In the big city of Melbourne, Australia, material goods have become scarce. There are no cars, and very little of the luxuries that there once were. It takes hours to get simple necessities such as milk. All this is because of the nuclear war in the Northern Hemisphere. This nuclear war has wiped out every living thing, including all humans, throughout countries like China, Europe, and even the United States. It all began with a fight between Russia and China, who wanted to destroy each others land. They managed this with nuclear bombs, and without realizing the consequences, killed off their own people along with everybody else due to the radiation that was left behind. The radiation has killed all forms of life in the Northern Hemisphere so far, and is now steadily approaching the Southern Hemisphere; the only place left on the planet with life. Lieutenant Commander Peter Holmes lives in Melbourne with his wife, Mary and their infant, Jennifer. They, along with everyone else in Australia, have heard and known that the radiation is slowly coming and scientist have predicted that they only have until September before it spreads throughout Australia, killing them all with a slow sickness. This sickness includes symptoms such as nausea, diarrhoea, and trembling. It could take anywhere from three days to three weeks to die, depending on one’s resistance in their body. Peter is aware of the short time he has left to live out his life, yet his wife Mary fails to realize that there will be no “next year,” or “next spring.” She continues to plan ahead as if she will still be alive years or even months from then. Peter helps to comfort her by allowing her to think this way and buying her things such as flowers for the garden that will not bloom until the next year. Peter is called on assignment in the beginning of the book to go on a cruise aboard the U.S.S. Scorpion, the only submarine left. The ...
