Farewell, Earth's Bliss

by D.G. Compton

On board an obsolete ship, nine weeks out from home, the latest batch of colonists arrive at their destination. A grim penal settlement in a wilderness worlds away from the homes they will never see again. TASMANIA? BOTANY BAY? No. For this is tomorrow, not yesterday. The dumping ground for social outcasts and political deportees is Mars, barren, unproductive, but invaluable as a convict settlement. What kind of welcome will the twenty-four deportees receive when the reception party from the Settlement reaches their stranded ship? And how will they survive in a primitive environment, an alien system?

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Collections

188 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

David Guy Compton has published science fiction as D.G. Compton. He has also published crime novels as Guy Compton and Gothic fiction as Frances Lynch.

Reviews

[R.D. "Bob" Mathison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Farewell Earth's Bliss by D. G. Compton is a masterpiece that captivates the reader with its incredibly bleak yet enthralling narrative, making it a lightning-fast read that's impossible to put down. Compton tackles heavy and complex themes such as religious fanaticism, racism, classism, and capital punishment with remarkable depth and nuance. The story digs deep into these challenging subjects fearlessly, offering insightful perspectives that provoke thought and reflection.

One of the book's standout features is its cast of well-drawn characters. Despite their flaws, many of these characters are incredibly likable and relatable, making the reader invested in their journeys and challenges. Compton's skill in character development is heavily evident, as each character contributes meaningfully and uniquely to the narrative.

The narrative itself is straightforward yet utterly captivating, making Farewell Earth's Bliss a true page-turner. Compton's writing style is fluid and engaging, drawing you into this bleak future he has created with pacing that is pitch-perfect.

Farewell Earth's Bliss is a remarkable work that brilliantly explores complex and challenging themes in an engaging way despite its somewhat bleak outlook. It's a haunting, original, and significant contribution to the genre.

[Hux · Rating 3 out of 5]

I often say that my guilty pleasure in literature is post-apocalyptic fiction (and it is) but I've been trying to expand my general sci-fi consumption lately albeit with the desire that the books should explore something existential or something philosophical (I'm not that interested in aliens and sweeping space operas). So yeah, something small but intriguing, and this writer's name came my way. 

It was probably a very good choice because the book does not dwell on epic sci-fi themes and instead tells a rather straight-forward and small story of hardship. The book opens with several characters (I think 22) aboard a space ship heading for Mars. These people are convicts being sent to a penal colony settlement they know very little about. They are given biblical names (Jacob, Simon, Mark, Rachel etc) and consume drugged food for the nine week trip to better cope with almost no physical activity. Once they arrive, they are immediately caught in a storm that kills several of them (I did not entirely like this chapter because Compton jumps ahead in time rather abruptly) before the locals arrive to take them to the settlement. Here they discover that it is a self-maintained colony where the criminals (some of their crimes are severe but others are trivial) have created their own small but workable civilisation. Life is very hard and everyone is expected to contribute, pull their weight, or face severe punishment. And that's basically it, that's as far as the sci-fi elements of the story ever goes. But that's the point because, to me at least, this is a novel where Compton is exploring hardship and its beneficial consequences to the human soul. When you remove comfort and freedom, this often (counter intuitively) results in a society that is mentally healthy, robust, deeply satisfied, and ultimately very strong. It feels wrong to acknowledge it, given the hardships involved, but many (often the ones you least expect) take to this new life and thrive while others cannot handle it.

The book has a bleak, even cynical take on the human condition. Racism, sexism, homophobia, all present and correct, but the fundamental philosophy of this place and its people is... if you work hard and contribute, you will be rewarded. But obviously this is not always the case. Some people will simply die because of the conditions, because that too is the nature of this kind of life.

