Through Darkest America by Neal Barrett, Jr.Genre: Post Apocalyptic
Bob's Thoughts "A familiar story with an unfamiliar twist."
Grade: A-
Out of Print. Available through Abebooks.
100 Books 100 Posts #4
On the surface, Through Darkest America is a typical Post Apocalyptic tale of a world a few generations past a nuclear war, where society has regressed back to small towns, and farming communities. Yet, every once is a while an author with throw a twist into a story, that just by it's inclusion, twists and taints an entire story, forcing you to evaluate an entire story through the tinted glasses of the twist. Neil Barrett, Jr. does it here with winning results.
In Through Darkest America, the twist is that nuclear war has struck down the vast majority of animal life. The religion of the land morphed into the idea that "animal" flesh was unclean, and that the war was God's way of cleansing the land. Now, they get their meat from "stock" altered, feral human-like animals. Shocking as this may be, Barrett makes it more shocking by making it almost a side issue of the story. No one is outraged by it, protesting for the rights of the stock. There is no "voice of morality" telling us this is wrong. It is just accepted by everyone as a fact of life. Yet, for us, the observer, it colors the whole story with its understated presence.
That's what takes this story from the simple, to the complex, the moral struggles aren't the characters, but your own, to attempt to understand the status quo of the book, and that is the payoff.
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Biting Dog Publications has released Through Darkest America, and Dawn's Uncertain Light by Neal Barrett Jr in ebook format, available at all major ebook retailers.
Through Darkest America
Post Apocalypse America
Bluevale was about all Howie had seen of the world.
Even his Pa, who knew everything, didn’t know much about the way it was before the war.
Scriptures said all of the unclean animals had been wiped out. Howie didn’t know what that meant exactly. He’d seen horses. And stock of course. Stock looked like humans.
‘Cept stock had no soul. That’s why they was meat.
Howie had a good life for a boy. Then the soldiers came. And what they did to his folks made him grow up right quick. He got his revenge—‘cept now the whole darn army was after him. But he had a huge country to run across…and lots of miles to stay alive.
Includes new bonus chapter!
Dawn's Uncertain Light
*Sequel to Through Darkest America
After The Fall...
America's Great Dream is over. Centuries ago it was devastated by the ultimate war. The effects still linger.
Food is scarce, water even scarcer and human compassion nowhere to be found. Even so, society is slowly rebuilding itself.
But is it a society whose thirst for success is built on an enormous , barbaric lie:
Silver Island
...an almost legendary place to most Americans.
The citadel where the government is building a new and better nation from the ashes of the war-ravaged land. Everyone envies the few children who are chosen to be sent to Silver Island to help realize that dream.
At least, that's what Howie Ryder was told when his little sister became one of the Chosen. And that's what he believed before the soldiers slaughtered his parents.
Six years on, Howie has discovered the horrifying truth about Silver Island. And will do anything -- anything -- to rescue his sister from it's grip...
A Day At The Fair (A free short story)
Off to the south you could see 'em---two big Portugees floatin' high and slow, flat-looking bodies all pearly blue in the sun. They weren't real hungry, or looking for anything special, just drifting along, trailing their stingers like long rags of rain 'gainst the ground..
Available at all major ebook retailers!
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