The Children of Men

There have been a lot of good reviews of this book written already, so I'll keep it short.

The story is set in a world where no children have been born for over 20 years, and it appears that the entire human race is sterile. Theo is an Oxford professor who is forced into the centre of the action when a group of political activists want to use him to help overthrow his cousin, the Warden of England (essentially the dictator ruling Great Britain). A lot of interesting topics are touched upon, including the treatment of the youngest generation to ever walk the Earth and the rise of a dictator and the public's general apathy towards it so long as they can live comortably, which leads to the use of immigrants to do the jobs that nobody wants to do, the use of the Isle of Man as a huge prison and the encouragement of ritual suicide of the elderly.

There are two things to point out:
1) The book doesn't have a lot in common with the film, other than the general premise. It's not really better or worse, but it's different and worth reading even if you think you've seen in all before.
2) This sort of thing has been done elsewhere, in 'Greybeard' by Brian Aldiss. Both books are good, and I wouldn't really recommend one over the other.

A good book, slightly let down by the ending (it does reach a conclusion, more or less, but I didn't like it) and a few minor loose ends.

A thought provoking novel... (2/2 people found this helpful)

In a world where no child has been born for 25 years a small group of five rebels begin to plan to challenge the ruling dictatorship of England. But the five are far from united and seek help from Theo Faron, an academic who is the cousin of Xan the Warden of England. He believes there are many injustices and agrees to help them albeit reluctantly. He is also strongly attracted to Julian, a mysterious and lovely member of the group.

The Children of Men is a beautifully written dystopic novel The infertility has caused changes in attitudes and morality as the population becomes distorted. Many social issues are raised:
-"voluntary" suicides of the elderly
-indulgence of last born Omegas leading to criminality
-importation of other races to fill the labour gap but without being given any rights
-brutal suppression of criminals

The author also explores the way in which the regime in power wants to "do the right thing" but ends up prioritising policies and never quite coming to grips with the most serious problems.

A really interesting and thought provoking novel - and Theo is a great invention as the reluctant hero.

Thought provoking (1/1 people found this helpful)

This is not the easiest book I've ever read. The language is detailed and precise. However, readers may be rewarded for the effort if they show a little patience. Some of the author's insights into people and religion are subtle and intriguing. In addition, the author produces many wonderful turns of phrase.

Grippingly subtle end-of-the-world (1/2 people found this helpful)

I'd watched and enjoyed the 2006 movie version of "Children Of Men" before I read the novel. I thoroughly enjoyed the film but the book is even better, as well as quite different.

The premise is the same- approaching the middle of the 21st century, no human child has been born for nearly twenty years. It's an absolutely brilliant and gripping premise, and extremely haunting. I'm a big fan of 'end of the world' type stories but the "Children Of Men" concept is one of the best, because it's so simple, and very subtle. No explosions, no viruses, no mad scientists- just a gradual and total drop in the birth rate in modern day society. The 'science fiction' aspect of why it's happened and how to fix it is barely touched on, as the story is really about how mankind would act. It's definite food for thought.

Compared to the film, the book, in particular the first half of the book, is very civil. Human civilisation is still fairly much intact, and a pretence of 'normality' is maintained by the Governments of the world. Central character Theo is ordinary and unassuming, his only unusual characteristic being that he's the current Warden (prime minister)'s old friend. This connection means he's contacted by a small group of activists who have some shocking news, and suddenly he's on an unstoppable journey into danger. The second half of the book is almost totally unrecognisable from the film- a different pregnant woman, a different chase, being chased by different people. The parts played by Michael Caine and Chiwetel Ejiofor in the movie are pretty much non-existant.

Rather than complain about "the movie's not as good as the book" or whatever, the real upshot is that you can enjoy two different "Children Of Men" stories- the novel and the book- which start from the same root, both have excellent ideas in them and are both worth enjoying.

A Sudden Ending (0/0 people found this helpful)

I read this book in two days whilst on holiday and loved it. I didn't speed read and by-pass the story (for a change) and really enjoyed the book. But on reflection, it ended rather suddenly. Just seemed a bit like the publisher was there tapping his watch and wanting to wind the whole thing up.

Baroness P. D. James

Reader Reviews:

Nightmare vision of humanity without a future (0/0 people found this helpful)

A thought provoking novel... (2/2 people found this helpful)

Thought provoking (1/1 people found this helpful)

Grippingly subtle end-of-the-world (1/2 people found this helpful)

A Sudden Ending (0/0 people found this helpful)

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