I really enjoyed this (especially the early chapters) and thought Compton's writing was very fun to read. The book is science fiction in only the most tangential way, its ideas more in line with an existentialist exploration of a life at its more authentic, its most demanding. It's a difficult narrative to sell because it goes against our instincts. Nothing is quite so satisfying as a delicious meal and some good hearty sexual intercourse after a twelve hour day of intense labour and toil. Yet, equally, nothing is quite so bleak. Very interesting. Very good.

[Hosius Mr · Rating 3 out of 5]

داستان از جایی شروع میشه که 24 زندانی سیاسی و جنایی در داخل سفینه ای به مریخ تبعید شدن تا باقی عمر خود را در اقامتگاهی در آنجا زندگی کنند! این که با چه شرایط و استقبالی روبرو میشن ذهن همه اون ها رو درگیر کرده. در ادامه داستان با شرایط پیش آمده برای اون ها و سایر ساکنان که از قبل روی سیاره بودن همراه میشویم
.
این اولین کتاب از دی جی کامپتون بوده که توسط آقای فامیان ترجمه و به خواننده فارسی زبان معرفی شده.
.
روند کلی داستان تقریبا خطی بود و در بعضی جاها خسته کننده جلو میرفت! (شخصا دوست داشتم چالش ها و اتفاقات داستان کمی پررنگ تر بود). به نظرم جامعه کوچکی که در مریخ شکل گرفته و نویسنده اون رو برای ما شرح میده، شباهت های زیادی به جامعه ای که در اون زندگی می کنیم داره. جنس خشونت، بی رحمی و سایر اتفاقاتی که در داستان وجود داره، همه از مواردی هستن که در دنیای امروز با شکل های مختلف اون روبرو میشیم.
.
پایان کتاب رو هم دوست داشتم!

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aboard an obsolete ship, three months from home, twenty-four convict-colonists complete a one-way trip and arrive at their new home: a desolate penal colony a world away from lives and homes they will never return to. But the condemned weren't shipped off to Devil's Island or Botany Bay---no, these are political prisoners, homosexuals, and a scattering of outright criminals sent to the cold and distant sands of Mars.

This is my first Compton, an author I've seen several other reviewers/bloggers comment on as an underrated master. I'm inclined to agree; Farewell, Earth's Bliss is a thoughtful character-study of these castaways integrating into the penal culture developed on Mars. The plot is devoid of much action and suspense, but has an array of deep and realistic characters, a fascinating culture, and a grim society eking out a living on the desolate red planet. Two thumbs up; this is a great choice if you want character-driven SF with deeply human---and thought-provoking---insights.

Full review found here.

[Linus · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Farewell, Earth's Bliss' is the first book by Compton that I have read. Set in the not-too-distant future, criminals are not imprisoned on Earth, but rather sent to the furthest possible detention centre: Mars itself. The title reveals a lot: the bliss and joy of wandering the Earth's landscapes will never return for the protagonists.

We follow the stories of several criminals aboard a spaceship on its final voyage to Mars, where they will live in isolation with their fellow prisoners for the rest of their lives. Previous arrivals have established a settlement there, but what a grim one! The new arrivals must now learn how to survive in this wilderness, far from the homes they will never see again. Mars is barren and unproductive yet invaluable as a penal colony. The following questions naturally come to mind: What kind of welcome will the twenty-four newly arrived prisoners receive when the reception party from the settlement reaches their ship? And how will they survive in this primitive environment?

This is a grim novel in which these desperate people struggle have established cruel rules. You cannot breathe without a spacesuit, so the ultimate punishment for those who break the man-made rules is to go outside without one. Another punishment is going without food for a few days, which the other inhabitants welcome as it means more food for them.

Overall, it reminds me of another book about leaving criminals to their own devices to see how they establish order and what their lives will be like. The book I'm referring to is even more obscure than Farewell, Earth's Bliss. The Penal Colony by Richard Herley. I enjoyed both books, although I felt more drawn into the story in Herley's book because it focused on one protagonist. Both books depict a seemingly simpler life that turns out to be cruel and dull, with little pleasure. Dark!

