Staff Pick of the Week
Children of Men
P. D. James
I usually like to read a book before I watch the movie adaptation, but after seeing Children of Men recently I was so intrigued that I decided to go back to the source material. In both the movie and the book, humanity faces extinction due to the sudden and complete inability of people to reproduce. Almost everything else in the plot is different, but both are very interesting for the ways they explore how humanity would react to such an extreme and horrible state of affairs.
The protagonist of Children of Men, Theo, is a history professor who also happens to be the cousin of the Warden of England, who rules Britain with the authority of a dictator. When Theo is approached by a small group of radicals who want to change the way the Warden treats those who have become a burden on society (such as the elderly, immigrants and prisoners), he has to decide where his loyalties lie and whether or not it is worth trying to change anything in a world that will quickly come to an end. The book is by turns creepy, exciting and uplifting, and I think it provides some great insight into our collective psychology.
Ilka Noel Datig
Circulation Clerk
