Set in a small Florida town immediately before and after a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the United States, 'Alas, Babylon' reminds me quite a bit of 'Retrieved from the Future' by John Seymour, in that it is a contrivance to allow the characters to demonstrate what is lost when civilization crumbles and how life can go on using pre-industrial methods and knowledge. If you are looking for gritty, violent action, you will not find it here. While there is some life and death action in the story, it is fairly subdued, I think due to the time of its publication - 1959. It was published in a time of war for the US, after the Korean War and in the early days of the Vietnam conflict, and it reflects a seeming weariness among readers for violence. The struggle is there, but this is firmly a tale designed to show how life could continue after a nuclear holocaust. Racial tension is dealt with in the story fairly ably given the time in history that produced it, but the strong gender roles make it feel a bit like Leave it to Beaver from time to time. Worth reading in its own right, but also as a study in historical perspective.
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