[Stephen Rowland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compton's darkest novel, and one of his very best.

[last · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mein Gott, was für ein deprimierendes Buch. Die Erde entscheidet sich dazu, Häftlinge einfach auf dem Mars auszusetzen, und da entsteht eine brutale Hierarchie, inklusive extremer Homophobie, Rassismus und Frauenfeindlichkeit. Ich kann nicht sagen ob irgendwas gutes/schönes/moralisch unterstützbares passiert im ganzen Buch, bzw wenn dann sterben die Charaktere garantiert, oder integrieren sich in die Hierarchie und machen bei allem mit. Trotzdem gibt es irgendwie 8+ interessante, komplexe Charaktere und wirklich einige interessante thematiken die angesprochen werden, hauptsächlich natürlich die Inhaftierung und damit zusammenhängende Ungerechtigkeiten. War echt gut, aber die nächsten Bücher die ich lese müssen irgendwas positives haben...........

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

2024 Book #22:
Farewell, Earth’s Bliss (1966) by D. G. Compton

This slim novel recounts the story of several criminals sent to a penal colony on Mars. I must admit that this premise didn’t sound very intriguing to me, but the book was recommended as a dark New Wave novel. And this evaluation mostly holds up. Like Lord of the Flies (though nowhere near as crazy), Farewell, Earth’s Bliss explores what would happen if you left a group of people stranded in the middle of nowhere (Mars) with basically no resources. How would their society evolve? There are at least two answers that Compton’s novel shoots down. The society doesn’t become a socialist utopia with everyone helping everyone else and contributing where needed. Nor does the society become a lawless waste in which every criminal goes back to their criminal ways. Rather, Compton goes for a third option: under conditions of scarcity, the society becomes incredibly rigid and oppressive. Hierarchies emerge, conformity is promoted, feverish religiosity and superstition become rampant, and crimes are immediately punishable by death. And worse, initially normal people revert to the worst bigotries (e.g., racism and homophobia). Needless to say, the novel is thought-provoking, and Compton writes with well-crafted, occasionally lyrical prose and a strong sense of irony. Despite this, a couple things detract from the reading experience. Because (like Ballard’s High-Rise) this is a continuous-escalation plot, it’s sometimes bland and repetitive. In fact, the novel drags for most of its page-count, with needlessly long descriptions of mundane events. Regardless, I appreciate the book’s critical eye, and I’m curious to check out more books by this drastically underread writer. (low 4/5)

[M Cody McPhail · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thoughts on Farewell Earth's Bliss by D G Compton::::::

In the near future, the US and other countries use space travel as a means to get rid of convicted peoples. They load a bunch of random people that have committed a variety of crimes, mostly non-violent, into a space ship and send them off for good. The people in this situation have no idea what awaits them. Only that they're going to Mars. The ships are automated and provide a one way trip. They are fed drugged food to make space travel more amenable. To make them not hate their situation as much.

What awaits them is a barely stitched together, barely functioning, highly superstitious, racist, homophobic, patriarchal nightmare.

They time travel to the USA circa 2025!

Lol jk.

This book is terrifying. You don't know you're in one of the bleakest books until it's too late. Compton slowly builds this world and with each new revelation, a new level of terror is laid on top of you. A calm leisurely pace gives you a bit of time to realize this book is about to fuck up your week. Hints are sprinkled about. Characters say horrible shit in very matter of fact ways. You become immersed in one of the worst neighborhoods in the history of humanity.

The community rules are if you break any of the rules, you take the cold way out. You are forced to walk out into the wilderness of the Martian wasteland at night. They say it doesn't hurt but how would they know.

This book was published in 1966. The themes of anti-racism and gay rights are wildly and offensively portrayed in bold strokes. Compton tackles these themes at a critical time for both movements. How was received in the UK at that time? Homosexuality was made legal in 1967 in England. This has to have caused a stir back then.

