Childhood's End

By: Arthur C. Clarke

Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer, Robert J. Sawyer - introduction

Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

The Overlords appeared suddenly over every city - intellectually, technologically, and militarily superior to humankind. Benevolent, they made few demands: unify earth, eliminate poverty, and end war. With little rebellion, humankind agreed, and a golden age began.

But at what cost? With the advent of peace, man ceases to strive for creative greatness, and a malaise settles over the human race. To those who resist, it becomes evident that the Overlords have an agenda of their own.

As civilization approaches the crossroads, will the Overlords spell the end for humankind...or the beginning?

BONUS AUDIO: Includes an exclusive introduction by Hugo Award-winning author Robert J. Sawyer, who explains why this novel, written in the 1950s, is still relevant today.

©2001 Arthur C. Clarke (P)2008 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"In Eric Summerer's capable hands, the plot of Childhood's End is smoothly presented and fully credible. He highlights the patient nature of the Overlords, which has caused humans to become ever more complacent. Summerer excels at delivering the aliens' quiet and intensely engaging dialogue with people. His nuanced performance creates a growing feeling of uneasiness in the listener as the Overlords' insatiable curiosity and watchfulness begin to suggest something less than benign at work." ( AudioFile)

THE STARS ARE NOT FOR MAN

LESS ZEST FOR THE FEW, BUT MORE TRANQUILITY FOR THE MANY
This book like many of Clarke's is a political statement or conversation. If an alien race came to our world and ended our ability to make war, what would be the result? Of course things are slanted in Clarke's favor as would be expected since he wrote the book. Clarke has always been anti-war and anti-religion. If you are strongly sensitive about religion, you might take offense to this book and many of Clarke's writings. I find it interesting that he seems to believe in a soul. The simple act of taking away man's ability to make war, seems to take away some of his rights. It could be compared to the gun control debate of today. In this book he says in the future we will not care about the difference in skin color. He paints a picture of a future South Africa, where the blacks are in controll and the minority whites are discriminated against. The overlords give the whites equal rights, but not control. This was written in 1953. He talks about the abundance of entertainment, especially TV, that will be available in the future. He is astonished that in the future man will spend an average of 3 hours a day watching TV. He talks about soap operas, but they way he says it, it sounds similar to Reality TV. We have the Federation and the word Futile is mentioned. I wonder if Gene Roddenberry was a fan?

WOMEN HAVE BEEN FAINTING THROUGHOUT TIME
One of my favorite parts was when ten thousand people felt the wound given to a bull in a bull fight. The Overlords, said that we could kill each other, but not animals, except for food or self-defense. Once everybody felt the pain a bull goes through in a bull fight, that was the end of that. As liberating as Clarke was and all of the things this brilliant man saw, he did not see women as equals. He does not consciously put them down, he just refers to them as weak stay at home types and they never have leadership roles. It often depresses me, in how he looks at man and he often reminds us on how small we are in comparison to the universe. He might be right, but it is not anything I liked rammed down my throat. There are no character development in any of Clarke's books, they are usually thought driven. They are often on an epic scale. The second half of this book goes into a sort of metaphysical stage and honestly kind of weird. I was not crazy about the ending.

If you are a Clarke fan, or big into Science Fiction, than this is a must read. This is a good look into the mind of a genius. Being a genius he is still not correct in all things, but it is amazing the amount of things he got right and may still get right in the even more distant future.

Fascinating look at the upheaval of alien contact

Although it is amusing hearing references to some of the outdated technology (the advance ETs communicate through cutting edge teletype machines!), those are only minor quibbles in a very unique and interesting story. The arrival of a far more powerful and intelligent extraterrestrial race is handled in a way I have never heard before. It was refreshing for an advance species to arrive, bring peace on Earth, and... not secretly be waiting to eat us all, but honestly helping us!

Having the story play out over generations also conveys the massive impact and societal change this has in a believable and well explored manner. You know they are thinking long term when they say more or less, "We need to wait until only those born after our arrival are around to reveal that." I could definitely see a lot of other stories told in the generations that this novel covers.

The only thing holding it back in my mind is that the main thrust of the story that leads to a very dramatic conclusion kind of came out of nowhere for me. Even a hint earlier than half way through might have helped. It didn't ruin it for me, but given the world the first half sets up, there was a definite point that stretched my suspension of disbelief beyond what I expected. But the story was fascinating enough that I just went with it and was glad I did. That shift was pretty jarring at first, however. If you can't roll with it, then I imagine the ending has got to be a disappointing "What the-?!"

The narration is very good, but compared to some of the amazing narration some stories have on Audible, it's not to that level. So if I can only give 5 stars to those, this has to settle for 4. Some narrations are so great, that they really enhance the story. This narration is one of those that instead manages to nicely get out of the way and let the story speak for itself.

When story trumps style

“I have a 4 millimeter camera and thousands of meters of film,” remarks one character. Arthur C. Clarke’s science fiction masterpiece doesn’t predict everything with accuracy, whether it’s the evolution of digital cameras or the failed dream of worldwide adoption of the metric system. But it does paint a fascinating future in which the malaise of prosperity and unlimited leisure time leads in an unexpected way to the complete disappearance of professional sports, for example, and most scientific research.

