Reprieve from Paradise by H. Chandler Elliott (1955, SF HB) Gnome Press 2nd pr?

Description: Reprieve from Paradise by H. Chandler Elliott Cover by Mel Hunter Gnome Press Later Printing Description: Hardback book published by Gnome Press around 1955. From the tan cloth covering the boards, this appears to be a second printing or a least a later binding state of the first. No statement of edition of printing on the copyright page but I haven't seen any say their copy with green cloth (first state) say their copy has a first edition statement. From the flaps: Which side would you join? The Heirarchy? - Here you get fed and have your choice of mates; and you're never out of a job. But it is a static and sterile state. Live by and on the soil, and avoid what almost destroyed the world. Or The Rebels? - Eager enquirers; they have rediscovered and redeveloped Atomic Power and not only believe they know how to handle it but insist on all sharing it; even if this possibly means another catastrophic Atomic War. Scene: Earth - Time: 40th Century Plot and Sub-plot: After World War #3... the Armegeddon of myth finally became too awfully true. The survivors, pitifully few, crawled out of their holes and surveyed their wrecked world. The age-old centers of civilization were utterly destroyed... along with their shining technical advances... which stopped tragically short of the stars. The few comparatively untouched areas were forgotten and unimportant islands nestled quietly across the far-flung Pacific - and parts of the Antarctic where costly bombs were not directed. After the first shock, the Polynesians became missionaries and threw open their slim resources to the survivors and eventually the mixed strains jelled into a powerful society, dedicated to the basic needs of life: procreation and gainful toil. Such things as amusement; games, sports and love are gone. The leaders, now known as "The Heirarchy" are only concerned with new sources of food to feed the now-swollen population; every inch of earth is under intense cultivation; insects and animals have joined the extinct Dodo; everybody has his place and his job... and in this deceptive paradise - Food is God and Procreation a Patriotic Duty. The state is static and sterile. The Heirarchy is too firmly entrenched; reluctant to disturb their world - an agricultural world. They rigidly control thought and action and have achieved a safe, but static state. On the other hand, another group of survivors who have migrated to the Antarctic regions have, through the ages, re-discovered and re-developed Atomic Power and are determined to bring their gifts to the agricultural Polynesians - who strongly resist. This, then, is the situation as THE HERO: A geophysicist, attached to the last University, and here are the last untilled acres of untouched natural beauty; trees, plants, flowers. As the story opens, the Heirarchy decides that these last few untilled acres must be sacrificed to the common need of the people. Realizing that this means the end of research, scholarship and individual freedom, and personal happiness, the hero makes a desperate bid to save his sanctuary the only way left open to him: he promises to increase the food supply by 1% - a fabulous figure for this time - and with only a glimmering of an idea to work on. He wins his point and is reluctantly granted a little time to make good his promise. Now his enemies invoke a clause which binds him to put in a badly-needed year of obligatory service, working on any project which is assigned to him. This starts out simply enough; a problem on the encroaching sea, but instead of what he expected - how to utilize new land, turns out dramatically to be just the reverse - for some inexplicable reason, the sea is flooding farmlands and threatening to permanently drown productive land. Now the hero, in his frantic search for an answer, becomes involved with the Rebels, and how his loyalties are severely tested, is the theme of this soberly worked out, not-to-far-fetched, picture of a renascent society fighting itself out of atomic destruction. Those enthralled by possible life in the future; devotees of good, fast-moving science-fiction will be particularly intrigued by this beautifully written book. And the speech of our remote descendants, as worked out by the author, will particularly enchant language students. Condition: Binding - acceptable, pages are very brown about the edges, page centers very tanned but mostly clean, top and bottom of spine bumped, corners slightly bumped, cloth a bit frayed at the edges, slight soiling of the boards, the side page edges have a stain, top page edges a little soiled. Dust jacket - good, moderate edgewear and wrinkling, minor soiling, tape stain over the original price (which is visible), not price clipped, in dust jacket protector. Our Business Policies: Use the Contact Seller link near the top of this listing to see our FAQs, which should answer most questions about our business and listing policies. We have moved the extensive text we used to have here to those FAQs. Shipping and Packing: General Information: We always ship in sturdy new boxes with premium heavy duty packing tape, bubblewrap and filler to keep the item(s) away from the sides of the box. The pictures below show the boxes that we use for shipping. A Note On Customs: When customs forms are required for a shipment, we fill them out honestly, stating that the contents are merchandise and giving the price you paid for the item (not including the shipping) as the value. Please do not ask us to do otherwise. 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Price: 10 USD

Location: Fresno, California

End Time: 2025-01-04T07:48:05.000Z

Shipping Cost: 6.56 USD