Trouble with Lichen
Classic Science Fiction
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4.3 • 23 Ratings
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
FROM THE RENOWNED CLASSIC SCI-FI WRITER AND AUTHOR OF THE DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS AND THE CHRYSTALIDS
'Ingenious' Evening Standard
Francis Saxover and Diana Brackley, two scientists investigating a rare lichen, discover it has a remarkable property: it retards the aging process. Francis, realising the implications for the world of an ever-youthful, wealthy elite, wants to keep it secret, but Diana sees an opportunity to overturn the male status quo by using the lichen to inspire a feminist revolution.
As each scientist wrestles with the implications and practicalities of exploiting the discovery, the world comes ever closer to learning the truth . . .
Trouble With Lichen is a scintillating story of the power wielded by science in our lives and asks how much trust should we place in those we appoint to be its guardians?
Customer Reviews
Eye opening 😂
Very readable, and interesting for its sci-Fi premise of the effect on society of a new drug that extend life to 200 years +.
Also fascinating in what the author unconsciously displays of mid-20th century assumptions, by the educated professional classes at least: it’s incredibly classist, sexist, ageist, (and racist in that non-whites aren’t even mentioned, you realise they don’t exist in his mind), bigoted in every way. It shows how the scientific advances from Einstein on made people of Wyndham’s generation feel humans were invincible, capable of anything and had a right to do anything they wanted with the planet. For example, the main character Diana’s reason for launching this drug on the world is she assumes that it’s only the shortness of the human lifespan that stops human wisdom developing to the point where all the world’s problems would be cured. Oh the glorious naivety, the comforting superiority and security of such a world view, and it was what educated people did believe only 60 or 70 years ago!
For this reason, both an escapist and eye-opening read; it makes you think, in ways the author would have had no idea of when he wrote it.