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Tomorrow!
Nuclear war story centering around the atomic bombing of two fictional Midwest cities adjacent to each other in the mid-1950s; one has an effective Civil Defense program, the other does not.
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 31, 1954
100 people are currently reading
301 people want to read
About the author
Philip Wylie
122 books54 followersBorn in Beverly, Massachusetts, Philip Gordon Wylie was the son of Presbyterian minister Edmund Melville Wylie and the former Edna Edwards, a novelist, who died when Philip was five years old. His family moved to Montclair, New Jersey and he later attended Princeton University from 1920–1923. He married Sally Ondek, and had one child, Karen, an author who became the inventor of animal "clicker" training. After a divorcing his first wife, Philip Wylie married Frederica Ballard who was born and raised in Rushford, New York; they are both buried in Rushford.
A writer of fiction and nonfiction, his output included hundreds of short stories, articles, serials, syndicated newspaper columns, novels, and works of social criticism. He also wrote screenplays while in Hollywood, was an editor for Farrar & Rinehart, served on the Dade County, Florida Defense Council, was a director of the Lerner Marine Laboratory, and at one time was an adviser to the chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee for Atomic Energy which led to the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission. Most of his major writings contain critical, though often philosophical, views on man and society as a result of his studies and interest in psychology, biology, ethnology, and physics. Over nine movies were made from novels or stories by Wylie. He sold the rights for two others that were never produced.
A writer of fiction and nonfiction, his output included hundreds of short stories, articles, serials, syndicated newspaper columns, novels, and works of social criticism. He also wrote screenplays while in Hollywood, was an editor for Farrar & Rinehart, served on the Dade County, Florida Defense Council, was a director of the Lerner Marine Laboratory, and at one time was an adviser to the chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee for Atomic Energy which led to the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission. Most of his major writings contain critical, though often philosophical, views on man and society as a result of his studies and interest in psychology, biology, ethnology, and physics. Over nine movies were made from novels or stories by Wylie. He sold the rights for two others that were never produced.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
February 10, 2017
First-rate look at nuclear attack on two Midwestern cities, one of which had prepared for such an attack, one which hadn't. The book was published in 1954 but in light of the fact that Americans have elected a president who cannot be trusted anywhere near the nuclear button it is not dated.
March 28, 2016
This rates somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars for me.
I am a fan of Philip Wylie's deeply humane and thoughtful science fiction. His The Disappearance is a particular favorite of mine, and When Worlds Collide and its sequel are justly famous. Tomorrow! is a solid and compelling slice-of-1950s-life/apocalyptic story focusing on the twin towns of Green Prairie and River City before, during, and after atomic war.
The University of Nebraska Press provides an excellent description of the novel, so I won't try to reinvent the wheel:
"Tomorrow! is a story of average, nice Americans living in the neighboring cities of Green Prairie and River City in Middle America. It is—until the sudden blitz—the story of the girl next door and her boyfriend; of the accountant who saw what was coming, and the rich old lady who didn’t; of engaging young kids, babies, “hoods,” a bank official who “borrowed” from a customer’s account.
"Then, at the height of the Christmas shopping season, Condition Red is sounded, and this down-to-earth story of America’s Main Street becomes a shattering, vivid experience of the nightmare that human beings have cooked up for themselves.
"Tomorrow! can be read as a novel of pure suspense—if you dare. It is a thriller in which the apocalyptic technology of today is superimposed on the future. But the novel is also designed to show Philip Wylie’s conclusions about America’s dangerous vulnerability to dread, hysteria, and panic, as well as his recommendations about what must be done."
I am a fan of Philip Wylie's deeply humane and thoughtful science fiction. His The Disappearance is a particular favorite of mine, and When Worlds Collide and its sequel are justly famous. Tomorrow! is a solid and compelling slice-of-1950s-life/apocalyptic story focusing on the twin towns of Green Prairie and River City before, during, and after atomic war.
The University of Nebraska Press provides an excellent description of the novel, so I won't try to reinvent the wheel:
"Tomorrow! is a story of average, nice Americans living in the neighboring cities of Green Prairie and River City in Middle America. It is—until the sudden blitz—the story of the girl next door and her boyfriend; of the accountant who saw what was coming, and the rich old lady who didn’t; of engaging young kids, babies, “hoods,” a bank official who “borrowed” from a customer’s account.
"Then, at the height of the Christmas shopping season, Condition Red is sounded, and this down-to-earth story of America’s Main Street becomes a shattering, vivid experience of the nightmare that human beings have cooked up for themselves.
"Tomorrow! can be read as a novel of pure suspense—if you dare. It is a thriller in which the apocalyptic technology of today is superimposed on the future. But the novel is also designed to show Philip Wylie’s conclusions about America’s dangerous vulnerability to dread, hysteria, and panic, as well as his recommendations about what must be done."
May 13, 2025
I read this book - or at least a Reader's Digest condensed version - years ago at my grandmother's house. When she died, it was one of her books that I kept and added to my library.
It's a sort of What If? novel, featuring twin Midwest cities in the 1950s. One has an effective Civil Defense program and the other doesn't. The book covers a few days prior to and after the Soviet Union commences a nuclear attack against the US.
I remember enjoying this book a lot.
It's a sort of What If? novel, featuring twin Midwest cities in the 1950s. One has an effective Civil Defense program and the other doesn't. The book covers a few days prior to and after the Soviet Union commences a nuclear attack against the US.
I remember enjoying this book a lot.
October 7, 2011
The first half of the book reads like a soap opera, with the concerns of atomic war with the Soviet Union as a background issue -- one that characters and the author break through the soap opera to pontificate on. We learn about the various characters, their relations with each other, their foibles and weaknesses, and where they stand on this whole Civilian Defense thing. It feels like a soap opera, with characters that are so made too be too flawed or too ideal as to not be real. This build-up of the characters lets you know who is going to die or be scarred come the apocalypse. And the apocalypse comes, suddenly, during Christmas -- during the height of mass consumption, which the author had previously railed against. And when it comes, the description is so exacting as to be terrifying. And so detailed and realistic as to be unsettling, gross, and a book-shutter -- there were some scenes when I had to stop and get the image out of my head. But these scenes were also quite out of character with the rest of the book, which had never gone to great length to describe the people. I could barely tell you what the main characters looked like, but I can tell you what strangers looked like after the bomb dropped. Most likely this was done for effect of the parable the author was attempting: the characters were characterizations, embodiments of his idea of what constitutes proper and improper behavior, and the scenes of death and injury are meant to shock us into agree with this view. But that means at the end, his message appeared to be highly un-pacifist, with mass destructing being a remedy for the blights of modern life and the potential for creating a better, freer, more at peace world.
