Rushing to Paradise
Published on 25. September 1995
Book
Paperback/Softback
240 pages
978-0-00-654814-0 (ISBN)
Description
J. G. Ballard - author of 'Crash' - explores the extremes of ecology and feminism in this highly acclaimed modern fable. Newly reissued with an introduction by Rivka Galchen.
Dr Barbara Rafferty is a fearless conservationist, determined to save a rare albatross from extinction. Her crusade gains widespread coverage when earnest young environmentalist Neil Dempsey is shot and wounded.
Support for the conservationists grows and well-wishers flock to the island, bringing with them specimens of other endangered creatures to be protected by Dr Barbara and her crew. The island seems a new Eden.
But is Dr Barbara as altruistic as she appears? Why are the islanders committing acts of self-sabotage? And what's keeping Neil alive while the other men sicken?
A classic exploration of the extremes of human behaviour from J.G Ballard, this is a brilliantly unsettling novel in which all preconceptions are overthrown.
This edition is part of a new commemorative series of Ballard's works, featuring introductions from a number of his admirers (including Robert Macfarlane, Martin Amis, James Lever and Ali Smith) and brand-new cover designs from the artist Stanley Donwood.
Dr Barbara Rafferty is a fearless conservationist, determined to save a rare albatross from extinction. Her crusade gains widespread coverage when earnest young environmentalist Neil Dempsey is shot and wounded.
Support for the conservationists grows and well-wishers flock to the island, bringing with them specimens of other endangered creatures to be protected by Dr Barbara and her crew. The island seems a new Eden.
But is Dr Barbara as altruistic as she appears? Why are the islanders committing acts of self-sabotage? And what's keeping Neil alive while the other men sicken?
A classic exploration of the extremes of human behaviour from J.G Ballard, this is a brilliantly unsettling novel in which all preconceptions are overthrown.
This edition is part of a new commemorative series of Ballard's works, featuring introductions from a number of his admirers (including Robert Macfarlane, Martin Amis, James Lever and Ali Smith) and brand-new cover designs from the artist Stanley Donwood.
Reviews / Votes
'Ballard is a magician of the contemporary scene and a literary saboteur. "Rushing to Paradise" is a Wellsian drama of extremity and isolation ... No one else writes with such enchanted clarity or strange power' Guardian'Pure Ballard. I read it with rapt fascination ... Wonderful' William Boyd
'"Robinson Crusoe" in reverse. Teasing and sardonic ... Ballard at his best' Independent on Sunday
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers
Product notice
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
172 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-00-654814-0 (9780006548140)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
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Persons
J. G. Ballard was born in 1930 in Shanghai. After internment in a civilian prison camp, his family returned to England in 1946. His 1984 bestseller 'Empire of the Sun' won the Guardian Fiction Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. His controversial novel 'Crash' was made into a film by David Cronenberg. His autobiography 'Miracles of Life' was published in 2008, and a collection of interviews with the author, 'Extreme Metaphors', was published in 2012. J. G. Ballard passed away in 2009.