Survival

by Daniel Powell

It's 2209 and the hour has grown late for the human race.Famine and disease have drastically compounded the misery of a warming planet. With many billions scrambling after the Earth’s depleted resources, a multinational agency known as The Authority has instituted a population-control policy known simply as Labor.In an effort to stem the tides of procreation and instill a measure of gender equality in the birthing process, men must survive a deadly twenty-four-hour gauntlet of chaos and destruction in order to earn the privilege to become fathers.The Authority regulates every aspect of the birthing process, from ensuring that male subjects abstain from alcohol and prescription drugs to delivering each man a quota of sleepless nights. Such is the case for Bryan Norton, whose wife’s due date has just fallen into testing range. Very soon, they will experience the joy of the birth of their son.Norton has endured the year-long process of qualifying for Labor. He has sacrificed his health and comfort for the chance to become a father. But the greatest test still lies ahead, and the chances are slim that he’ll ever hold his son in his arms. Daniel Powell’s new dystopic novelette “Survival” poses an enduring human How far would you go to be with your family?Drawing upon influences as diverse as Richard Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game,” Kurt Vonnegut’s “Harrison Bergeron” and Stephen King’s The Running Man, “Survival” is a chilling narrative on the nature of parenthood in turbulent times.

Genres: Dystopia, Short Stories, Fiction

61 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 31, 2011

About the author

Daniel teaches a variety of writing classes at Florida State College at Jacksonville. He has published numerous short stories and critical essays in journals, anthologies, and magazines, and his novellas have been recently collected in Maximum Dark Four Tales of Suspense. He recently completed his doctoral degree (emphasis on digital media studies) in the Texts and Technology program at the University of Central Florida.

He enjoys fishing the tidal creeks of Duval County and jogging the haunted shell mounds of the Timucuan Preserve. He shares a small home near Florida’s Intracoastal Waterway with his wife, son, and daughter.

Other works include:

Cold on the Mountain
The Reset
In the Walls and Other Stories
The Silver Coast and Other Stories
These Strange Worlds Fourteen Dark Tales

You can learn more about Daniel’s upcoming writing projects by visiting The Byproduct, his web journal on speculative storytelling.

Reviews

[Camille · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. I loved this book. Extremely well written! It is a small book with only 58 pages. It kept my attention the entire time. The writing was detailed and engaging. I felt sad when the book came to an end and there was not more to read.
I liked the main character Bryan Norton immediately. He seemed like the average man who was excited to be a father and who really loved his family.
The plot of this story was interesting to think about. It takes place in 2209 and there are too many people on the face of the earth. In an attempt to limit and control the population The Authority has taken some extreme measures. Every man who is to become a father must go into a "Labor Field" where their skills and daring are tested to the extreme. If they live through the experience they are allowed to become a father.
From page 1 to page 58 we are taken through Bryan's experience in the "Labor Field" to determine if he can become a father to his little baby boy.

[Chrissy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads......and very glad I did!!
I read through it quickly and immediately loaned it to a friend who also loved it.
The rushing forward by the sperm...er...hopefuls through the gate and the heavy death tolls was well written.
I was surprised to see how well formed the characters were for such a quick read, and honestly kept expecting a different ending for Bryan (one not so nice).
The Authority - headed up by a woman, sets limits on the number of children allowed to be born in a future where earth is highly overpopulated. In order for a man to earn the right to become a father, he must survive Labour, a test of his skills and strengths.
Bryan, the main character bonds with Faust during the intense and often gruesome journey through the Labour fields, to the climactic end.
Thumbs up!

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book free through the Goodreads First Reads program. This was an enjoyable, quick read. The story is engaging and fast paced - nonstop action almost from the first page. Throughout the book I was rooting for Bryan and Fausto. They are individuals with hopes of becoming fathers, working together to survive. Suddenly Bryan and Fausto find themselves in a much larger battle. I'll be recommending this to my friends.

[Barbara J Maich · Rating 4 out of 5]

A goodnovwl

It was a short book but it was interesting, two friends trying to make it through a field of killers. If regulated 24 hours they would be allowed to go home to their pregnant wives. Many were slaughter a way to control the population. Then something strange happened to change the event forrever.

[JL Emerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Weird... Just... Weird...

The title of this review says it all. I really don't know what else to say so I'm just padding this review to finish it.

[Becky · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me

I don't even know where to start. The premise is unbelievable and the writing basic. The characters were flat. I can't recommend this book

[Liza · Rating 2 out of 5]

A quick read. The beginning was interesting. I didn't wholly agree with the concept that was being put forth, but it's a dystopian society, so who am I to judge that, right? Near the middle, the book became rushed, less vivid detail. It didn't make a lot of sense how we went from a scared kid to an underground movement so quickly and with so little valid backstory. There weren't enough details there to satisfy my curiosity or need for correlation. I outright lost interest towards the very end, and it seemed unrealistic that both men survived when Fausto was obviously so close to death in the tunnel.

Overall, not a bad book and generally well-written, but I hoped for more.

[Amanda Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished this in about a hour. It was ok. The begining of the book drew me in and I really enjoyed the two main chars as they went through the "Labor". However after they met up with the "angel" I became dissappointed rather qwickly. I would have liked to know of a story of the underground group and how they became to be. I would have also liked to see the men be watched by these angles before meeting up with them. All in all it was an ok way to spend a hour. I dont think that I wil be looking for anything else by this author. This bool was in need of more back story. I felt as tyhough I was reading cliffnotes.

[Dan James · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Only the strongest may have children. Only the strongest survive labor.' I think comparisons to Battle Royal and The Hunger Games are inevitable, but for such a short read I found it still had a lot of depth. I loved the concept of the dystopian world where men were made to fight for the right to fatherhood. I think the part where the heroes meet Derek Gorman was actually very touching. I felt so much for a man who has only in 2 pages of the story! Felt the pace was slightly rushed towards the end... but would definitely read some more of Daniel Powell's work!

[Jenny T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a free book from the Goodreads First Reads giveaways.
A short story set in the overpopulated world of 2209. Bryan Norton sets out to pass the "Labor" process (a 24 hour survival test for fathers-to-be) and becomes part of a revolution. Quick read - no downtime in each page.

[Kristina Franken · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book for anyone

FTC: I received a free copy of this book and was not reimbursed in any other way.

[Itsatushy Garland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast read, fast paced and intense. If you pick this up don't plan on walking away till the last page. Wow.

[Graisi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was action packed and made for a good read. It would have been better if it were fleshed out into a novel.