A Canticle for Leibowitz

Loved it

I really enjoyed this. Perhaps younger readers will not feel this book the way the older "cold war" generation do. The spectre of nuclear annihilation was strong at the time this was written, and the story, set in the far future, revolves around the idea that M.A.D. had indeed taken place in what was for the narrators a distant past. The story traces the slow recuperation of humankind beginning in a post-war dark age, proceeding to a renaissance based upon fragments of, to the persons living at that time, very ancient knowledge. For a very long time monks are the guardians of this knowledge - even though few of them have any idea just what exactly it is they are preserving. In the end....well, read it and find out for yourself.

This is a book that was first published quite a while back. I read it in high school. And, remembering that it was a good sci fi read, I ordered it so I could read it again. Glad that I did. With the recent developments in international politics in the direction of bigger and better weapons, maybe everyone needs to read this book. What happens if the nukes rain down on the world? In this story, humans aren't totally burned off the face of the planet, but they suffer the retributions of their nuclear folly. After that kind of experience, do you think humans will change and become peaceful and good-hearted towards each other? Will the learning that resulted in that holocaust be forever cast aside? or re-embraced? And what could the result be in either case? The author created a story that is haunting in its apparent possibility. I recommend this book to anyone who likes Sci Fi and also for those who are a bit worried about recent political trends in the world.

I heard about this book looking for something to read inside a fantasy/post-apocaliptic wishlist/commended-list. I found this book well written, with a fresh and new plot, entertaining and sometimes even poignant (first act). Once I'm done with university, I'll surely read it again

Very entertaining read.