I cannot recommend this book highly enough to any scifi fan, i am pretty confident that the majority of people will enjoy this edition. Battlefield earth is like taking a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time. Its by ron l hubbard, the guy who founded scientology. Ron hubbard, won the razzie for worst movie of the decade. Why did a movie with previously talented people on it end up looking so hideous. Breathing tubes hang from their noses like ropes of snot. Wilkie collins, a close friend and author of the woman in white, objected to the nothappy ending dickens first wrote for great expectations. Battlefield earth has all the elements thats make it a certain classic in the scifi genre, it contains nearly every kind of subgenre that one can think of that fits into the narrative seamlessly. Fewer than thirtyfive thousand humans survive in a handful of communities scattered across the face of a postapocalyptic earth. My dad had a massive book collection and i read the mission earth seriesit is a dekology. Youll thrill to this epic scifi adventure in which a technologically advanced race of 9foottall aliens with razorsharp claws has overrun our planet and humanity has become an endangered species.
He also composed a soundtrack to the book called space jazz. The film follows a rebellion against the alien psychlos, who. Battlefield earth has become something of a legend. Aside from the names and the location, its totally different. Battlefield earth has long been one of my favorite science fiction reads. Suspense, politics, war, humor and intergalactic finance.
The soundtrack sounds like the boom mike is being slammed against the inside of a 55gallon drum. A sequel covering the remainder of the book was originally planned at the outset. A scene from the infamous battlefield earth movie which is based on the l. The great uprising against the psychlos consists of a onesided ground assault against the main mining base and fifteen planes splitting up to strafe the other fifteen bases. Battlefield earth, a book that even has its own website here, was written by l. A saga of the year 3000 is a 1982 science fiction novel written by l. Looking for a book like battlefield earth a saga of the. Feb 15, 2016 a scene from the infamous battlefield earth movie which is based on the l. Though it is my favorite, i will take up battlefield earth last. May 08, 2016 10 awesome things about battlefield earth the cinema snob duration. Dec 01, 2016 battlefield earth, a book that even has its own website here, was written by l. Each using different methods to obtain the support they desperately neededeach with the fate of mother earth in their hands. Battlefield earth is easily one of the most amateurish, ponderously directed, poorly paced, atrociously written and allaround annoying stardriven ego project movies ever made, notable only for its particularly terrible acting performances and its overall reek of awfulness. Hubbard as we know was not only a science fiction writer, but the founder of the.
After losing the case, franchise filed for bankruptcy, and travolta fired his manager, who set up the deal with franchise in the first place. It was sure to be good value on the pagecount alone. A saga of the year 3000 from the worlds largest community of readers. To start reading part 1 now, click on the book above. Ron hubbard back in the early 80s, less than a handful of years before he died. The only book i ever quit was don quixote it was just going on and on, with no end in sight. For a start, it was the thickest book i had ever seen.
Battlefield earth isnt the usual boring waste of resources. Looking beyond the coverand the baggageof battlefield earth. Science fiction and fiction in general has come a long way since then, to say nothing of how much the world has changed. Blurb bridge 9th printing 2000 think of the star wars sagas, and raiders of the lost ark, mix in the triumph of rock i, rocky ii and rocky iii and you have captured the exuberence, style and glory of battlefield earth.
The psychlos discovered a deep space probe with directions and. Its the holy grail of hollywood crap from the decade if not beyond and is quite possibly that which we do not speak of among scientologists. It was sometimes not very busy at work, so when i wasnt fronting shelves or sweeping the floor, id be sitting behind the counter reading this book. May 12, 2000 battlefield earth is like taking a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time. Its a long book which, for me, is a plus because i never want a good book to end. In the year 3000, earth has been ruled by an alien race, the psychlos, for a millennium. Ugly, campy, and poorly acted, battlefield earth is a stunningly misguided, aggressively bad scifi folly. There are obviously two major aspects to the audiobook that i think i need to handle somewhat separately. New york daily news battlefield earth is more than pure science fiction, its pure. After all, i hope to leave you uplifted and eager to read. And more importantly, can something be done about it. On the cover, a muscled barbarian dude simultaneously fires two laser guns to either side, while he willfully looks at the camera instead of his targets.