July 15, 2016
One wonders to what degree this book may have had a influence on Red Alert (itself an inspiration for Dr. Strangelove.) A fascinating insight into the level of racism in the United States in 1954, not only directed towards African-Americans but also towards "foreign" immigrants (those from Poland, Greece and various countries other than England and France.
The author doesn't even vaguely handwave in the direction of the effects a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the United States would have on the latter's neighbours and clearly considers massive levels of death of the inhabitants of the countries bordering the Soviet Union to be acceptable collateral damage. Neighter does the author seem to imagine that the "happy" ending, such as it is, would result in the United States becomeing at best a pariah among all nation states not involved in the initial war.
That said, the book contains one of the best descriptions of what exactly happens at ground zero of a nuclear blast I have ever read.
The author doesn't even vaguely handwave in the direction of the effects a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the United States would have on the latter's neighbours and clearly considers massive levels of death of the inhabitants of the countries bordering the Soviet Union to be acceptable collateral damage. Neighter does the author seem to imagine that the "happy" ending, such as it is, would result in the United States becomeing at best a pariah among all nation states not involved in the initial war.
That said, the book contains one of the best descriptions of what exactly happens at ground zero of a nuclear blast I have ever read.
December 9, 2014
REVIEW TOMORROW! By Philip Wylie
TOMORROW! was originally published in 1952. I didn't read it then, but I read it beginning to end several years later, as a child. I have seldom been so terrified by a book: for years I could not bear the sound of a jet passing overhead. As I remember from a perspective of 50 years, the seminal books before adulthood were Tomorrow! and Walter M. Miller Jr.'s post-apocalyptic treasure, A CANTICLE FOR LEIBOWITZ (another classic I hope to see republished as an e-book). That's probably no surprise, given that I grew up during the Cold War and McCarthyism, Khrushchev' s pounding shoe and the Cuban Missile crisis. 50 years and umpteen wars later, TOMORROW! is just as scary, just as potent, just as pertinent. I think everyone should read it.
TOMORROW! was originally published in 1952. I didn't read it then, but I read it beginning to end several years later, as a child. I have seldom been so terrified by a book: for years I could not bear the sound of a jet passing overhead. As I remember from a perspective of 50 years, the seminal books before adulthood were Tomorrow! and Walter M. Miller Jr.'s post-apocalyptic treasure, A CANTICLE FOR LEIBOWITZ (another classic I hope to see republished as an e-book). That's probably no surprise, given that I grew up during the Cold War and McCarthyism, Khrushchev' s pounding shoe and the Cuban Missile crisis. 50 years and umpteen wars later, TOMORROW! is just as scary, just as potent, just as pertinent. I think everyone should read it.
September 17, 2025
A tedious 1954 polemic on civil defense set during the Cold War. It's also one of the early attempts at a realistic portrayal of the aftermath of a nuclear attack on the United States (in this case, by the U.S.S.R.). If you grew up in the Fifties and went through nuclear attack drills in elementary school, perhaps this book might offer nostalgic kicks. For everyone else, the book is hopelessly outdated.
The story concerns a nuclear attack on two neighboring fictional American cities, Green Prairie and River City, perhaps modeled on Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. Green Prairie has a well-organized civil defense program, whereas River City has had its civil defense program crippled by wealthy elites who feel it interferes with business.
Wylie spends an inordinate amount of time establishing the setting and introducing the characters, making the novel resemble a Fifties melodrama rather than a disaster novel. The main characters are the Conners, who are heavily involved in civil defense for Green Prairie, the Baileys, who are neighbors to the Connors, and the Sloans, a wealthy family in River City that despises any governmental interference in commerce.
About two-thirds through the book, the U.S.S.R. begins an all-out nuclear and biological attack on the U.S., sending planes across the Canadian border to strike 25 cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Los Angeles. (Note that since 1958 U.S. and Canadian radar systems, along with today’s network of satellites and aircraft, would detect enemy planes flying over or near Canadian airspace. But that wasn’t true in 1954 when this book was published as NORAD had not yet been established.) The U.S. mounts a retaliatory nuclear attack against the U.S.S.R., taking out Moscow and other major cities. But the U.S.S.R., sensing it has the upper hand, demands surrender of the U.S. under specific terms, including the dismantling of our nuclear program. Given the extremely conservative political bent of author Wylie, the U.S. response to the Soviet’s terms of surrender isn’t surprising at all.
Wylie’s purpose in the the book is to sound the alarm for civil defense programs to prepare for the coming war with the Soviet Union. He also steadfastly believes that a nuclear war between two major powers is winnable. Consequently, he seriously downplays the effects of an all-out nuclear attack. He fails to mention that a large nuclear attack would entirely disable electronics due to the electromagnetic pulse. There’s also no mention of the effects of black rain (radioactive rain that falls after a nuclear blast) and nuclear fallout, which would likely kill tens of millions of people. Wylie’s story also fails to contend with the catastrophic environmental effects of a global nuclear war, including the rapid drop in global temperature that scientists believe would result from such an attack, leading to Nuclear Winter. Instead, Wylie casually suggests that the country could quickly rebuild. Today, most scientists believe that the country would face disease, starvation, lack of drinking water, economic collapse, collapse of ecosystems, and an inevitable collapse of societal structures in the wake of a nuclear attack. At best, society would come to resemble the barbaric world of Mad Max (1979). At worst, human life on Earth would cease to exist.
