- Non-Stop
Infobox Book |
name = Non-Stop
image_caption =
author =Brian Aldiss
country =United Kingdom
language = English
series =
genre =Science fiction novel
publisher =Faber and Faber ,Pan Books , Gollancz,
The Overlook Press, Peter Mayer Publishers, Inc(2005)
release_date = 1958
media_type = Print (Hardback &Paperback )
pages = 241 (Paperback 2005 First edition)
isbn = ISBN 1-58567-683-7 (Paperback 2005 First edition)"Non-Stop" is a 1958
science fiction novel byBrian Aldiss . It was Aldiss's first novel. Originally published by Faber & Faber, it has been reprinted by a numbers of publishers in the UK and U.S. since then.Plot summary
The main character, Roy Complain, lives in a tribe where curiosity is discouraged. With a small group, he leaves his home and moves into uncharted territory. What they find changes their universe.
The place where Roy Complain lives is a group of tunnels surrounded by vegetation. A priest named Marapper asks him to join a group heading into the wilderness. Their target is a place called Forwards. They move through the wilderness and eventually encounter a group of civilized people in Forwards. It is revealed that they are on a multi-generational starship. Order has broken down, and most of the passengers have forgotten they are on a ship. The ship is being maintained by mysterious people called "giants". From the ship's log, they discover that the ship returned to Earth, and by this time, it should be in Earth orbit. With the help of the Forwards people, Complain's group tries to dismantle the ship and attack the giants. It is revealed that Complain's people have become adapted to the ship and have, in effect, evolved to become different from normal humans. The ship's "Emergency Stop" is activated and it breaks into pieces. The book ends with Complain believing that they will be taken to Earth.
Note: many U.S. paperback editions were published with the spoiler title "Starship". [http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?123]
External links
* [http://www.solaris-books.co.uk/aldiss/html/non-stop.html page on Aldiss's official site]
* [http://www.iblist.com/book20998.htm Internet Book List]See also
"
Orphans of the Sky " by Robert A. Heinlein"
Metamorphosis Alpha " a role playing game that has many similar elements.
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