Ron hubbards battlefield earth opens with breathtaking scope on an earth dominated for 1,000 years by an alien invader and man is an endangered species. Battlefield earth 2000 battlefield earth 2000 user. But i have never read a book that failed in literally every single character, scenario, plot point, concept and rule of writing. In battlefield earth the action begins immediatelyand never stops. Battlefield earth is one of the greatest epic sf novels ever writtennonstop, pulsepounding action from start to finish. After growing frustrated with life in his miserable mountain village, jonnie strikes on his own only to be captured by terl, a clever, not intelligent psychlo with a. He was unable to obtain major studio funding due to concerns about the script and its connections to scientology. Ron hubbard was one of the central figures in the creation of science fiction and battlefield earth was at the center of his own work. And so you know, we published a trade pb edition last summer with about 50 pages of extras added at the end, including author handwritten notes, an interview he did with the rocky mountain news, and a few other things. Marketing hurdles aside, the spines of massmarket paperbacks can barely carry that much weight. I now know that its a horrible abomination of the book. Its a laughable waste of resources that, more laughable still, aspires to higher things. The books climax is around page 320, and theres an obvious enough ending or a point where it could have been split into two books when the humans have retaken their planet. Battlefield earth is an enormous epic of adventure set in the year 3,000, when the future survival of whats left of the human race is at stake.
Recently i sat down and read the sciencefiction novel battlefield earth for the. Finally, the ending, though identical to the book, seemed a little. I suffered through this book until the very end just so i could say i had read it. Not a single, solitary thing about this book is good. Earths cover, however, isnt the lousy artwork, the ridiculous good guy. Apr 24, 2020 in battlefield earth the action begins immediatelyand never stops. Everything in battlefield earth is just a sea of reeking, seething sewage in every direction, with no relief except the final page. Battlefield earth began as a scifi novel by l ron hubbard, popular author and. Jonny starts as a slave for the psyclos, learns their secrets and uses them to overcome his captors.
Battlefield earth is a 2000 american science fiction action film based on the 1982 novel of the. Battlefield needs to get its head in the game for futuristic titles. Thanks to rscifi for this recommendation awesome book. That said, i want to share a few of the classics of the genre with you, each with a different slant. Jun 14, 2016 battlefield earth has all the elements thats make it a certain classic in the scifi genre, it contains nearly every kind of subgenre that one can think of that fits into the narrative seamlessly. Looking for a book like battlefield earth a saga of the year. As the bad guy, travolta tries to sound imperious and sarcastic but lacks any sense of presence or. Battlefield earth is significantly shorter than its source novel, covering only the first 436 pages of the 1,050page book. Writing to friends about the revised ending, dickens seems positive. Romance, adventure, me against you, out numbered, action, honesty. I know that world unity and peace may be just as science fiction as aliens and advanced technologies, but i hope we can make progress in that direction. And more recent authors, such as neil gaiman wrote, i found battlefield earth unputdownable. Taking a look at the science fiction story when shadows fall, the problem of the dying earth was approached by firing out three missions to different parts of the galaxy. Welcome to final scene of battlefield earth when the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our lord, and of his christ.
