The Return by H. Beam Piper and John J. McGuire
"The Return" by H. Beam Piper and John J. McGuire is a science fiction novel written in the early to mid-1950s. The book explores the remnants of civilization in a post-apocalyptic world where small communities are struggling to survive following a catastrophic nuclear war. The central theme revolves around the journey of two men from a well-equipped fort who seek to reconnect with lost knowledge and civilization, encountering a strange society thathas developed its own unique beliefs and customs. In the story, scientists Altamont and Loudons discover a group of survivors in a stockaded village who are descendants of a military platoon from centuries ago. They have established a community with remnants of advanced knowledge but have also formed a religious belief system centered around a slain and risen god. As Altamont and Loudons introduce technology and aim to revive connections between communities, they must navigate the challenges posed by the local “Scowrers” while also dealing with the implications of their mission on the villagers' societal structure. The novel combines elements of adventure and philosophical exploration, raising questions about civilization, culture, and the essence of humanity in a world reshaped by disaster. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Piper, H. Beam, 1904-1964 |
|---|---|
| Author | McGuire, John J. (John Joseph), 1917-1981 |
| Illustrator | Freas, Kelly, 1922-2005 |
| Title | The Return |
| Series Title | Produced from Astounding Science Fiction, January, 1954. |
| Note | Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Return_(Piper_and_McGuire_short_story) |
| Note | Reading ease score: 80.8 (6th grade). Easy to read. |
| Credits | Produced by Greg Weeks, Sankar Viswanathan, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Science fiction |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 18855 |
| Release Date | Jul 17, 2006 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 114 downloads in the last 30 days. |
| Project Gutenberg eBooks are always free! | |
