FREE: THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS pb science fiction Wyndham

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THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS. John Wyndham.

Paperback.

The world comes to an end in this novel with a cosmic light show that leaves everyone who watches it...which is almost everybody...blind the next morning. And ready to take advantage of this are the triffids, ambulatory tree-like plants that have become a mainstay in the economy because they produce a high quality vegetable oil. The problem with the triffis, however, if they have a whip-like tendril that sprouts from their crown and is capable of killing people struck by it. After sufficient time for decompositionl, the whip will hook meat and bring it back so they can feed themselves. How do you deal with that?

The book spawned a movie with American actor and singer Howard Keel in the lead, a common practice in 1950's English movies where American character actors took the lead with an otherwise all-British cast. The story is different in details, but substantially similar.

The triffids, of course, sound much more impressive in the book than they look on screen -- that's the power of imagination for you. Unlike the movie, the book doesn't try for a simple happy ending, but more like a conditional happy ending.

It's a nice little chiller. I read it when I was a teen...I had to snap it up and reread it. Glad I did.