This is one of finest books I've ever read. The depth of emotion and storytelling here is incredible. If I made it out to be a purely shocking and transgressive work, it isn't. It holds back when it should. It reveals at the perfect time. The whole of its parts are devastating.

[Unreliable NarraTBR · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 Spaceships

I'm not huge on "justified" racism, totalitarianism, misogyny, or homophonia. I'm not big on christians and their choice of a diety. You get it all in this book. It paints a very brutal picture, and It's going to be a hard landing for a lot of people who pick this up.

This being my first Compton novel, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he's less of a shitbag than everyone in this book, narrator included.

This book is mean; less mean than I was expecting, but it's pretty damn mean. I need to read it again sometime. It's good.

I read the Kindle version of this, as a physical copy is rather hard to find and expensive. This version is full of simple errors I can only hope were not in the actual physical copies. If they are, this is going down to a 3*.

There's a pretty important side(?) plot in this that is simply dropped and never concluded. Major points lost for that.


All my gripes aside, this is super super cool. I like the character work, the world. Most elements land in that regard.

[YT BarelyHuman77]

Hey all :) Here is the script for my review of FEB - feel free to check it out here: https://youtu.be/cSet1Mui1_0

~~~
~~~
~~~

Farewell, Earth’s Bliss - D. G. Compton

Farewell, Earth’s Bliss was written in 1966 and as soon as I read the author’s name I knew this was going to be a banger. D. G. Compton has got to be the best rap name of any sci-fi author. So sick.

Introduction
- Okay, so the book is set in the near future and in this future, some criminals, rather than being sent to jail, are sent to penal colonies on Mars. The book kicks off by following 24 prisoners on the 9 week journey to get there.
- As soon they arrive, they start to try to assimilate into the community of roughly around 200 deportees already on the settlement. Farewell, Earth’s Bliss follows the characters from this latest flight to Mars as they build their life in the Martian prison town.
- So much shit is going on in this book. So many people, so many different situations, so many different themes, so many different moral questions, and it’s all done in just 188 pages. My goal is to just skim the surface of these things to show you how flushed out and brilliant this novel is.
- The People
- One thing I immediately noticed was the breadth and depth of the characters. We don’t just follow one guy, the story switches perspectives between a good chunk of the people that came up on the latest flight from mars.
- And they’re weird. A lot of them, at least. The character dynamic reminds me of, like, the psychiatric ward in “One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest” if you’ve ever read that; they are definitely a quirky bunch. This vibe is kinda uneasy throughout, in the sense that everyone is a little off, whether it be that’s how they’ve always been or thats because they’ve lived here for many years.
- The amount of character building Compton does for so many different characters is astounding. A lot of times, in books, I feel like we get to know a character really well, but it’s only ever in one dynamic or circumstance. Like in a space opera we might only know our hero as they engage in a bunch of fantasy-like, noble encounters. Farewell, Earth’s Bliss is different.
- Compton shows us many sides to the characters. The way the Settlement works is newcomers are assigned host families to live with, and just like the newcomers these people are an interesting bunch. We see the characters from so many angles: we get their original introduction on the plane, we see them around the settlement, and we also see them in the context of their new homes; we get to see them interact with what are like their new family members.

Disclaimer: I’m gonna talk about some “political” stuff in this video cuz it’s a political book. Not even really capital P political, just life stuff but idk some people are sensitive. If you don’t want to hear it, I understand and that’s okay, feel free to go.

Ethics of Prison: LWP
- So probably the most obvious philosophical discussion Compton proposes is one about incarceration. The settlement, at its heart, is a prison. It’s superficially very different from ones on Earth: it’s on Mars, there are no guards, and they have, theoretically, complete freedom within their domain. But Compton does what any profound science fiction writer does and he takes something very alien and uses it to comment on something very familiar.
