Children of the Dust (novel)
| Author | Louise Lawrence |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Publisher | Harper & Row |
|
Publication date
|
1985 |
| Pages | 168 |
| ISBN |
Children of the Dust is a post-apocalyptic, dystopia novel, written by Louise Lawrence, published in 1985. The book details three generations of a family during the aftermath of a nuclear war. The survivors of the blast suffer through radiation, nuclear winter, feuds between rival groups and radiation-induced mutations, eventually evolving into a new species, Homo superior. The new species has adapted to the loss of the ozone layer and the abundant radiation, and will become the dominant species on the planet.
The book contains three sections, one for each generation. The novel offers some hope that humanity could survive the horrors of war (as an allegory for the current age) in order to form a new world.
When the air raid sirens go off, Sarah, a schoolgirl in England, runs home to help her stepmother, Veronica, prepare the living room to protect the family from nuclear fallout. Sarah and Veronica assemble living provisions, rudimentary sanitary supplies, and clothes and toys for Veronica's son William (aged five) and daughter Catherine (aged seven). The family then shelter inside as the bombs fall.
Sarah realises that the water the rest of the family has been using has become contaminated with radioactive particles from the unblocked chimney, and all apart from Catherine are likely to contract radiation sickness. Veronica displays symptoms first and leaves the house several times to collect canned (safe) food for Catherine. She tells Sarah that community members have gathered in the church and a local farmer is giving away contaminated meat for free.
Later, when her symptoms become worse, Veronica leaves, presumably to die. William also begins to suffer from radiation sickness, and when he is near death and Sarah begins to weaken she leaves the house, bundling Catherine up against contamination. She gathers food for her from the house of the town farmer and takes her to the remote home of Johnson. Johnson has been prepared for the war, and appears unaffected by radiation sickness. During the time of the nuclear fall out Sarah has to take on the role as a mother due to Veronica saying that she is going to give up but Sarah refuses to let Veronica give up on herself.
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