Children of the Atom

by Wilmar H. Shiras

Hardcover, 1981

Status

Available

Call number

813

Genres

Science Fiction

All Topics

Fiction

Collection

Fantasy & Science Fiction

Publication

Nelson Doubleday, Inc. / SFBC (1981), 182 pages

Description

Children of the Atom is a 1953 science fiction novel by Wilmar H. Shiras, which has been listed as one of "The Most Significant SF & Fantasy Books of the Last 50 Years, 1953-2002." The book is a collection and expansion of three earlier stories, the most famous of which is the novella "In Hiding" from 1948, which appeared on several "Best SF" lists. The book's plot focuses on superhuman children with immeasurably high intelligence who have to hide their youth, and work from hiding in order to get along in the less-intelligent world. "What we find here is an inventive updating of Stapledon's famous Odd John (1935) in very sensitive, unsentimental terms, with the addition of a sense of community, a benefit that Stapledon's protagonist never got to fully experience. Shiras tells her story in simple yet affecting prose, a kind of blend of Sturgeon and Simak."--Science Fiction Weekly… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member HenriMoreaux

Classic 1950s science fiction (in fairness however it began as a series of three novellas in 1948, the most famous of which was In Hiding, and was later expanded into a book in 1953).

I went into this blind having picked up the Science Fiction Book Club 1959 hardcover edition which does not contain

any blurb or description, so all I new was it was published in the 50s and science fiction, probably involving atomic energy on some level. With memories of the faction by the same name in the Fallout game series I thought I'd give it a look and see if there's any relation - there's not.

The book centres around a school psychologist Peter Welles and a student who a concerned teacher refers to him, Tim. It turns out that Tim's problem isn't a problem per se but rather that he's extremely intelligent and unable to relate to others well, spending a good amount of time hiding his true intellect. It's from here we learn that Tim's parents were killed in an atomic explosion and he's somewhat of a mutant with the side effect of his radiation exposure being a higher than usual intellect.

The story then goes on as Peter Welles forms a school for these mutant gifted children (bit of xmen deja vu here) and collects other children who were effected by the atomic explosion and are mutants also.

Overall, it was alright, not particularly enthralling and the dialogue is cumbersome in parts with the author becoming a little preachy at times. I found the first chapter In Hiding was the best part of the book, with the final chapter being my least favourite chapter. If you like classic science fiction it's worth reading just for completions sake as it was ranked as the 14th most significant science fiction books by the SF Book Club.

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LibraryThing member dixonm

I've always liked *Children of the Atom*, though the final story, the one in which the children and their adult guardians suddenly and inexplicably decide that it would make sense for them to waste several years of their lives trying to fit in in a normal high school, represents a 180-degree

turnaround from the assumptions and statements made in the other stories. Ignore it, and you have a good, solid fix-up novel, though the first story, "In Hiding," is the best.

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LibraryThing member BruceCoulson

How would children who were extra-ordinarily intelligent but lacked any real life experience deal with their peers, and more importantly, adults? A novelization of 'In Hiding', Children of the Atom expands on the theme of that story, as Tim (the protagonist from the first story) finds his true

peers and begins to interact with them, and society at large. Some nasty observations about how people deal with those perceived to be different.

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LibraryThing member jillrhudy

Very dated and dull. Purely of historical interest as a marker in the history of sci-fi.

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