- “They’re simple things, Josh—sun, moon, sky. Simple things till you don’t have them.”
- On the journey to Mars, as we poke around in the prisoners’ heads, we hear their outlooks on the future and how they see their sentence. They range from everything from people who see this as chance to build a new life to people likening it to a death sentence.
- Of course, readers are invited to think about this too - condemnation to the settlement is akin to a life sentence back here on Earth: when we sentence people to life without the possibility of parole, are we sentencing them to death?
- I don’t know, man, I thought a lot about this, like, is it really that different or much more cruel to be sentenced to living on Mars under harsh conditions than to serve life without parole? The prisoners on the moon live with more hunger, but at least they get to have some fun jobs, they get to have freedoms, etc.
- Because it peaked my interest, I ended up researching prison stats for this review, and while researching, there was some quote I saw by someone serving life for a nonviolent offense and they said it was like they were executed but not “put to rest”… It reminded me of a quote in this book; a prisoner says “It was painful to think that all this was going to end. It was also painful to think that it should all go on forever.”

Ethics of Prison: Crimes
- So, what crimes did these guys do? Well, the variety of the people on the settlement is crazy. We meet people like Jacob, who stole money from a bank, and we meet Isaac, a poor man who stole some plastic to sell. But we also meet people like Simon, who tortured and murdered someone.
- And again, this is not too far off from real life. This book inspired me to get some facts on this, and I read an article, that basically just said this shit happens all the time! And too often it’s cuz of race.
- NOTE: Link in description
- In the article I read, in 646 reviewed cases, 72.9% of those serving LWOP for nonviolent crimes were Black​, and idk what the fuck is going on in Illinois, because it says there, black people are 33 times more likely than whites to receive LWOP for nonviolent offenses.
- And I bring up the racial element of it because it’s a clear through line in the the book. The main character Jacob, who fudged numbers to steal from a bank he worked at, is black, and he’s living with a dude on the settlement, Simon, who literally tortured and murdered a black guy in a racially motivated attack.

Ethics of Prison: Misc.
- And on top of these big points, Compton just invites so many questions about prison in general. For example: the people on the settlement are all defined by their crimes. E.g. hi, I’m Bob the rapist and this is Ann the drug dealer.
- And when this was brought up my gut reaction was this was messed up - haven't they paid for their crimes by being sent there and can’t they can try to live “beyond” their crimes now? But at the same time, isn’t it fair for someone housing with, like, a rapist to know who so?
- There's also sort of this question on the arbitrary nature of some of the senses. Like some of the people that are on Mars are there because they did things like “corrupted the children”, like they spread false political information to kids. And in my head I'm like "that's messed up. How are they punished so hard for that”.
- But then you kind of start thinking about back on earth how there might be someone who's in prison for life for dealing meth. Who's to say the law banning meth is not just as arbitrary. Obviously there are levels, but the fact that it made me start thinking about these things is awesome.

Groupthink/Religion
- Another topic Compton spends time on is religion and groupthink. I say religion “and” groupthink and not groupthink “through” religion, because I think he does a great job of showing how these two things can go hand in hand and feed off of each other to make life miserable for everyone involved.
- Repeatedly, characters in the book use the moral justification of their desire for conformity and group success to normalize tragic things like the settlement sentencing people to death for petty crimes or mishaps.
- The laws and shit are so fucked up on the settlement and it’s hard to read, because any one of them could theoretically rebel, but there’s a pervasive aura of fear with all the people under the spell of the communal brainwashing, and it’s spearheaded by the religious commitment of the community.

Racism/Homophobia/Abuse/Etc.
- A lot of the hot topics you’ve heard in the past few decades, Compton touches on. Racism, homophobia, sexism, abuse, corruption, etc. again, all in 188 pages. I won’t go deeply into everything, but there are a few things I’ve gotta touch on.
