Guter poastapokalyptischer SF mit einigen für meinen Geschmack zu brutalen Szenen. ( )

As I started reading this book, I thought, "Well, the writing's good... but it must be terribly unoriginal, because everything in it seems incredibly familiar!" Around page 75, I figured out that the reason it seemed so familiar was that I'd actually read it before.
Sigh.
But, I really like post-apocalyptic fiction, so I kept reading it.
It is good, especially for those who are fans of the genre.
However – Wood's theory on why apocalypse came about, in this book, is a geomagnetic polar shift. You can read some stuff about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geomagnetic_reversal
However, the only people who generally seen to think that such a phenomenon will cause total disaster are the alien-conspiracy-Greys-Atlantis-psychic-power types. (Yeah, I like the theory that the reason that we have no evidence of truly advanced ancient civilizations is that when a magnetic shift occurs, all "artificial" materials DISAPPEAR, leaving only "natural" substances such as rock behind. AAAGGGH! Basic physics, anyone? Anyway.) Moreover, the changes don't (from all past evidence) seem to happen quickly. So – I'm not giving it a lot of points as far as likelihood of civilization collapsing.
The book is also named after the very interesting figure of Michael Faraday, the brilliant self-taught scientist, well-known for his research into electromagnetism.
However, Faraday is not once even mentioned within the text of the book. Too bad.

So, we have a story of a pilot from one of the domed cities that are the last holdouts of civilization. Flying his antique helicopter on a mission to try to find a source to scavenge fuel from (and also trying to secure his position in the city with an unfriendly Councilman, and wanting to resolve serious issues in his marriage), he runs into trouble, loses his ‘copter, and falls afoul of wild gangs of feral children. Saved by a young woman with a natural talent for chemistry, his mission is now merely to get back to his home alive – a task that seems near-impossible...

(Of slight interest(?), Wood was married to fellow sf-author Norman Spinrad for 15 years.) ( )

Pretty good. A man with a passion for his helicopter explores beyond the safe zone in post-holocaust US. He walks back with the aid of outsider survivors and finds his home isn't so great. ( )

Did not enjoy. Rape fantasies, racist depictions. (Every time a POC of color's eyes were described, an animal comparison was used.) I generally enjoy end of the world type stories, but the world building was not sufficiently detailed for me with this one. I also wanted to read more about Sadonya, who was a far more intriguing character. ( )

This came highly recommended and I should have loved it, but somehow it didnt tick with me. I can tell it is a good book about a well built dystopia, a world where something went really wrong and people try to survive and, for some, rebuild. I just didnt quite buy into any of the characters. Still, I think it is a good read for anyone who likes these kinds of 'bleak future' books. ( )