I must admit that I’m not a serious science fiction fan, though I do appreciate a good story. And my conclusion is that this is a better story than it is spellbinding prose. The plot, despite those occasional holes, is inventive and often surprising. It covers a lot of territory, sometimes in dramatic leaps, after a bit of a slow start. The writing, however, is stilted and formal in style, and so is the narration. But the story carries the day, as it must, and the result is a good listen to a seminal work.

The view 50+ years on ...

I first read Clarke's Childhood's End when I was very young. At that time I spent most of my waking hours when out of grade school in the Public Library and I remember reading through this book and feeling that all of my questions about war, cruelty and fate were answered within its pages. I never forgot the book and carried fond memories through my life. Of course when I saw it on Audible and realized that it was a Daily Deal I immediately bought it.

My experience with this book as an adult turned out to be quite different from that when I was a child. What I thought of, as a child, as clear analysis and thoughtful solutions now seem to me to be naivety and silly suggestions. Clarke has presented us with answers that work well for a child but which I, as an adult, can only think of as foolish nostrums and wishful thinking. Some examples of Clarke's ideas in this book:

War and violence solves nothing. Of course I was told that as a child and Clarke's statement of it in this book made perfect sense to me when I was 13 years old, but as an adult I know how silly that statement actually is. Heinlein had the right answer to that statement in Starship Troopers when one of the characters refers to the end of World War II as proving that often violence is the only answer to some problems. All one has to do is think about The American Civil War, The English Civil War, the fate of Napoleon, The Punic Wars, The Battle of Salamis, The Battle of Thermopylae and the list goes on. It is not nice, it is not pretty but it is often true.

Theft and robbery would disappear if everyone had enough to satisfy their basic needs. One only has to look at the crime statistics from the Soviet Union where everyone had about the same level of goods to see that is not true.

A world constitution is easy to create and would satisfy all of the nations. And more ...

Clarke's writing is, of course, wonderful and his characters and control of the story are superb. Clarke was a wonderful writer and a great storyteller. Unfortunately, as an adult, this story strikes me as mostly silly nonsense and my sense of disappointment after re-reading as an adult it is profound. This book is wonderful for a young teenager but not so great for an adult aware of the limitations of the world. Many of the ideas presented are very simplistic and the notion of how humanity would likely react when they finally saw the Overlords seems like a far cry from reality.

Many reviews would probably take issue with my analysis and point out that the core of the book is about what happens after humanity is "reformed" and "changed" but getting past the initial assumptions, which occur somehow painlessly and without violence, is a bridge too far for me.

Of course this is a science fiction book, but I still expect it to reflect a basic level of reality as regards human beings. As well read as this book is I feel I have to differ from many of those reviewing it and say that I can only recommend this book if the reader is willing to suspend common sense. On the bright side the narration is excellent.

children are creepy

i loved the story. but it was so depressing at the end. this is one of those stories where you want something good to happen to someone, anyone, come on! just this once, everyone lives. but life and the universe just keep on happening without my consent.

A Visionary Classic

After finishing this novel, it was amazing to look back at just how much of science-fiction had been influenced following this book's release. Without Childhood's End, we might not have ever seen such sci-fi movies as "Independence Day", "District 9", "Battle of Los Angeles", or any other plots that feature the scenario of giant spacecrafts hovering over major cities.

But this novel is MUCH, MUCH more than just the simple idea of aliens vs. humans. It's actually not that at all. Instead, it is a far further complicated, and somewhat more realistic vision of what might happen if one day we all wake up to the skies full of flying saucers.

I would not call the ending of this book a "twist" even though it is completely unpredictable. Usually, a "twist" is cheap and sort of gimmicky. If you've read any of Clarke's other work, you know that he is above such things. All I will say is that you shouldn't bother trying to predict the book's outcome. No matter what you do, it won't be anything similar to your expectations.

9.27 / 10.00

Good Book

I found the audio book entertaining. I listened to it while driving on a business trip. I plan on looking for more book similar to this in the future.

Olden Goldie

If you could sum up Childhood's End in three words, what would they be?

Atypical alien invasion

What other book might you compare Childhood's End to and why?

A classic sci- fi that stands the test of time. Reminds me of all the old sci-fi classics from the forties, fifties and sixties.... With a twist.

Which scene was your favorite?

The ending is a surprise, this is not just another alien invasion story from the fifties.

Any additional comments?

Clark is not know for his character development, or classic story telling, but the originality of this story is perfect. If you want a quick read this one should be on your to do list.

A classic for the ages.

One of the most engaging listens I've ever enjoyed. Clarke proves his mastery of the genre and weaves a complex cast of characters into a story that rings true from smallest detail to grandest plot point.

Should have been followed verbatim in Tv movie

Better than SyFy movie. Really enjoyed Audible book.
The movie did not give justice to the book.