- I’ve already talked about Jacob and racism, but his situation is the canvas for more depictions of tragic injustices as well. Not only was he cast away by society by being sentenced to imprisonment on another planet, but on the settlement he’s regularly cast out as well. He’s not, like, barred from doing things, but he’s constantly having to ask himself if the people accept him for who he is or if there’s a limit to how close he can be to people because of his skin tone.
- He’s a complicated character too; he doesn’t necessarily handle this in a productive way. Overall, there’s an inescapable feeling of isolation with Jacob’s situation that is really terrifying.
- The character arc of another one of the characters is so tremendously tragic. One of the women is saved by someone, but is then held captive as somewhat of a sex slave by the character, which puts her in to this horrendous position where his life is in the hands of someone who is at best a toxic partner and at worst abusing her. Really chilling stuff.


Wrap It Up
- I’ve thought a lot about the title. Maybe because it's so fucking bomb. And it says that they are leaving the Bliss of Earth behind them, but in reality the society they escape to is very similar to Earth. But not in its bliss-ness. There's still the homophobia, the corrupt power structures, the racism, etc.. Kind of like the settlement’s problems aren’t anything new, just an exacerbation of issues on earth.
- Overall, this cult-like environment of bigotry and groupthink creates an ecosystem of suffering and fear for everyone within it, even those not directly affected by the injustices.
- Going back over this book it's almost shocking how much stuff was covered in this book, and I was incredibly impressed by Compton’s ability to write something so engaging while being so incredibly thought-provoking as well.
- Thanks for watching

[Bart · Rating 3 out of 5]

(...)

I’m sure the story of unwanted people that are sent to a distant island or so has been told lots of times in regular fiction too, but science fiction obviously offers a bit more possibilities than some version of Australia. In 1967 Robert Silverberg published Hawksbill Station – a novel I have yet to read, and he uses time travel as the method of exile. In the 1980ies Julian May takes that same idea for The Many-Coloured Land and makes an entire series out of it – one I loved as a teenager.

Stories about communities in isolation being abundant, the question then is whether Compton uses his Mars setting effectively – to wit, distinctively. The short answer is yes, but the longer answer is a bit more nuanced, as Farewell, Earth’s Bliss is social science fiction, no hard sci-fi or space laser stuff.

That’s easily explained by the fact that Compton simply was not interested in science fiction as such, and has read none of his peers’ stuff, as he expressed in a fairly long 2019 interview with Darrell Schweitzer on Black Gate:

(...)

Full review on Weighing A Pig Doesn't Fatten It

[S.E. Martens · Rating 1 out of 5]

What an ugly book full of awful people.

[Mark Cheverton (scifipraxis) · Rating 3 out of 5]

After nine weeks confined in a small spaceship and drugged into passivity, a group of convicts arrive at Mars not knowing what awaits them.

The narrative focus is firmly on the characters — a psychologically dysfunctional yet incongruously stoic group whose crimes range from the political to murder. Seemingly resigned to their predicament, our attention is instead drawn to their personal obsessions and relationships. The book is of its time with misogyny, racism, and homophobia driving many characters' motivations. The author doesn't take a moral position, presenting these issues as the reality of the social order, but they make for harder reading today, not helped by a fair bit of wooden and inane dialogue.

After landing, the deportees face the harsh reality of subsistence living in an authoritarian society run by the unhinged. But the static sociopolitical construct is thin set-dressing for a loose set of personal character vignettes, eschewing the opportunity for deeper societal commentary or rebellion that would have gripped me. While the setting is science fictional, this could just as easily have been a bunch of character stories set in any harsh penal colony.

While credit is deserved for the ending, which I didn't see coming, the overall narrative lacks a through plot — more a slice of grim life with little in the way of redemption, resolution, or enlightenment for the convicts. Compton is more interested in observation than interrogation, leaving his promising worldbuilding underexplored. I can see why the book has a literary reputation, but for me, it's too character-focused, lacking plot and development. If this stasis is intended as the point, it’s one the novel fails to develop into insight. Ultimately, I didn't care enough about these weird people to hold my interest in their petty soap operas.