Another area in which the book is hopelessly outdated is the subject of race, which is true of many books of the Fifties. Of course, all of the characters in Wylie's book are white, although the twin cities of Green Prairie and River City are racially diverse. Wylie commonly refers to black Americans as "colored people." Less frequently, he uses a racial epithet to refer to them. Totally unacceptable.
Wylie spent much of his career publishing bestselling apocalyptic science fiction novels across multiple decades. His most popular novel was When Worlds Collide (1933), co-authored with Edwin Balmer, which was adapted into a hit movie in 1951. In the Forties, Wylie served as an adviser to the chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee for Atomic Energy, which led to the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission in 1948. He also published political commentary and nonfiction, including the bestseller Generation of Vipers (1942), in which Wylie criticized the cult of mothers, or “momism.” Tomorrow! was adapted for ABC Radio as a one-hour drama narrated by Orson Welles, made with the cooperation of the Federal Civil Defense Administration.
For more accurate information on the effects of a nuclear attack, see The Fate of the Earth (1982) by Jonathan Schell and the TV movies The Day After (1983) and Threads (1984). Also, try the novel Warday (1984) by Whitley Strieber and James Kunetka, which describes the devastating effects of a limited nuclear attack.
See my full review of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic science fiction novels of the 1950s here: The End and After.
The story concerns a nuclear attack on two neighboring fictional American cities, Green Prairie and River City, perhaps modeled on Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. Green Prairie has a well-organized civil defense program, whereas River City has had its civil defense program crippled by wealthy elites who feel it interferes with business.
Wylie spends an inordinate amount of time establishing the setting and introducing the characters, making the novel resemble a Fifties melodrama rather than a disaster novel. The main characters are the Conners, who are heavily involved in civil defense for Green Prairie, the Baileys, who are neighbors to the Connors, and the Sloans, a wealthy family in River City that despises any governmental interference in commerce.
About two-thirds through the book, the U.S.S.R. begins an all-out nuclear and biological attack on the U.S., sending planes across the Canadian border to strike 25 cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Los Angeles. (Note that since 1958 U.S. and Canadian radar systems, along with today’s network of satellites and aircraft, would detect enemy planes flying over or near Canadian airspace. But that wasn’t true in 1954 when this book was published as NORAD had not yet been established.) The U.S. mounts a retaliatory nuclear attack against the U.S.S.R., taking out Moscow and other major cities. But the U.S.S.R., sensing it has the upper hand, demands surrender of the U.S. under specific terms, including the dismantling of our nuclear program. Given the extremely conservative political bent of author Wylie, the U.S. response to the Soviet’s terms of surrender isn’t surprising at all.
Wylie’s purpose in the the book is to sound the alarm for civil defense programs to prepare for the coming war with the Soviet Union. He also steadfastly believes that a nuclear war between two major powers is winnable. Consequently, he seriously downplays the effects of an all-out nuclear attack. He fails to mention that a large nuclear attack would entirely disable electronics due to the electromagnetic pulse. There’s also no mention of the effects of black rain (radioactive rain that falls after a nuclear blast) and nuclear fallout, which would likely kill tens of millions of people. Wylie’s story also fails to contend with the catastrophic environmental effects of a global nuclear war, including the rapid drop in global temperature that scientists believe would result from such an attack, leading to Nuclear Winter. Instead, Wylie casually suggests that the country could quickly rebuild. Today, most scientists believe that the country would face disease, starvation, lack of drinking water, economic collapse, collapse of ecosystems, and an inevitable collapse of societal structures in the wake of a nuclear attack. At best, society would come to resemble the barbaric world of Mad Max (1979). At worst, human life on Earth would cease to exist.
Another area in which the book is hopelessly outdated is the subject of race, which is true of many books of the Fifties. Of course, all of the characters in Wylie's book are white, although the twin cities of Green Prairie and River City are racially diverse. Wylie commonly refers to black Americans as "colored people." Less frequently, he uses a racial epithet to refer to them. Totally unacceptable.
Wylie spent much of his career publishing bestselling apocalyptic science fiction novels across multiple decades. His most popular novel was When Worlds Collide (1933), co-authored with Edwin Balmer, which was adapted into a hit movie in 1951. In the Forties, Wylie served as an adviser to the chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee for Atomic Energy, which led to the creation of the Atomic Energy Commission in 1948. He also published political commentary and nonfiction, including the bestseller Generation of Vipers (1942), in which Wylie criticized the cult of mothers, or “momism.” Tomorrow! was adapted for ABC Radio as a one-hour drama narrated by Orson Welles, made with the cooperation of the Federal Civil Defense Administration.
For more accurate information on the effects of a nuclear attack, see The Fate of the Earth (1982) by Jonathan Schell and the TV movies The Day After (1983) and Threads (1984). Also, try the novel Warday (1984) by Whitley Strieber and James Kunetka, which describes the devastating effects of a limited nuclear attack.
See my full review of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic science fiction novels of the 1950s here: The End and After.
March 19, 2021
I recently rewatched the 1983 movie "The Day After", which depicts the reality of a nuclear war. I give it full credit for stopping the Cold War and making government realize that there would be no "winners" in a nuclear war between the United States and Russia. Mutual annihilation would be assured.
Today I finished reading "Tomorrow!" by Philip Wylie, a book about the subject but with a very different take-away. In Wylie's view, not only is nuclear war winnable, it actually has measurable social benefits to society. And it only took the destruction of every major metropolis in the United States and the disintegration of the Russian continent to accomplish it!
I'm sorry, this book made me feel ill.
It's not the graphic depiction of the horrors of a nuclear blast, it's the writer's assertion that it is better to wipe the enemy off the face of the earth than it is to concede a loss after both countries have been devastated by multiple nuclear bombs as well as biological warfare in the aftermath. It's like there is no amount of casualties, of both people and property, that is enough to make an American give up. No risk is too great to justify just crying "Uncle". It's better to risk melting the crust of the very planet we live on than to just call it quits and say enough is enough.
Sadly, his viewpoint is echoed all over this country without a trace of consciousness of hubris.
