The Chrysalids by John Wyndham

The Chrysalids by John Wyndham

THE COLD WAR SCI-FI CLASSIC: Following a global nuclear war, a telepathic young boy searches for freedom in a fundamentalist society.

"One of the most thoughtful post-apocalypse novels ever written." --David Mitchell, New York Times-bestselling author of Cloud Atlas

The Chrysalids is set in the future after a devastating global nuclear war. David lives in a tight-knit community of religious and genetic fundamentalists, who exist in a state of constant alert for any deviation from what they perceive as the norm of God's creation--deviations broadly classified as "offenses" and "blasphemies." Offenses consist of plants and animals that are in any way unusual, and these are publicly burned to the accompaniment of the singing of hymns. Blasphemies are human beings--ones who show any sign of abnormality, however trivial. They are banished from human society, cast out to live in the wild country where, as the authorities say, nothing is reliable, and the devil does his work. David grows up surrounded by admonitions: KEEP PURE THE STOCK OF THE LORD; WATCH THOU FOR THE MUTANT.

At first, he hardly questions them, though he is shocked when his sternly pious father and rigidly compliant mother force his aunt to forsake her baby. It is a while before he realizes that he too is out of the ordinary, in possession of a power that could doom him to death or introduce him to a new, hitherto-unimagined world of freedom.

The Chrysalids is a perfectly conceived and constructed work from the classic era of science fiction. It is a Voltairean philosophical tale that has as much resonance in our own day, when genetic and religious fundamentalism are both on the march, as when it was written during the Cold War.

When Auriel Wyndham Livezey was in her mid-teens, her family moved abroad from her native Australia, she was exposed to numerous cultures and languages and got an worldwide viewpoint. Her education took conducted in Canada, Europe, and the United States, in addition to Australia. She has lived in Southern California since 1963, after living in many countries and places. During her time in Sydney, Auriel did some photographic modeling and commercial film work. In Toronto, London, and Minneapolis, she worked in the financial industry.

She also did runway modeling for a fashion firm that sold to buyers all over the world during her time in London. Auriel's passion to help others via spiritual healing moved her into a new profession for almost four decades while still a young mother, despite her profound interest in and love of spiritual subjects. Auriel produced articles and gave inspiring presentations to audiences ranging from 15 to 5,000 people throughout that time. Her marriage to Glen Livezey, who was also a healer and had taught on the subject in a number of places, provided her with beautiful company and a growing feeling of purpose.

Auriel has devoted the majority of her time since his death in 1993 to writing, publishing, speaking engagements, and running Mountaintop Publishing. She has written several books as well as two musicals.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781590172926
ISBN 10	1590172922
Title	The Chrysalids
Author	John Wyndham
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	The New York Review of Books, Inc
Year published	2008-11-18
Number of pages	224
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.