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The classic, award-winning novel, made famous by Steven Spielberg’s film, tells of a young boy’s struggle to survive World War II in China.
Jim is separated from his parents in a world at war. To survive, he must find a strength greater than all the events that surround him.
Shanghai, 1941—a city aflame from the fateful torch of Pearl Harbor. In streets full of chaos and corpses, a young British boy searches in vain for his parents. Imprisoned in a Japanese concentration camp, he is witness to the fierce white flash of Nagasaki, as the bomb bellows the end of the war...and the dawn of a blighted world.
Ballard’s enduring novel of war and deprivation, internment camps and death marches, and starvation and survival is an honest coming-of-age tale set in a world thrown utterly out of joint.
Jim is separated from his parents in a world at war. To survive, he must find a strength greater than all the events that surround him.
Shanghai, 1941—a city aflame from the fateful torch of Pearl Harbor. In streets full of chaos and corpses, a young British boy searches in vain for his parents. Imprisoned in a Japanese concentration camp, he is witness to the fierce white flash of Nagasaki, as the bomb bellows the end of the war...and the dawn of a blighted world.
Ballard’s enduring novel of war and deprivation, internment camps and death marches, and starvation and survival is an honest coming-of-age tale set in a world thrown utterly out of joint.
154 Reviews
3.5
Danielle Walsh
Created 25 days agoShare
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“Empire of the Sun offers a unique perspective on World War II through the eyes of a young boy - Jim. Before starting the novel, I didn’t realised that it was based on Ballard’s own childhood experiences. I’ve read a few of the author’s other books, so this added even more depth.
Some of the novel follows Jim whilst he’s in a Japanese internment camp in Shanghai, which a really an interesting point of view - one I’ve not read before. In a time and place filled with death and horror, Jim is still somehow able to imagine and play make believe. It’s fascinating to me how a child can find normalcy and wonder even whilst living in chaos.
Jim is a really endearing character - with childlike interests, empathy, and confusion about the state of the world perfectly delivered. Throughout he is fascinated with planes and pilots, and he complex relationships with other characters, and also able to find moments of joy in the saddest of circumstances.
Somehow, I still haven’t watched the film adaption, but will be watching it very soon. I think that I’ll find the film a little more immersive, particularly surrounding the references to planes, pilots, and flying.”zahra hadfield
Created 3 months agoShare
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Pedro
Created 3 months agoShare
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wondersleepshere
Created 3 months agoShare
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