I don't know. Wylie loves big words. I learned a ton of new ones, something I can't honestly say about another book I've read in the past fifty years. Wylie can write some pretty descriptive passages, although most of them serve more as filler than as furthering the story. The white mindset of that time period (the book was written in 1954) is on full display, with every racial slur you can imagine, accompanied by stereotypes galore of minorities and the poor. Women are firmly in their place, which is the kitchen. No doubt these tropes weren't even noticed when the book first made the rounds but they are glaringly obnoxious by today's standards.
If you want to learn some new words, I highlighted numerous ones, along with some of the more atrocious passages. Check them out. Otherwise, I this book three stars for the big words, and take away the other two stars for the bigotry and racism.
Today I finished reading "Tomorrow!" by Philip Wylie, a book about the subject but with a very different take-away. In Wylie's view, not only is nuclear war winnable, it actually has measurable social benefits to society. And it only took the destruction of every major metropolis in the United States and the disintegration of the Russian continent to accomplish it!
I'm sorry, this book made me feel ill.
It's not the graphic depiction of the horrors of a nuclear blast, it's the writer's assertion that it is better to wipe the enemy off the face of the earth than it is to concede a loss after both countries have been devastated by multiple nuclear bombs as well as biological warfare in the aftermath. It's like there is no amount of casualties, of both people and property, that is enough to make an American give up. No risk is too great to justify just crying "Uncle". It's better to risk melting the crust of the very planet we live on than to just call it quits and say enough is enough.
Sadly, his viewpoint is echoed all over this country without a trace of consciousness of hubris.
I don't know. Wylie loves big words. I learned a ton of new ones, something I can't honestly say about another book I've read in the past fifty years. Wylie can write some pretty descriptive passages, although most of them serve more as filler than as furthering the story. The white mindset of that time period (the book was written in 1954) is on full display, with every racial slur you can imagine, accompanied by stereotypes galore of minorities and the poor. Women are firmly in their place, which is the kitchen. No doubt these tropes weren't even noticed when the book first made the rounds but they are glaringly obnoxious by today's standards.
If you want to learn some new words, I highlighted numerous ones, along with some of the more atrocious passages. Check them out. Otherwise, I this book three stars for the big words, and take away the other two stars for the bigotry and racism.
September 20, 2018
The short version first …
One of the events which find its way into dystopic literature is the horror and destruction created by a more recent addition to the arsenal of several nations on our “little blue dot” called Earth. The class of these weapons is usually atomic or nuclear bombs. Since 1945, just about everyone has been impacted by the events that ended World War II, specifically the only use of atomic weapons in history. The devastation of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki brought to the attention of all humanity the horrific power of atomic bombs. Just nine years later, tests on remote Pacific Islands added to the terror the incredibly larger effects of thermonuclear (a.k.a. hydrogen) bombs. One such weapon detonated by Russia (then called the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics [U.S.S.R.]) was sufficiently powerful enough to be seen many miles away from its point of detonation. The subject of the work being reviewed, Philip Wylie’s Tomorrow! are the fictitious events of a large strike upon the United States of America by several groups of long-range bombers from the USSR.
Mr. Wylie does a good job of characterization for many of the individuals who inhabited the two mid-Western towns that shared a river as a common water source. The two cities, Green Prairie and River City, focused efforts on agriculture and industry with little need or desire for protection from hostile forces. The one thing that was clear was that one city took an active stance in training and supporting a local Civil Defense program which held meetings, mock needs for defense and support of each other in their relatively small population. The population of the larger of the two cities was less interested in Civil Defense and more interested in making the almighty dollar.
The time setting appears to be in the mid- to the late-1950’s, where transportation in automobiles was common. A small airport supported the two communities, and there was a modest degree of communication and mutual aid and support during times of peace and prosperity. The Civil Defense established for one city was not matched by the same levels of preparedness for the unannounced, sneak attack of the USSR on America. The attack upon America was launched from bases in South America and Caribbean islands as well as from the Soviet Union. The attacks were in the form of both nuclear weapons with yields comparable to the Hiroshima bomb. There were additional weapons used in the form of biological and chemical agents.
The destruction was exacerbated by the combined effects of the blast, heat, and size of yield in the nuclear weapons. The biochemical follow-on attack was meant to provide additional confusion and human causalities adding a toxic agent to the already compromised victims of the blast, heat, radiological effects, and the confusion resulting from the large amounts of debris which made any makeshift shelters even more risky especially in the hours and days immediately after the initial strike. It was the combination of the various types of weapons that made the attack so horrific and the resulting devastation so difficult to control, organize, and provide useful help to those who would later succumb to the effects of not only nuclear and radiation exposure but also the debilitation of the individuals also assaulted by the effects of the biochemical agents from the follow-on strike. The combination of multiple weapons designed to target specifically humans with compromised immune systems and battered bodies from the initial atomic explosions and the resulting ionizing radiation that was one of the more devastating effects from their use and design.
Mr. Wylie also provides some insights into the human frailties that were extant prior to the attack. It was clear that the more urbane community was less prepared to handle the issues resulting in the aftermath of the combined attacks. The Civil Defense of the neighboring city was able to provide some limited assistance to their neighbors even though their community suffered damage at least as severe as the more urbane confines of the larger, more developed, but less prepared of the two communities. Mr. Wylie also indicated that the two communities were able to offset their casualties by working with their neighbors. The principle result of the attack was a consolidation of efforts to help each other, and that alone made the book memorable for me. It was difficult to read about the devastation, but it was reaffirming to see the joining of the two communities in a common cause of recovery and the beginning of reconstruction of their homes and towns.
