It’s written so effortlessly (which means it actually probably took an enormous amount of work to be this good) and reads smoothly, with you always wanting to keep turning the page, hoping and praying that things will be OK. It’s a beautiful book, very grounded in our world, even with the fictional events. I’ve been trying to read less depressing things while the world is such a mess, but I’m glad I made an exception here. Despite the characters knowing very little, Alam does a good job of feeding in some extra information for us, the readers, all of which only adds to the dread and sympathy we feel for the characters. We are so used to being in constant contact with the world thanks to our phones, social media and twenty-four hour news alerts. The lack of knowledge makes the whole thing even more terrifying. Here, the families are so close to the action, but have no way of being sure of what’s going on. Alam is masterful in playing up the unknowability of the situation, because when the world ends we won’t necessarily have all the answers and know why. The first knock on the door and the arrival of the homeowners is chilling, and everything goes downhill from there. A happy family on a picturesque holiday does not a good story make. And then the first noise splits the sky and it becomes clear that something is very, very wrong.Īlthough the first few pages are idyllic in their setting, there remains a foreboding sense of anxiety over them because, you know, you’ve read fiction before. With no way to check these people are really who they say they are, can they be trusted? What has really happened in New York? As anxieties rise and everyone begins to speculate on things they can’t possibly know the answer to, they all have to wonder if they’re safe together. They tell of a blackout in New York, and Amanda and Clay quickly discover that their phone and television signal has gone. They’ve never met, having arranged it all over email, but the new arrivals are seeking shelter. Outside, they find GH and Ruth, the owners of the house. After only a couple of peaceful days, however, there is a knock at the door. They’ve rented a house in the forest on Long Island and plan to spend their time in the peace and quiet, reading, swimming, enjoying the silence, and catching up with each other. Leave the World Behind is one of the most unsettling books I’ve ever read about the end.Īmanda and Clay are on holiday with their teenage children, Archie and Rose. If the economy failed, industry collapsed, people died, zombies rose up, or nuclear war was unleashed, what exactly would we do? Curiously, last year we seemed to almost get a taste of the beginning of such a thing, and with the ongoing pandemic and the continued climate change related news stories, the concept all feels a little too close to home. Surely all of us, from time to time, wonder about how we’d react if the world ended.
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