The Children of Men

By: P.D. James
In September I went to see The Black Dahlia, which was not nearly as exciting as it should of been. However there was an excellent preview for a movie called Children of Men. As I often do when I see a good movie preview I wondered if there was a book involved somewhere in the life of the story. As it turns out the movie originated from a novel of the same name by P.D. James. I immediately retrieved it from the West Haven library and devoured it in three days.
By the year 2021 everyone on the planet has become mysteriously infertile, there is no one under the age of 18 left alive on the planet. Society is crumbling, England is run by a dictator, and Theo (incidentaly the dictator's cousin) a washed up professor is coerced by a group of revolutionaries to join them on their crusade. Their crusade being the protection and hiding of a pregnant woman.
The story zips along despite a strange writing style. James flips from Theo's first person diary to third person action with no real rhyme or reason. But the story and characters are compelling enough to overlook my issues with story structure. It's an interesting thought, the idea of everone becoming infertile. What struck me the most was the way society had just become so beaten down. "No children. No future. No hope." is the move tag line and an apropriate description of the attitudes of the society.
I cannot wait to see the movie. It has to be better than Black Dahlia.