Mr. Wylie’s writing style was eloquent and erudite. The dictionary came in handy for some of the words used which added to the understanding of what was said in the context in which it appeared. It held some commonalities with several of the other nuclear dystopic reads I have enjoyed over the last four or five years that I have been writing reviews of what I read. While I don’t see close connection, this work -- Tomorrow! , I do see similarities with several similar works including:
Red Alert by Peter George,
On the Beach by Nevil Shute,
The Last Ship by William Brinkley,
Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, and
Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny
Recommendations:
While Tomorrow! is one of the longer works on the topic of nuclear dystopia, it includes a detailed look at two cities faced and their representative citizens faced by the result of a similar catastrophe – weapons of mass destruction used against modern urban populations. The events are similar for both cities, but the population of Green Prairie appear to fair better due to the Civil Defense preparedness activities and drills. Even when they are revisited after the atomic bombing by a biochemical attack designed to clean up those still alive after the nuclear holocaust, their training helped them cope with their dilemma while at the same time being able to provide some modicum of support for their neighbors in River City. The tale has lengthy characterizations as well as detailed descriptions of how things developed. It is clear that the settings are in the 1950’s given the use of turboprop bombers, although the USSR was still using similar aircraft into the 1980’s and 1990’s as standoff cruise missile platforms, enabling the launch of those stand-off weapons without having to cross into United States or Canadian territories.
The story has clarity of purpose, detailed descriptions, and a mature knowledge of the effects of modern weapons systems. Its graphic detail of suffering and lingering death is probably not suitable for even middle grade students, but high school level students might find the information interesting, and the characterizations sophisticated given the original publication date. Screen readers who might not be able to handle the mature themes. It is appropriate for adult readers and excerpts might be beneficial in social studies courses at high school level and above.
I rate this one a 5 out of our usual 5-star rating scale for clarity, characterization, and detailed descriptions. The dialog is sophisticated for the time period, and it is not as laden with profanity as some other works find hard to get around, particularly those by more modern authors.
Review of Tomorrow! by Philip Wylie by Richard W. Buro is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23704800-tomorrow.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at marketing@openroadmedia.com .
One of the events which find its way into dystopic literature is the horror and destruction created by a more recent addition to the arsenal of several nations on our “little blue dot” called Earth. The class of these weapons is usually atomic or nuclear bombs. Since 1945, just about everyone has been impacted by the events that ended World War II, specifically the only use of atomic weapons in history. The devastation of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki brought to the attention of all humanity the horrific power of atomic bombs. Just nine years later, tests on remote Pacific Islands added to the terror the incredibly larger effects of thermonuclear (a.k.a. hydrogen) bombs. One such weapon detonated by Russia (then called the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics [U.S.S.R.]) was sufficiently powerful enough to be seen many miles away from its point of detonation. The subject of the work being reviewed, Philip Wylie’s Tomorrow! are the fictitious events of a large strike upon the United States of America by several groups of long-range bombers from the USSR.
Mr. Wylie does a good job of characterization for many of the individuals who inhabited the two mid-Western towns that shared a river as a common water source. The two cities, Green Prairie and River City, focused efforts on agriculture and industry with little need or desire for protection from hostile forces. The one thing that was clear was that one city took an active stance in training and supporting a local Civil Defense program which held meetings, mock needs for defense and support of each other in their relatively small population. The population of the larger of the two cities was less interested in Civil Defense and more interested in making the almighty dollar.
The time setting appears to be in the mid- to the late-1950’s, where transportation in automobiles was common. A small airport supported the two communities, and there was a modest degree of communication and mutual aid and support during times of peace and prosperity. The Civil Defense established for one city was not matched by the same levels of preparedness for the unannounced, sneak attack of the USSR on America. The attack upon America was launched from bases in South America and Caribbean islands as well as from the Soviet Union. The attacks were in the form of both nuclear weapons with yields comparable to the Hiroshima bomb. There were additional weapons used in the form of biological and chemical agents.
The destruction was exacerbated by the combined effects of the blast, heat, and size of yield in the nuclear weapons. The biochemical follow-on attack was meant to provide additional confusion and human causalities adding a toxic agent to the already compromised victims of the blast, heat, radiological effects, and the confusion resulting from the large amounts of debris which made any makeshift shelters even more risky especially in the hours and days immediately after the initial strike. It was the combination of the various types of weapons that made the attack so horrific and the resulting devastation so difficult to control, organize, and provide useful help to those who would later succumb to the effects of not only nuclear and radiation exposure but also the debilitation of the individuals also assaulted by the effects of the biochemical agents from the follow-on strike. The combination of multiple weapons designed to target specifically humans with compromised immune systems and battered bodies from the initial atomic explosions and the resulting ionizing radiation that was one of the more devastating effects from their use and design.
Mr. Wylie also provides some insights into the human frailties that were extant prior to the attack. It was clear that the more urbane community was less prepared to handle the issues resulting in the aftermath of the combined attacks. The Civil Defense of the neighboring city was able to provide some limited assistance to their neighbors even though their community suffered damage at least as severe as the more urbane confines of the larger, more developed, but less prepared of the two communities. Mr. Wylie also indicated that the two communities were able to offset their casualties by working with their neighbors. The principle result of the attack was a consolidation of efforts to help each other, and that alone made the book memorable for me. It was difficult to read about the devastation, but it was reaffirming to see the joining of the two communities in a common cause of recovery and the beginning of reconstruction of their homes and towns.
Mr. Wylie’s writing style was eloquent and erudite. The dictionary came in handy for some of the words used which added to the understanding of what was said in the context in which it appeared. It held some commonalities with several of the other nuclear dystopic reads I have enjoyed over the last four or five years that I have been writing reviews of what I read. While I don’t see close connection, this work -- Tomorrow! , I do see similarities with several similar works including:
Red Alert by Peter George,
On the Beach by Nevil Shute,
The Last Ship by William Brinkley,
Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, and
Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny
Recommendations:
While Tomorrow! is one of the longer works on the topic of nuclear dystopia, it includes a detailed look at two cities faced and their representative citizens faced by the result of a similar catastrophe – weapons of mass destruction used against modern urban populations. The events are similar for both cities, but the population of Green Prairie appear to fair better due to the Civil Defense preparedness activities and drills. Even when they are revisited after the atomic bombing by a biochemical attack designed to clean up those still alive after the nuclear holocaust, their training helped them cope with their dilemma while at the same time being able to provide some modicum of support for their neighbors in River City. The tale has lengthy characterizations as well as detailed descriptions of how things developed. It is clear that the settings are in the 1950’s given the use of turboprop bombers, although the USSR was still using similar aircraft into the 1980’s and 1990’s as standoff cruise missile platforms, enabling the launch of those stand-off weapons without having to cross into United States or Canadian territories.
