Book description
After the war is over, a radioactive cloud begins to sweep southwards
on the winds, gradually poisoning everything in its path. An American
submarine captain is among the survivors left sheltering in Australia,
preparing with the locals for the inevitable. Despite his memories of
his wife, he becomes close to a young woman struggling to accept the
harsh realities of their situation. Then a faint Morse code signal is
picked up, transmitting from the United States and the submarine must
set sail through the bleak ocean to search for signs of life.
On the Beach is Nevil Shute's most powerful novel. Both
gripping and intensely moving, its impact is unforgettable.
Nevil Shute Norway was born on 17 January 1899 in Ealing, London.
After attending the Dragon School and Shrewsbury School, he studied
Engineering Science at Balliol College, Oxford. He worked as an
aeronautical engineer and published his first novel,
Marazan
, in 1926. In 1931 he married Frances Mary Heaton and they went on to
have two daughters. During the Second World War he joined the Royal Navy
Volunteer Reserve where he worked on developing secret weapons. After
the war he continued to write and settled in Australia where he lived
until his death on 12 January 1960. His most celebrated novels include
Pied Piper
(1942),
No Highway
(1948),
A Town Like Alice
(1950) and
On the Beach
(1957).
