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Book Review of The Children of Men

The Children of Men
The Children of Men
Author: P. D. James
Genre: Literature & Fiction
Book Type: Paperback
reviewed Thatcher-era antics. on + 3 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2


Children of Men takes place 20 odd years after the entire human population has become infertile. This novel has a very post-apocalyptic feel to it. Every country except England is wrecked with anarchy. England is holding it together under the totalitarian regime of the Warden. In many ways, this is an England not unlike that portrayed in Alan Moore's graphic novels "V is for Vendetta."

The story is partially told through the journals of Theo, a middle age curmudgeon who happens to be the Warden's only living relative, and partly through an all-knowing third person narrator. I enjoyed this style because while it makes you privy to Theo's most intimate thoughts, it was also refreshing to get out side of his self-involved head.

The book and the movie only share the most basic plot structure. In both, the world's population is infertile, a zealot leads England's government, and one man, Theo, needs to help a pregnant woman to safety. The movie is more action packed and several characters are changed or condensed. When reading the novel, the reader gets to know Theo better and understand the malaise that takes over when there is no forseeable future. The endings of both vary greatly.