The story has clarity of purpose, detailed descriptions, and a mature knowledge of the effects of modern weapons systems. Its graphic detail of suffering and lingering death is probably not suitable for even middle grade students, but high school level students might find the information interesting, and the characterizations sophisticated given the original publication date. Screen readers who might not be able to handle the mature themes. It is appropriate for adult readers and excerpts might be beneficial in social studies courses at high school level and above.
I rate this one a 5 out of our usual 5-star rating scale for clarity, characterization, and detailed descriptions. The dialog is sophisticated for the time period, and it is not as laden with profanity as some other works find hard to get around, particularly those by more modern authors.
Review of Tomorrow! by Philip Wylie by Richard W. Buro is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23704800-tomorrow.
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February 13, 2015
Tomorrow! is the tale of two cities: “Green Prairie” which has a vigorous Civil Defense program, and its neighbor “River City” which turns up its nose at nonsense taxpayer expenses like Civil Defense. We see these two towns -- and their levels of preparedness for a nuclear attack -- through the Conner family and their neighbors, an everyman Midwestern American family who are very active in Civil Defense... until the local robber-baron heiress Minerva Sloan starts to slander it in her paper, incensed that a practice drill of some 40,000 volunteers (!) got her stuck in traffic for hours. The first 70% of the novel depicts slice-of-life melodrama, particularly the love-triangle between young architect/USAF officer Chuck Conner, his neighbor Lenore, and Kit Sloan, snotty son of billionaire Minerva. With a surprise Soviet nuclear attack, the book changes tone, and the full horrors of atomic war are unleashed on the twin cities...
Tomorrow! is an interesting look back at the 1950s, especially since so much of the novel is about living in the looming shadow of atomic war. The science is dated, more optimistic than realistic, and elements of the plot feel quaint today. So are many other “atomic war” novels from the era, so I can’t fault Wylie in the slightest; I think it adds to the time-capsule feel of the story, giving a good idea of the expectations and fears of the era. It’s a somewhat realistic portrayal of life in the 1950s that just so happens to be a post-apocalyptic novel, and a reasonably entertaining one at that. I don’t think it will replace some of the all-time post-apocalyptic classics, but I think it will be of some interest to any reader who’s interested in that genre.
Full review found here.
Tomorrow! is an interesting look back at the 1950s, especially since so much of the novel is about living in the looming shadow of atomic war. The science is dated, more optimistic than realistic, and elements of the plot feel quaint today. So are many other “atomic war” novels from the era, so I can’t fault Wylie in the slightest; I think it adds to the time-capsule feel of the story, giving a good idea of the expectations and fears of the era. It’s a somewhat realistic portrayal of life in the 1950s that just so happens to be a post-apocalyptic novel, and a reasonably entertaining one at that. I don’t think it will replace some of the all-time post-apocalyptic classics, but I think it will be of some interest to any reader who’s interested in that genre.
Full review found here.
March 31, 2015
This post apocalyptic novel is an outstanding period piece of fiction which clearly portrays the fears and prejudices of the time. Not great literature but a great read with the flavor of the mid twentieth century.
October 11, 2008
Another Philip Wylie WWIII novel. It's not as good as his Triumph.
October 3, 2024
This is another of my father's old science fiction books, and it's a hard book to rate. Published in 1954, it's a tale of nuclear war with a twist. Most of the novel is in fact about the lives of various people in and around a pair of fictional cities, one of which has an active civil defense program and the other which does not. It's about people--their hopes and dreams, their politics, their unsavory secrets. Aside from the civil defense activities playing out against the backdrop of a society that doesn't much believe it's in any danger, one wouldn't think it science fiction at all.
Halfway through the novel, international affairs take a turn for the worse. The Soviets, it seems, are scouting the United States from high altitude. Is it a prelude to war? Maybe, maybe not. But only at about the two-thirds point in the book do the bombs start to fall. There follows some disturbingly graphic accounts of the carnage and other effects of the attack as we discover what's become of the various characters we've been following. Finally, in the manner of many apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic novels, time speeds up, allowing us to see how people are coping and recovering after the passage of a little time.
It's not a bad tale. It's well-written and interesting, but the buildup takes so long that the atomic destruction seems almost--if you can believe it--anticlimactic. We knew it was coming. The cover blurb proclaims it, and the cover image broadcasts it--at least so does the cover on my copy, the 1956 Popular Library edition, depicting a woman trying to keep herself covered with her shredded dress as a city burns behind her. And since we knew it was coming, it's almost a relief when we get to that point. And after? Aside from the graphic depictions of carnage, there isn't much here that we don't expect. At least those of us of a certain age haven't merely heard about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We lived through the global game of chicken played by the U.S. and the Soviet Union, read about and watched programing on the possibility of "nuclear winter," watched the horrors of Chernobyl play out in real life.
In a way, it's almost a shame the bombs fell in this novel. It might have been more interesting to see what became of the characters in the course of their normal lives. But I say that from the perspective of six decades later. I rather wonder what my father made of it. As I've mentioned before, he was in the habit of writing the date of acquisition in the front of his books and a date for each time he finished in the back. This one is dated 3-7-57 in the front. But curiously, the only "read" dates he recorded were 6-2-06 and 11-25-13. Did he forget to note the date he first read it, or did he actually wait 49 years to read it for the first time? Odd.
Halfway through the novel, international affairs take a turn for the worse. The Soviets, it seems, are scouting the United States from high altitude. Is it a prelude to war? Maybe, maybe not. But only at about the two-thirds point in the book do the bombs start to fall. There follows some disturbingly graphic accounts of the carnage and other effects of the attack as we discover what's become of the various characters we've been following. Finally, in the manner of many apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic novels, time speeds up, allowing us to see how people are coping and recovering after the passage of a little time.
