The Kraken Wakes (originale 1953; edizione 2008)

British sci-fi from the 1950s.
The book travels well - the science of the dystopian future is not too detailed, which means it hasn't dated. Other aspects of the imagined future are prescient - the populist fake-news characters seem very real in a Trumpian world; and the rising sea levels (although with a different cause) also seems far-sighted.
The writing is well crafted, the characters believable.
A good book to look back on. ( )

My article 'They May Not Mean To' on the formation of family in the horror fiction of John Wyndham is up on the John C Adams Reviews website now!

https://www.johncadamsreviews.com/single-post/they-may-not-mean-to

#JohnWyndham #parents #father #mother #family #horror #JohnCAdamsReviews #JohnCAdams #FridayFrighteners #Fiction #Book #Friday #article ( )

Sinks start sinking for no apparent reason and strange lights are seen above the deepest parts of the ocean. Some kind of alien life form has arrived on earth and the human race doesn't know how to deal with it. I assumed, wrongly, that this would be about some deep water uber squid attacking ships due in no small part to the rum. I really enjoyed this book, it's the exact kind of classic sicence fiction that really gets my juices flowing and I can instantly see how it has served as an influence for other Sci-Fi writers. ( )

I re-read most of the John Wyndham books just before joining Goodreads, 8 or 9 years ago. I was bowled over by this one and now re-reading again I am even further impressed. For a start there is no action - it is all reportage - and just as riveting and perilous as any immediate action would have been. First published in 1953 it is beautifully written and constructed and far from sounding dated and old-fashioned. In fact while we may have moved on from the simplistic cold war agendas, replace aliens (or possible aliens) with runaway climate change and it is horrifyingly up to date. ( )

Wyndham seems to like people who roll up their sleeves and carry on, making the best of it. In this tale the sea becomes the home to gigantic sea tanks that issue forth terrifying creatures. Then Mike and Phyllis roll up their sleeves and carry on. ( )