[Daniel Milford · Rating 4 out of 5]

En gang i halvåret tar Amerika et utdatert måneskip, fyller det med to dusin fanger, og sender det med enveisbillett til Mars. Jorda har ingen radiokontakt med Mars, og ingen plan for fangene når de kommer frem, så hvorfor autopiloten ikke bare er satt til å sende skipet rett inn i sola, eller hvorfor fangene ikke bare blir avlivet på jorda, skjønner jeg ikke.

På Mars har det uansett dannet seg et slags lite samfunn. Alle fangeskipene lander samme sted, så tidligere forviste tar imot de som kommer. Dette høres aldeles hyggelig ut, men det er det ikke.

Naturlig nok er det tynt med ressurser på Mars foruten det skipene tar med seg. Det er nesten ubegripelig at ikke forfatteren har latt hele bosettingen på Mars gli over i kannibalisme, hvor de umiddelbart tar livet av alle de 24 nyankomne og lever nøysomt på dem frem til neste forsendelse. Jeg føler det er neste steg her. For dette er en ganske dyster beretning om makt og skjevfordeling av ressurser, hvor verken mørkhudede, homofile eller kvinner blir behandlet særlig verdig. Denne romanen har noen av de best blatante beskrivelsene av rasisme og til dels homohat jeg kan huske å ha lest. Boken er fra sekstitallet, så det var trolig nødvendig for å få frem poenget.

Handlingen er mindre viktig enn settingen. Jeg leser dette som første sesong i en såpeopera. Til det er den ganske god. Og jeg er glad den ble kansellert etter én sesong så jeg slapp å se kannibaliseringen. Det er et par karakterer i denne boken som både har makt og personlighet til å gjennomføre den ideen hvis de først får den.

[Debi Cates · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Rights and wrongs are irrelevant."

This was a page-turner for me! The astute attention given to half a dozen main characters by Compton is what made it a smashing stand out. Not only are incredible obstacles of life on a penal planet that is nearly devoid of life wondrously awful to ponder, but the adaptations and changes of the new arrivals' psychology gives this an extended depth I've not often seen in my sci fi reading.

There are no human rights, no democracy, only regulations and enforcement. Everything has been redefined. Your crimes on Earth might have gotten you sent to Mars but forget those. This small society had to re-invent itself and is unapologetically fine-tuned for survival.

One of the characters has been reading an omnibus of Dickens's classic novels that some one had brought with them. She has read it once and is about to start over. It is a pleasure she describes as "magnificently irrelevant," which I found poignant. Earth life is so distant.

This novel is an example of my favorite kind of writing. Compton struck the perfect balance: he said what he had to say, said it well, and stopped when he was done.

(What a boon it is to have discovered OpenLibrary.org. Reading scanned books reconciles my desire for the old-fashioned look and experience of a printed book with the wonders of digital access.)

[Tim Tufts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is bleak and harsh, with exceptional characterization. It’s very much soft sci-fi with some spaceship / mars window dressing to fit the genre.

[Todd Charlton · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's amazing. For every less than mega popular book the Goodreads rating is low. Farewell Earth's Bliss gets a pathetic 3.39. This book is worth at least 4 stars. It's like the beginning of Australia inasmuch as Mars is now a penal colony populated by prisoners from earth. There are no indigenous peoples but there are rabbit like creatures that the new colonists hunt for food.
Every few months a spaceship comes from earth and inviably lands awkwardly miles from the new settlement. The new settlement consists of the spaceships themselves arranged in close proximity, connected by ropes during the dust storm season.
The book is unrelentingly bleak, Compton tells the story of a new settlement on an unforgiving planet without an atmosphere pretty much as it would really be in its infancy.

[Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thoughtful but dull tale about an authoritarian society in a hard-scrabble colony.

[Aaron Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start off by saying that I devoured this book in 3 sittings and found it extremely difficult to put down. Firstly why hasn't Goodreads added any one of the 3 excellent covers to this listing and why isn't this masterpiece more known by readers.?