It's not a bad tale. It's well-written and interesting, but the buildup takes so long that the atomic destruction seems almost--if you can believe it--anticlimactic. We knew it was coming. The cover blurb proclaims it, and the cover image broadcasts it--at least so does the cover on my copy, the 1956 Popular Library edition, depicting a woman trying to keep herself covered with her shredded dress as a city burns behind her. And since we knew it was coming, it's almost a relief when we get to that point. And after? Aside from the graphic depictions of carnage, there isn't much here that we don't expect. At least those of us of a certain age haven't merely heard about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We lived through the global game of chicken played by the U.S. and the Soviet Union, read about and watched programing on the possibility of "nuclear winter," watched the horrors of Chernobyl play out in real life.
In a way, it's almost a shame the bombs fell in this novel. It might have been more interesting to see what became of the characters in the course of their normal lives. But I say that from the perspective of six decades later. I rather wonder what my father made of it. As I've mentioned before, he was in the habit of writing the date of acquisition in the front of his books and a date for each time he finished in the back. This one is dated 3-7-57 in the front. But curiously, the only "read" dates he recorded were 6-2-06 and 11-25-13. Did he forget to note the date he first read it, or did he actually wait 49 years to read it for the first time? Odd.
March 6, 2020
Um romance sobre o impensável, um ataque nuclear à américa. O ponto de vista é o de uma cidade mediana do interior americano, e o foco está em personagens que estão envolvidos com os serviços de proteção civil locais. Daqueles serviços em que muitos questionam a sua utilidade, até ao dia em que o impensável acontece, e a guerra atómica se abate sobre o mundo. Uma guerra rápida e mortífera, travada com bombardeiros - o autor não o deve ter escrito na era dos mísseis intercontinentais, e que num arremedo de patriotismo pateta termina de modo cataclísmico. A resposta americana final ao ataque inesperado soviético (suspeito que muitos terão de ir pesquisar o que é que isto quer dizer) envolve uma super-bomba num submarino que oblitera o golfo da Finlândia e transforma toda a zona até Moscovo numa improvável cratera não muito radioativa. O não prestar atenção aos efeitos da radioatividade é uma das falhas técnicas deste livro.
A leitura torna-se interessante quase no final, quando o livro nos conta, finalmente, a história que promete. Uma antevisão do que poderia acontecer em caso de ataque nuclear, e apesar de comedido, o autor não poupa nos pormenores catastróficos. Essa parte é interessante. Infelizmente, para lá se chegar, temos de enfrentar longas páginas de uma história telenovelistica, que aprofunda as pequenas histórias de uma série de personagens que... bem, se o tema é guerra atómica, a maior parte delas estão condenadas à partida. O lado intrigante do livro está no apontar da quebra civilizacional. O ataque é fulminante, as consequências de caos e desordem duram anos a ser resolvidas. O livro é otimista, assume que o planeta e a humanidade seriam capazes de sobreviver a uma guerra nuclear global mais ou menos intactos, exceto nos alvos bombardeados, e que a recuperação seria rápida. Sabemos hoje que não seria assim, que o acrónimo mutually assured destruction era verdadeiramente um conceito insano. Algo que, com o fim da guerra fria, parece estar definitivamente consignado ao caixote de lixo das péssimas ideias da história, embora a proliferação de armas atómicas indique que os riscos de haver conflitos localizados não são nulos.
A leitura torna-se interessante quase no final, quando o livro nos conta, finalmente, a história que promete. Uma antevisão do que poderia acontecer em caso de ataque nuclear, e apesar de comedido, o autor não poupa nos pormenores catastróficos. Essa parte é interessante. Infelizmente, para lá se chegar, temos de enfrentar longas páginas de uma história telenovelistica, que aprofunda as pequenas histórias de uma série de personagens que... bem, se o tema é guerra atómica, a maior parte delas estão condenadas à partida. O lado intrigante do livro está no apontar da quebra civilizacional. O ataque é fulminante, as consequências de caos e desordem duram anos a ser resolvidas. O livro é otimista, assume que o planeta e a humanidade seriam capazes de sobreviver a uma guerra nuclear global mais ou menos intactos, exceto nos alvos bombardeados, e que a recuperação seria rápida. Sabemos hoje que não seria assim, que o acrónimo mutually assured destruction era verdadeiramente um conceito insano. Algo que, com o fim da guerra fria, parece estar definitivamente consignado ao caixote de lixo das péssimas ideias da história, embora a proliferação de armas atómicas indique que os riscos de haver conflitos localizados não são nulos.
October 20, 2018
I'm usually first in line for any disaster, dystopian, or apocalyptic novel out there but this one was a little dull. It was written in the early '50's but that shouldn't be the answer. I've read several from that time period that were really good. The problem here was the first half. It was a total screed and the author went on and on and on about how lax and indifferent the American public was to the dangers facing them from the Communists and the possibilities of nuclear war. Not only did he, as the narrator, lecture; he also had one of his characters, a newspaper editor dictate about a ten page editorial on civil defense and standing up to our enemies. All I could do was wonder what possible paper he thought would publish this thing. There was also a strong taint of misanthropy in the first half, at least. Actually, I thought his characters were pretty realistic and mostly nice people.
The second half was better. Once the disasters start occurring, Wylie pretty accurately depicted the way people would react. For his time, he got the war scenarios fairly accurate also, although I doubt we were ever as ignorant of what the Russians were doing as he makes it seem. Then all of a sudden, the war is over and within two years, things are rebounding nicely. I guess maybe in 1954, nobody but the true experts really had all the facts.
The second half was better. Once the disasters start occurring, Wylie pretty accurately depicted the way people would react. For his time, he got the war scenarios fairly accurate also, although I doubt we were ever as ignorant of what the Russians were doing as he makes it seem. Then all of a sudden, the war is over and within two years, things are rebounding nicely. I guess maybe in 1954, nobody but the true experts really had all the facts.
May 8, 2022
In the beginning I wasn’t too sure about this book..It started out slow but I understood why and then it built up to where I couldn’t put it down…If when you read this book I want you all to think about the here and now and the time this story took place…This story takes place around the middle to late 1940’s and the threat of another country making the trip into the USA was unheard of at that time…But one town kept up with a Civil Defense team and called drills at all odd time of the day, or week to keep people on their toes just in case..Some of the towns people were so sick of the drills they tried to get rid of the CD altogether..
