SurvivalBlog reader T.G. writes in:
My first and foremost pick is ‘Alas, Baylon‘ by Pat Frank. Written in 1959, it starts off in the sleepy little Florida town of Fort Repose, a brief family history of the main character, and soon leads up to an accidental nuclear war in the Middle East that goes world wide. The story details how the lights go out and how Fort Reposed goes from 1959 to sometime in the 1800’s as people have to relearn how to do almost everything plus deal with day to day life minus information, a hospital, functioning police, and weekly shipments to the local store.
My second pick is probably unusual for a prepper, but bear with me. ‘Daybreak 2250 A.D.‘ by Andre Norton, published in 1952. The story takes place a couple hundred years after a devastating world war that used nuclear and biological weapons that reshaped the landscape and the creatures who roam the earth and maybe the race of man. The main character, Fors of the Eyrie tribe and a loner due to his perceived ‘mutant’ appearance of platinum colored hair and enhanced abilities of hearing and sight, strikes out on his own after a final rejection for a coveted position in his tribe-descendants of scientists and technicians, who now walk through the lands wearing handmade clothing trying to glean lost knowledge of the Old Ones. While not typical ‘prepper’ material, I’ve always been drawn to the tale for its practical examples and lessons of self-reliance, from navigating by the stars to constructing a bow and arrows. I acquired both of these novels while in high school in the late 70’s and reread them at least every third year since. I reread Day Break 2250 A.D. this last week of January 2016. I suppose these two stories appeal could be the “just before and just after” a societal meltdown points of view and what the future could look like once the chaos and destruction becomes ancient history.
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Reader M. Mahoney would like to recommend a couple of books by Kay Mahoney (full disclosure– his wife) and are related to each other.
Collapse: You’re On Your Ownis a post-EMP fictional story based in northern Arkansas. My Frugal Notebook is a non-fiction book based on a notebook maintained by a character in Collapse.
Both books have received favorable reviews in local newspapers and online book seller sites and are timely for your readers.
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Reader D.S. recently watched Polycarp, Life of a King as well as Courageous, which he reports has changed his entire family’s life and brought them closer to God.