Alas, Babylon

Alas, Babylon

Cover of first edition (hardcover)
Author	Pat Frank
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Apocalyptic novel
Publisher	J. B. Lippincott
Publication date	1959
Media type	Print (hardback & paperback)
Pages	352
ISBN

Alas, Babylon is a 1959 novel by American writer Pat Frank (the pen name of Harry Hart Frank) It was one of the first apocalyptic novels of the nuclear age and has remained popular more than half century after it was first published, consistently ranking in Amazon.com's Top 20 Science Fiction Short Stories list (which groups together short story collections and novels) and has an entry in David Pringle's book Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels. The novel deals with the effects of a nuclear war on the fictional small town of Fort Repose, Florida, which is based upon the actual city of Mount Dora, Florida. The novel's title is derived from the Book of Revelation "Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come." The cover art for the Bantam paperback edition was made by Robert Hunt.

Randy (Randolph) Bragg lives in the small Central Florida town of Fort Repose and appears to be drifting down a somewhat aimless path in life when his older brother, Colonel Mark Bragg, an Air Force Intelligence officer, sends a telegraph ending in the words, "Alas, Babylon", a pre-established code between the brothers warning of impending disaster. Mark is flying his family down to Fort Repose for their protection while he stays at Strategic Air Command headquarters at Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska.

Soon afterward, an American fighter pilot, attempting to intercept an enemy plane over the Mediterranean, inadvertently fires an AIM-9 Sidewinder heat-seeking missile that goes off course and hits an ammunition depot in Latakia, Syria, resulting in a large explosion. This event becomes the apparent excuse for the Soviet Union to launch a nuclear strike against the United States and its allies. The following morning, Soviet missiles are fired over the Arctic, as well as from submarines. American missiles are sent in response. Randy and his guests awake to the shaking from the bombing of nearby air force bases and naval air stations; one explosion temporarily blinds Peyton, Randy's niece.