Survival and Resilience in Alas, Babylon: Book Report
Alas, Babylon, by Pat Frank, is a story based in late 1959 about a small Florida town’s survival during a fictitious nuclear war attack. The main characters in this story are the Bragg’s and the inhabitants of River road. It is a story of courage, perseverance and strength during an apocalyptic time late in 1959 and early 1960’s. The writer tells us of the possibility of a nuclear war on United States soil and the historical set back of the world as they knew it. In the next paragrahs I will analyse Alas, Babylon story and within the essay I will explore its strengths and weaknesses, issues and ideas.
This book starts off with the Bragg brothers who are decedents of the founders of Fort Repose. Mark is a United States Air Force officer and Randy the sympathetic lawyer and failed politician. Mark learns that nuclear war is coming and will take place on U.S. soil and does what can to alert his brother Randy and secure his family’s safety. Knowing it could be the last time he sees them, Mark sends his wife Helen and their two children Ben Franklin and daughter Peyton, to Fort Repose Florida to his family home on River Road. After an accidental missile explosion by a young fighter pilot, Peewee Cobb, the Syrian port of Latakia is destroyed and sets the course for the bombing on the U.S. The Soviet Unions assault lasts minutes and due to the governmental let down the people are stranded in a contaminated zone of dangers. As bad as a nuclear war is, some prevail and others succumb to the horrors of their circumstances.
Issues and Ideas
Chaos takes over and most of Florida is wiped of the map. I believe the author’s intention is to invite us to imagine what it would be like if this was to happen in 1959. There is a similitude to the actual late 1950’s and early 1960’s history, in that most Americans lived in the terrors of the Cold War and of the Soviet Union. Pat Frank explores the idea(s) of how a person could survive and rebuild life after such world ending destructions. Randy and his motley crew of hero’s have to survive with little provisions and the securities they were once accustom to. If an event this catastrophic were to happen now, I worry people would not be stable enough to manage such destruction with the ease that our hero, Randy does.
Social media and the desensitization we have found ourselves in is crippling us and chaos would consume some of the strongest and secured. In my opinion, many would succumb to the chaos much like the Fort Repose banker who can’t handle the financial collapse or the highwaymen killing and rioting the raping this small town. I believe Pat Frank’s perspective is displayed vividly imaginative and accurate for these times in history.
Strengths and Weaknesses
I would have to say that at first reading the into and chapters 1&2 were discouraging and I had to press myself to keep reading. I took a different approach, learning in my work leadership class, that I am both an audible and visual learner. I purchase an audio of Alas Babylon and the story came more alive to me as I read along. I suggest you try that if the words blend together from one character to the next like it did when I started the book. Referring to Pat’s writing, I would have liked it to have been less like a colonel in the military was writing it. To me, some of the transitions were hard to follow and there were strange sentences punctuations. The only way I could picture the story was by the audio and being a book reader, I found it hard to connect to the words alone. Other than that, I loved the book.
In conclusion, I would definitely recommend Alas, Babylon book. If you’re a historical buff and like to have an idea of what people would have to endure and how, Pat Frank paints a portrait with words as we experience what it would be like if nuclear war happened in our country.