Then the unthinkable happened the Russians got to the states and dropped the H-bomb…
I’m not telling you all about the families or the towns people but I want you when you read the book put yourself in the 1940’s with town and it’s people and then think about us and how…
Then the unthinkable happened the Russians got to the states and dropped the H-bomb…
I’m not telling you all about the families or the towns people but I want you when you read the book put yourself in the 1940’s with town and it’s people and then think about us and how…
February 11, 2021
A Stroll Through the Fifties
Written in the mid twentieth century Tomorrow! Explores
Written in the mid twentieth century Tomorrow explores the impact of a surprise nuclear strike on two fictional cities in the Midwest. The novel exposes the American culture of the fifties with its faults and strengths exposed. It speaks of the devastation of a nuclear attack and its horror. Former Speaker of the House, Best Gingrich has said the book greatly impacted his perspective on human affairs when he read it as a young person. Today the seems of a bygone era with its ingrained racism,but at the same time surprisingly relevant. As bad as the devastation described in the novel it seems to understate what a real nuclear attack would look like,
Written in the mid twentieth century Tomorrow! Explores
Written in the mid twentieth century Tomorrow explores the impact of a surprise nuclear strike on two fictional cities in the Midwest. The novel exposes the American culture of the fifties with its faults and strengths exposed. It speaks of the devastation of a nuclear attack and its horror. Former Speaker of the House, Best Gingrich has said the book greatly impacted his perspective on human affairs when he read it as a young person. Today the seems of a bygone era with its ingrained racism,but at the same time surprisingly relevant. As bad as the devastation described in the novel it seems to understate what a real nuclear attack would look like,
July 10, 2024
A 1954 Cold War to Hot War Story
I chose this book because I had read When Worlds Collide (co-written with Edwin Balmer) many years ago and it became one of my all time favorites. This was a completely different type of book. I’m old enough to remember the Cold War and Nuclear Arms Race of the 50s and 60s. The story is set in 2 fictional sister cities that sit across a River from each other. One is oriented toward Civil Defense and the other is oriented toward industrialization and consumerism. A nuclear attack takes place on these cities and others—following the standard formula for these stories. The descriptive writing is phenomenal. Philip Wylie was an excellent writer. This is a good book for those Boomers who remember how threatening the Cold War was.
I chose this book because I had read When Worlds Collide (co-written with Edwin Balmer) many years ago and it became one of my all time favorites. This was a completely different type of book. I’m old enough to remember the Cold War and Nuclear Arms Race of the 50s and 60s. The story is set in 2 fictional sister cities that sit across a River from each other. One is oriented toward Civil Defense and the other is oriented toward industrialization and consumerism. A nuclear attack takes place on these cities and others—following the standard formula for these stories. The descriptive writing is phenomenal. Philip Wylie was an excellent writer. This is a good book for those Boomers who remember how threatening the Cold War was.
April 19, 2021
Philip Wylie's TOMORROW! was published in 1954 -- IKE, Cold War, Red Scare, McCarthy, nuclear weapons testing, duck & cover, "We will bury you," and more. It tells of two midwestern cities, one with Civil Defense preparations, one without. More than the first half describes the people of the time, how they lived, thought, feared, prepared, all through the lense of the possibility of a nuclear war. The last portion describes the nuclear exchange and the aftermath, making it one of the earlier novels of a nuclear disaster. I was more familiar with Wylie through his GENERATION OF VIPERS work, which I enjoyed much more.
September 16, 2025
The unvarnished truth!
Philip While was a big proponent of Civil Defense and as this book points out he was well versed in all aspects of the subject. Tomorrow is a cautionary tale about what could happen were it not for the altruistic folks who shouldered the burden of looking out for their neighbours. Wylie was extremely hard on the Russians, but that was a reflection of the time when this book was written.
Philip While was a big proponent of Civil Defense and as this book points out he was well versed in all aspects of the subject. Tomorrow is a cautionary tale about what could happen were it not for the altruistic folks who shouldered the burden of looking out for their neighbours. Wylie was extremely hard on the Russians, but that was a reflection of the time when this book was written.
October 13, 2017
Gruesome, if outdated
Two cities in America, one prepared for nuclear war, one not. While this book is dated, the gruesome aftermath is not. Mobs, death, looting, rape, bravery, sacrifice. All elements of humanity after a horrific attack are represented here. Not a great novel, but worth a read.
Two cities in America, one prepared for nuclear war, one not. While this book is dated, the gruesome aftermath is not. Mobs, death, looting, rape, bravery, sacrifice. All elements of humanity after a horrific attack are represented here. Not a great novel, but worth a read.
August 7, 2022
It took at least half the novel to set up for the action to come. Perhaps the author might have chosen fewer characters to develop so that the reader isnt wonderings where things are going. However when the action finally comes, it is worth it. This book is a kind of mix of Hiroshima by Hersey and Alas Babylon by Pat Frank.
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April 15, 2022very realistic and good character development. written in 1954 with a sense of the imminent danger of nuclear war and the benefit of active Civil defense
i wonder how accurate the depiction of the aftermath was
i wonder how accurate the depiction of the aftermath was
February 13, 2025
A trip back in time
Very interesting reading, about man-made disaster from the viewpoint of radios and TVs with vacuum tubes. Very little modern technology existed at a time of utter Disaster.
Very interesting reading, about man-made disaster from the viewpoint of radios and TVs with vacuum tubes. Very little modern technology existed at a time of utter Disaster.
July 27, 2019
Just couldn't get into it,
June 2, 2021
I read as a teen... Nuclear war as experienced by characters in the train cities. Loved it.
July 19, 2021
This could have been a short story. The author spends 85% of the text in character development and back-story that never comes to any fruition or significance with a handful of exceptions.
March 31, 2022
Slow start. Somewhat dated but still relevant.
June 2, 2022
A fifties version of the results of nuclear war. Did not have the grab that it should have.
November 12, 2022
worthwhile read
A good read from the 1950s perspective of nuclear war and sobering in its graphic descriptions as well as some optimistic conclusions.
A good read from the 1950s perspective of nuclear war and sobering in its graphic descriptions as well as some optimistic conclusions.
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