The White Plague: Difference between revisions
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[[IMAGE:Herbert-1982-WhitePlague.jpg|thumb|right|200px]]'''''The White Plague''''' is a 1982 novel by [[Frank Herbert]], featuring a plague that kills only women and therefore ends the human species. | [[IMAGE:Herbert-1982-WhitePlague.jpg|thumb|right|200px|1982 paperback cover]][[IMAGE:Herbert-Tor2007-WhitePlague.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Tor 2007 paperback cover]]'''''The White Plague''''' is a 1982 novel by [[Frank Herbert]], featuring a plague that kills only women and therefore ends the human species. | ||
Scientist John Roe O'Neill is driven mad by a terrorist attack that kills his wife and children. He develops and releases a [[gendercidal]] plague in Libya, England, and Ireland, but of course it spreads. | Scientist John Roe O'Neill is driven mad by a terrorist attack that kills his wife and children. He develops and releases a [[gendercidal]] plague in Libya, England, and Ireland, but of course it spreads. | ||
| Line 5: | Line 5: | ||
==Blurbs== | ==Blurbs== | ||
* "John Roe O'Neill, molecular biologist, American of Irish descent, saw the car bomb explosion that killed instantly his wife Mary and their twin five-year-olds, Kevin and Mairead. Physically almost unharmed, a shock wace of blinding, all-engulfing hatred and revulsion seared through his mind. Revulsion not just for the bombers but for a world that could produce such horror. And he sought revenge on that world, creating and unleashing a plague. Then, as his plague swept the world, bringing not just death but the mad anarchy of terror, he went on a journey where he was forced to see the awfulness of his own handiwork." | * "John Roe O'Neill, molecular biologist, American of Irish descent, saw the car bomb explosion that killed instantly his wife Mary and their twin five-year-olds, Kevin and Mairead. Physically almost unharmed, a shock wace of blinding, all-engulfing hatred and revulsion seared through his mind. Revulsion not just for the bombers but for a world that could produce such horror. And he sought revenge on that world, creating and unleashing a plague. Then, as his plague swept the world, bringing not just death but the mad anarchy of terror, he went on a journey where he was forced to see the awfulness of his own handiwork." | ||
* Tor 2007: "''What if women were an endangered species?''<br /><br />It begins in Ireland, but soon spreads throughout the entire world: a virulent new disease expressly designed to target only women. As fully half of the human race dies off at a frightening pace and life on Earth faces extinction, panicked people and governments struggle to cope with the global crisis. Infected areas are quarantined or burned to the ground. The few surviving women are locked away in hidden reserves, while frantic doctors and scientists race to find a cure. Anarchy and violence consume the planet.<br /><br />The plague is the work of a solitary individual who calls himself the Madman. As government security forces feverishly hunt for the renegade scientist, he wanders incognito through a world that will never be the same. Society, religion, and morality are all irrevocably transformed by the White Plague." | |||
==Reading and discussion notes== | ==Reading and discussion notes== | ||
* "white plague" is a term also given to tuberculosis | * "white plague" is a term also given to tuberculosis | ||
* Compare: [[James Tiptree, Jr.]], [["The Last Flight of Dr. Ain"]] | * Compare: [[James Tiptree, Jr.]], [["The Last Flight of Dr. Ain"]] | ||
* Commentator "R Hendrick" notes on one site: "This novel has quite an A-list following. Bill Joy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, wrote that this book was his sole fictional influence behind his classic essay ‘Why the future doesn’t need us’. John Robb, ‘the futurist’s futurist’ and author of best-seller ‘Brave New War’ also identifies this book as his sole fiction influence."<ref>R Hendrick, [http://truescifi.wordpress.com/2009/01/20/the-white-plague-frank-herbert/#comment-110 Comment], 2009/02/14.</ref> | |||
| Line 17: | Line 19: | ||
==Editions== | ==Editions== | ||
* ISBN 978-0399127212 | * ISBN 978-0399127212 | ||
* 2007 Tor: ISBN 978-0-7653-1773-5, ISBN 0-7653-1773-7. | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| Line 23: | Line 26: | ||
==Further reading== | ==Further reading== | ||
* [http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/frank-herbert/white-plague.htm FantasticFiction.co.uk] | * [http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/frank-herbert/white-plague.htm FantasticFiction.co.uk] | ||
* [http://www.librarything.com/work/70853 LibraryThing] | |||
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Plague Wikipedia] | * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Plague Wikipedia] | ||
===Discussions, reviews, critiques=== | |||
* [http://truescifi.wordpress.com/2009/01/20/the-white-plague-frank-herbert/ Review], TrueSciFi (2009/01/20) | |||
==Notes== | |||
{{reflist}} | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:White Plague}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:White Plague}} | ||
Latest revision as of 10:28, 20 December 2010
The White Plague is a 1982 novel by Frank Herbert, featuring a plague that kills only women and therefore ends the human species.
Scientist John Roe O'Neill is driven mad by a terrorist attack that kills his wife and children. He develops and releases a gendercidal plague in Libya, England, and Ireland, but of course it spreads.
Blurbs
- "John Roe O'Neill, molecular biologist, American of Irish descent, saw the car bomb explosion that killed instantly his wife Mary and their twin five-year-olds, Kevin and Mairead. Physically almost unharmed, a shock wace of blinding, all-engulfing hatred and revulsion seared through his mind. Revulsion not just for the bombers but for a world that could produce such horror. And he sought revenge on that world, creating and unleashing a plague. Then, as his plague swept the world, bringing not just death but the mad anarchy of terror, he went on a journey where he was forced to see the awfulness of his own handiwork."
- Tor 2007: "What if women were an endangered species?
It begins in Ireland, but soon spreads throughout the entire world: a virulent new disease expressly designed to target only women. As fully half of the human race dies off at a frightening pace and life on Earth faces extinction, panicked people and governments struggle to cope with the global crisis. Infected areas are quarantined or burned to the ground. The few surviving women are locked away in hidden reserves, while frantic doctors and scientists race to find a cure. Anarchy and violence consume the planet.
The plague is the work of a solitary individual who calls himself the Madman. As government security forces feverishly hunt for the renegade scientist, he wanders incognito through a world that will never be the same. Society, religion, and morality are all irrevocably transformed by the White Plague."
Reading and discussion notes
- "white plague" is a term also given to tuberculosis
- Compare: James Tiptree, Jr., "The Last Flight of Dr. Ain"
- Commentator "R Hendrick" notes on one site: "This novel has quite an A-list following. Bill Joy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, wrote that this book was his sole fictional influence behind his classic essay ‘Why the future doesn’t need us’. John Robb, ‘the futurist’s futurist’ and author of best-seller ‘Brave New War’ also identifies this book as his sole fiction influence."[1]
Awards
- Nominated, Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1983)
Editions
- ISBN 978-0399127212
- 2007 Tor: ISBN 978-0-7653-1773-5, ISBN 0-7653-1773-7.
See also
Further reading
Discussions, reviews, critiques
- Review, TrueSciFi (2009/01/20)