The Test

by Pierre Boulle, Xan Fielding (Translator)

224 pages. From the author of "The Bridge Over Kwai." Translated by Xan Fielding.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1955

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Pierre Boulle (20 February 1912 – 30 January 1994) was a French novelist best known for two works, The Bridge over the River Kwai (1952) and Planet of the Apes (1963) that were both made into award-winning films.

Boulle was an engineer serving as a secret agent with the Free French in Singapore, when he was captured and subjected to two years' forced labour. He used these experiences in The Bridge over the River Kwai, about the notorious Death Railway, which became an international bestseller. The film by David Lean won many Oscars, and Boulle was credited with writing the screenplay, because its two genuine authors had been blacklisted.

His science-fiction novel Planet of the Apes, where intelligent apes gain mastery over humans, was adapted into a series of five award-winning films that spawned magazine versions and popular themed toys.

Reviews

[Lasturian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solo tengo una cosa qué decir respecto a este libro tan loable:

Chale.

[Hallow Harmon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe someone wrote Romeo and juliet but made it more racist and thought I wouldn't notice.

[Marianne Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

por el 2022 lo leí, no si lo termine de leer?

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Boulle's style. It is concise but descriptive, moral yet with a sense of ambiguousness. The test, in this case, is for modern society to accept primitive society; do they fail? I won't reveal that and spoil your reading.