. He examines the fragility of civilization throughout the narrative. The story is a fun thought exercise. Although this story has a plot that has been done to death, I still think Earth Abides is one of the finest post-apocalyptic tales.

Fair warning: This book was written in 1949 and that‘s very obvious from the language used.

Geeklet @Megabooks I‘m glad! It really is a good book. ❤️ 6y
31 likes1 stack add2 comments
blurb
Geeklet
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

I‘m sitting here reading the tagged book and I look up to see this pitiful pile of beagle shaped objects looking at me. Heaven forbid Biscuit and Gravy have to use their dog bed instead of my lap. They think I‘m a tyrant. 😂 #dogsoflitsy #scifi

Also, Earth Abides is still an awesome book! 🎊

rretzler How cute, though! 6y
46 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
Geeklet
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart

This is a re-read for me but I typically name this book in my favorites list. Time to make sure that I still love it as much as I think I do.

quote
twohectobooks
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

But in no way did civilization change life more than by sharpening the line between work and play... Men marched on picket lines and threw bricks and exploded dynamite to shift an hour from one classification to the other, and other men fought equally hard to prevent them.

blurb
twohectobooks
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

Starting my latest #bookclub book. Had to get this one from the university library because the public one didn‘t have any copies.

Excited to find out what the apocalypse looked like 70 years ago.

blurb
Guildedearlobe
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

Day 1 of #tarottakeover. Today‘s card is The Sun which represents Vitality, Invigoration and Energy.

I choose a book that deals with the dichotomy of social breakdown. On the surface Earth Abides is a post apocalyptic novel, and the break down if society as we know it, much of the book is about the Earth and nature reclaiming it‘s order. As the book says, “Men come and go, but Earth Abides.”

#Octoberphotochallenge

Alicia Earth Abides is one of my favorite books! 6y
Geeklet Such a fantastic book. I love that cover. 6y
Erinsuereads Interesting choice! I think it‘s a super great interpretation of the prompt! I‘ll have to add this to my list. 6y
94 likes2 stack adds3 comments
review
Oryx
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

I've gone for a pick, as it was really engrossing, and really interesting. What if a few very normal, not particularly smart or special, people survived a worldwide plague? Beautifully written. But it's definitely dated. Women just make babies, right..? It was written in the fifties, so still worth a read, keeping in mind it's a product of it's time.

56 likes1 stack add
blurb
Oryx
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image

Today Daisy models my new charity shop find. Looking forward to reading this, the SF masterworks selections have been a great way for me, as a late comer to sci-fi, to find some top reads in the genre. Also a late tag for #astheworldfallsdown #septembowie @Cinfhen #dogsoflitsy

britt_brooke 😍 7y
Cinfhen Daisy makes a lovely model 💗🐶 7y
Tanzy13 🐶 7y
DeeLew Daisy is a beautiful model! 😍🐶 7y
67 likes4 comments
review
mariejoechahine
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
post image
Pickpick

“Men go and come, but the earth abides”
This was such a mindblowing book!
I found it was a realisric perspective of how civilization might end with a lethal virus.
There was many lessons learned from how the main character lives in this post apocalyptic world.

I only regret not having put a notebook next to me while reading to note all the innumerable inspirational quotes!

Lwsmith Totally agree. Images from that book have lived on in my mind for the two years since I read it. 7y
61 likes1 comment
review
jgobin
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
Bailedbailed

I really wanted to like this book, but for some reason it just wasn't working for me. I really disliked the narrator's haughty superiority ... and I know the book was written in the fifties, but the blatant sexism just made me dislike it even more. Didn't want to waste my time slogging through something I didn't enjoy whatsoever.

blurb
Alicia
Earth Abides | George R. Stewart
post image

This is not the actual cover I have but there are a TON of covers out there for this one. Sci-fi was and still is a favorite genre of mine. This is a classic, that is soooo amazing and accessible unlike other classics in the genre. Basically, a man goes into the woods, comes back out and everyone is dead. Then he tries to survive... #readathonblob

44 likes3 stack adds
review
Vandeervecken
Earth Abides | George Rippey Stewart
Pickpick

One of the first, and still one of the best in the post-apocalyptic genre. I first read this in high school, and recently reread it. Still taunt, exciting, detailed and an example of great story telling.

MrBook Welcome to @Litsy ! We hope you enjoy your stay, I think you'll like it here 😎👍🏻. 8y
4 likes2 stack adds1 comment