Arthur C. Clarke published Hammer of God in 1993, giving a thorough treatment to the issue of meteor impact with the Earth, something he'd toyed with in Rendevous with Rama.

The storyline is straightforward, as is typical for Clarke, who excels at cutting straight to the action...it's the near future, and mankind is tentatively colonising the Moon and Mars. An amateur astronomer stumbles across a meteor on a collision course with Earth, and a ship is rapidly dispatched to alter the trajectory of the apocalyptic meteor.

Of course, it is a tribute, not Clarkes' fault, that this storyline is now very used. More recent hollywood treatments of the same subject in movies such as "Deep Impact" may give this book a sense of over-familiarity. Get past that. It's nothing really to detract from the story, which, when Clarkes' skill is involved, can use another telling.

This book is a fast read, and contains all the elements fans of the author will be familiar with...rapid plot establishment, bags of plausible scientific explanations of problems from our future, and not too much needless extrusion of the characters inner turmoils.

There are plenty of nice touches...Clarke illustrates the first lunar marathon for example...invents a new religion "chrislam", and vividly describes the evolution of virtual reality. Plenty of color in this book. Thoroughly entertaining.

This work is also completely free of gore, bad language and anything else that might put you off letting your kids read it.

You're not going to be surprised by the plot, I have to say that. I don't however suggest this is an impediment to reading this lovely little book...just don't go here for amazing plot twists. Things go how you might think they do. This is a book about the journey not the destination.

I'm going to read this one again, but then I'm a complete soft touch for Arthur C. Clarke, who I have to thank for many hours of reading and thinking pleasure. One thing which made me smile....three quarters through the book I started to lament the absence of an introduction, covering how he came to know so much about this subject. I came to finish the book, only to find extensive references are affixed to the final chapter. Gotta love Clarke.

Some of my other science fiction book reviews:

Rama Revealed
Prelude to Space
Stand on Zanzibar
The Demolished Man
The Stars my Destination
Cat's Cradle
The Gods Themselves
Watchmen
A Canticle for Leibowitz
The Hammer of God
The Left Hand of Darkness
Flowers for Algernon
Lord of Light
Rendevous with Rama
The Tombs of Atuan
The Dispossessed
I am Legend
The Einstein Intersection
Earth Abides
Peace on Earth
The Farthest Shore
Methuselah's Children
A Call to Arms
To your Scattered Bodies Go
The Lion of Comarre / Against the Fall of Night
To Say Nothing of the Dog
The Doomsday Book
Frankenstein Unbound
Batman - The Dark Knight Returns
Imperial Earth
A Case of Conscience
Solaris
The Sands of Mars
The Land of Laughs
Eden
His Masters Voice
Citizen of the Galaxy
King David's Spaceship
The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch
Double Star
The Fabulous Riverboat
Songs of Distant Earth
Way Station
The Fountains of Paradise
The Long Tomorrow
Lincolns Dreams
Alas Babylon
More Than Human
1984
The Forever War
All the Myriad Ways
I Sing the Body Electric
Gateway
Flow my Tears, the Policeman Said
This Immortal
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress



Recommended: Yes