Books Like The Sky Is Falling - Part 2
In the first part of this article, we looked at some novels like The Sky Is Falling that explores the various ways in which mankind deals with threats from outer space. From asteroids crashing into the planet and causing widespread devastation to comets grazing the atmosphere with unforeseen consequences, there are many ways in which Earth is vulnerable. Books like Lucifer's Hammer, We All Looked Up, The Last Policeman, and All We Have is Now all have different threats and characters who deal with them in their own unique ways. For more books like The Sky is Falling check out some of the following novels.
Meteor
by Brad Knight
Meteor by Brand Knight is the story of Troy, a man who plans on being very prepared for a pending apocalypse. Troy ends up spending thousands of dollars on this project, which involves building an underground bunker, despite his friends and family thinking that he is crazy. However, his fears are proven true when a massive meteor crashes into Africa and the resulting soot and debris leaves the world in perpetual darkness. Troy believes that his family is safe in their bunker as the rest of the world deals with the breakdown of civilization, but time will tell if he is right.
Rockfall
by William Allen
Unlike other novels where humanity has some type of warning or chance to prepare for the impending disaster, the people in Rockfall by William Allen are taken by complete surprise. One day a chunk of rock from space just hits the Earth out of the blue and causes earthquakes and a tsunami. Millions of people die in the aftermath and even those who survive have an uncertain future ahead of them. The protagonist, Bryan Hardin, lives on a farm where he and his family is safe from the disasters, but he knows that sooner or later they will have to deal with desperate people who are not as fortunate.
Impact!
by R. V. Fodor and G. J. Taylor
Impact! is a late seventies novel by R. V. Fodor and G.J. Taylor. It is set during a time where meteorites are striking Earth with increasing frequency and some of them are large enough to create craters that are miles across. A deep space radar scan indicates that the worse is yet to come with a huge object over seven miles across fast approaching. The U.S. government scrambles to set up a piloted mission with the intention of intercepting and destroying the meteoroid. However, as the object is predicted to hit a region near the border between China and Russia some would prefer it if the strike was allowed to happen.
The Hammer of God
by Arthur C. Clarke
The Hammer of God is a 1993 novel by Arthur C. Clarke that is set in the year 2109. It is based on a short story that Clarke originally wrote for Time magazine. A new asteroid is discovered and named Kali, but it quickly becomes clear that it is on a collision course with Earth. Humanity has a year to prepare for the event, so a plan is set in motion whereby fusion thermal rockets will be used to deflect the asteroid. Unfortunately, some extremists believe that the collision is meant to be and have no qualms sabotaging the mission. Steven Spielberg actually optioned the rights to this novel for film production but ended up making Deep Impact, which only shares some passing similarities with the original story.
Terraforming Earth
by Jack Williamson
Terraforming Earth is a 2001 novel by the prolific science fiction author Jack Williamson. The novel is set on Earth in the aftermath of a giant meteor that wipes out all life on the planet. Only a handful of survivors manage to escape the planet and set up a base on the moon. It is from here that they observe the devastated ruins of their former home and patiently wait for a time where the planet will be inhabitable again. It takes millennia of waiting for the cloned children and their future generations, but eventually, a trip back to Earth becomes possible. However, to them, Earth is an alien new world and not the home that their ancestors once knew.