In battlefield earth, our planet is invaded by the psychlos, a race of 9foottall, 1,000pound carnivores with technology far beyond our own and an average lifespan of 190 years. Wonderful adventure great characters a masterpiece, but. Unfortunately not enough books, scifi or other, do that often or as well. Postapocalyptic book list home books ebooks moviestv comics games suggest a title. Battlefield earth the leading glock forum and community. This is a good, big book, which describes the earth at the year 3000. I was the fat geeky kid and i read it in 4th grade, then again in 6th i think. Mar 28, 2010 this month, battlefield earth, the blockbuster bomb based on the novel by scientology founder l. As the bad guy, travolta tries to sound imperious and sarcastic but lacks any sense of presence or dignity, and his cackling evil laugh is laughable. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. A saga of the year 3000 is a 2000 american science fiction action film based on the 1982 novel of the same name by l. Battlefield earth, part 1, chapter 1 battlefield earth. In the end, each of us must reach our own conclusion.
Hello, just finished the book, finally, and enjoyed it for the most part. New york daily news battlefield earth is more than pure science fiction, its pure gold. Wonderful adventure great characters a masterpiece, but later admitted that he had not actually. Aug 29, 2014 the novel was awarded the 2007 pulitzer prize for fiction, and critics have called it heartbreaking, haunting, and emotionally shattering. I never felt that the story dragged, which is saying something for a 1,000 page book. A thirdstring planet of the apes meets star trek, battlefield earth is a largely uninspiring scifi adventure with a swisscheese plot. One of the most remarkable ideas from this book is the complete unity of the population of earth. I must say its completely different from the movie. Movies like battlefield earth if you like battlefield earth you are looking for exciting, suspenseful and futuristic movies about with evil alien, survival, danger, mining, heroic mission, alien invasion and heroes themes of action, adventure and scifi genre shot in usa. A saga of the year 3000 is a 1980 science fiction novel written by l. The film follows a rebellion against the alien psychlos, who have ruled earth for 1,000 years. Each of the ten books in the series was like 500600 pages when i was in 5th grade.
The aliens are some of the most interesting i would compare them to niven quality. Looking for a book like battlefield earth a saga of the year 3000. Battlefield earth could have easily, and much more sensibly, been split into four books. Jul 28, 2004 i just got done reading battlefield earth. But none grabbed my attention quite like battlefield earth. The psychlos conquer earth to plunder our gold, which they value above any other element. This month, battlefield earth, the blockbuster bomb based on the novel by scientology founder l. A towering masterwork of science fiction adventure and one of the bestselling science fiction novels of all time, l. Battlefield earth novel all the tropes wiki fandom. Ive heard some people disparage the cover of battlefield earth, but to me its perfect. Battlefield earth began as a scifi novel by l ron hubbard, popular author. Made due to the ceaseless efforts of its star, john travolta, battlefield earth could be used as an exam for film school students on what not to do. And theres something almost touching about that ending, which so innocently, so trustingly leaves the door open for a sequel, as if this mess were going to make so much money and inspire such. I imagine theres a lot of friendly fire in this book.
Mankinds cities are in ruins, and there are only scattered. The novel was awarded the 2007 pulitzer prize for fiction, and critics have called it heartbreaking, haunting, and emotionally shattering. I was never one to pay much attention to critics, i always liked to watch and decide for myself but even i couldnt resist being strayed from any. I was shocked to learn battlefield earth was supposed to have a sequel because the film only covers the first half of the l. If you liked dune, atlantis gene and star warsyou will love the book battlefield earth. A saga of the year 3000, quite a few years ago while working as a cashier in the automotive department of our local kmart. Ron hubbard about jonnie goodboy tyler, one of the last humans left on earth after an alien invasion by the sadistic, corporate psychlos.
It was directed by roger christian and stars john travolta, barry pepper and forest whitaker. John travolta is both the best and worst when he is playing a villain. Battlefield earth also referred to as battlefield earth. Dickens then wrote a more conventional ending, which suggests that pip and estella will marry. Humans led by one man struggle to take back the earth. A great master from the golden age of science fiction returns to the field with his biggest blockbuster ever. The book s climax is around page 320, and theres an obvious enough ending or a point where it could have been split into two books when the humans have retaken their planet. Some of the psychlo bases on other worlds were in the middle of occupied cities.
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