⋙ Download Gratis Summer of the Apocalypse James Van Pelt 9780974657387 Books

Summer of the Apocalypse James Van Pelt 9780974657387 Books

Download As PDF : Summer of the Apocalypse James Van Pelt 9780974657387 Books

Summer of the Apocalypse James Van Pelt 9780974657387 Books

Van Pelt's writing almost accomplishes the goal of "being there" for the reader. Definitely a good Apocalyptic story. My dream is to live in Colorado some day, so I had a personal interest in the story's environs. The story also includes the wasteland of Rocky Flats, but that area does not constitute a main part of the story, like Martin Crux Smith's "Wolves Eat Dogs" novel. The switch between the main character's youthful life and his life over 70 life works as a technique in this story. In this way it is similar to a time travel fantasy. A time travel fantasy back to the "Gone Times."


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Summer of the Apocalypse James Van Pelt 9780974657387 Books Reviews

I love realistic apocalyptic fiction and Summer of the Apocalypse is right up there among the classics for me. It's in the same league as Alas Babylon, On the Beach, Earth Abides, A Canticle for Leibowitz, and the Road. This is a great story with memorable characters and events, and the narrative is executed well. I'd be glad to read another title by this author, particularly if he decided on another effort in this genre or perhaps, a sequel of sorts. There are no zombies here, just people trying to survive. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the occasional zombie thriller and I love Stephen King's The Stand, but when it comes to this type of story, I prefer to consider what the world would REALLY be like if the SHTF.
This was a recommendation by . I love dystopian, post-apocalyptic or alternate future stories and this is clearly within that category. But it is also so much more. Like another book I reviewed, "What Came After", this is about the love a parent has for their child and vice versa. It's a compelling tale about a young man coming to terms with his new and destroyed world and one final attempt to help his descendants make it right at the end of his life. The juxtaposition of Eric as a young and then old man, on a journey both times, is exceptionally well done and we really do connect with him at both ends of his life.

I read the book "Earth Abides" about a year before this one and I can easily see why many people compare the two works, but I think this is far superior in terms of connecting with the human condition and the modern reader. Eric is a believable character under very adverse conditions and trying hard to not just survive, but to grow up. In his reverse journey at the end of his life, he is full of experiences and regrets yet he retains that essential goodness and strength of character that served him well as a youth. I genuinely liked him.

The emotional tone in this book is really spot on. Regardless of it's post-apocalyptic scenario, the love and care that people have for others in their family group is evident and the goals are the same deep down inside. Provide something better than we ourselves had. And when it becomes clear that we can't, to give in gracefully and prepare for what we can provide them. Both things happen in this book.

This is also a clean book in many ways. The vile language or sexually explicit stuff is missing from this book and turned instead into a rather more wholesome book. It happens, but it happens "off camera" or is hinted at in ways that are approved of for younger readers. So while this isn't a YA book, that I'm aware of anyway, it is entirely appropriate for a YA audience.
Summer of the Apocalypse stands head and shoulders above pretty much any dystopian story I have read, simply because it is personal. It’s the story of one man, spanning actually two stories. One takes place when Eric, the main character, is 75 and is one of the last survivors of the disease that destroyed 99 percent of humanity 60 years before. The second story tells of his survival of the plague when he was 15. Each chapter shifts back and forth between the two stories, which might seem confusing, but actually are essential to each other, and are surprisingly well interwoven.

The story when he is 75 centers around his life with his son and grandsons. His son Troy has become leader of their small band of people, and is opposed to the emphasis his father puts on reading and the value of books. With seemingly endless supplies around them, the survivors have gotten used to scavenging to get whatever they needed. But Eric realizes and unsuccessfully tries to convince them that eventually they will need to learn to make, grow and fix things on their own. Frustrated and worried about the future of man, Eric decides to hike from Littleton, Colorado to Boulder and the large university and library there. His hope is that the books there would have the answer to mankind’s problems.

The book is surprising in its ability to balance the importance of knowledge with the dangers that come with it. And even though you would think that the author would be promoting the value of reading books, the ending is quite surprising.

But more importantly, the story is about how a man–both at age 15 and at age 75–is affected by the changing world around him on a very personal level. His goal in the younger years is simply finding his father, and in the later years is perhaps finding himself, or rediscovering the value of the Old World that no longer exists.
Van Pelt's writing almost accomplishes the goal of "being there" for the reader. Definitely a good Apocalyptic story. My dream is to live in Colorado some day, so I had a personal interest in the story's environs. The story also includes the wasteland of Rocky Flats, but that area does not constitute a main part of the story, like Martin Crux Smith's "Wolves Eat Dogs" novel. The switch between the main character's youthful life and his life over 70 life works as a technique in this story. In this way it is similar to a time travel fantasy. A time travel fantasy back to the "Gone Times."