I'm going to go on record to say that this is the single best science fiction novel I've ever had the pleasure of reading, not only within the genre of SF but it's probably one of the best books I've read in any genre, period. While (Farewell earth's bliss) is categorised as science fiction it's more of a character study and focus on social challenges within a harsh Martian world far from earths bliss as the title suggests. Of course the framework for science fiction is there but if you are expecting generic spaceship battles and laser beams then I suggest that you steer well clear of this because your going to be disappointed, this is literary science fiction at its it's very best without the predictive ten a penny SF crowd pleaser stuff.

The story is centred around 24 convicts from earth who have been shipped off to mars which range from murderers to theives and everything in between. The first chapter throws you straight into the mix aboard the ship on a one way trip to mars where you are among the convicts on board and believe me you will feel as though your on the journey. The group out of the 24 and characters which are already in mars that you are endeared with for the remainder of the book aren't pretty but are certainly relatable in the sense of human emotion faced with uncertain future on a world so far from home.D.G Compton achieved his vision extraordinarily well and is flawless in character building using just a paragraph as opposed to numerous pages as so many writers seem to need. I don't think I've ever experienced such pitch perfect writing as I did here with Compton, he keeps you turning that page, not only that his style of writing is simple yet effective in achieving it's desired meaning. There really is no plot here as per-se but as I've said it's pure character study in terms of throwing characters together within harsh surroundings, social diversities such as homophobia and racism are also explored here by Compton but not to the extent of overkill, Compton is subtle but also as I've stated highly effective with perfect balance to compliment the unfolding events as opposed to losing the invested reader. Let me conclude by saying that (Farewell earth's bliss) is bleak, murky and hopeless in it's premise with flashes of hope on the horizon for the weary convicts now colonists. I've also read many people state that this 1966 novel is outdated however I couldn't think of anything further from the truth, if anything D.G. Compton was well ahead of his time and was brave enough to write this obscure, timeless literary masterpiece, it just doesn't get much better than this, utterly superb and criminally underrated, easily up there with the greats.👍

[Jack Deighton · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story starts on the annual ship carrying the latest deportees to a penal colony on Mars. They have been given false names to hide their identities and their food has been drugged to calm them. Nevertheless, there is still room for conflict on board, as exemplified when “Jacob,” (sensitivity warning) is called a nigger. The text also uses the word negro about him and later he is even addressed in dialogue as “Sambo.”
On arrival they are treated summarily by the previous deportees. Their remaining food is confiscated supposedly to be redistributed to the colony. Even though all on Mars are criminals (whether actual or perhaps political) this is a strict system run by the Governor, assisted by his henchmen. There is too an emphasis on religious observance, with partly misremembered prayers/texts since few books are ever brought on the one way trip.
The Mars presented here is not quite as we know it these days. There is an atmosphere of sorts (but still deadly if exposed to it,) there is an indigenous wild life food source, dubbed rabbits, and a moss which they eat and which is also edible by though not really palatable to humans.
The newcomers are in effect on probation in their new environment, having to fit into the customs which have evolved in the colony with any transgressions being treated harshly.
Jacob is taken on by the “rabbit” hunting group who one day witness what could be interpreted as a miracle like the burning bush, but which one of them rationalises as an escape of natural gas.
The governor is keen to exploit this phenomenon but at one point has an odd thought about his secret lover’s “female lack of the ability to let things ride. The lack that was her greatest strength.”
The attitudes depicted here are homophobic as well as being racist. I suppose for a book published in 1966 that’s not too surprising.
Compton was reasonably well regarded in his time. This isn’t one of his best, though.

[Thegazzardian · Rating 3 out of 5]

What if we sent out convicts on a one way trip to Mars? What sort of life would they find when they arrive?

This book is fairly easy to read, the prose is straightforward and spare. At the same time, it betrays a lot of modern sensibilities, with racism, misogyny, and homophobia present.

It follows the 11th (I think) such trip of convicts to Mars, and their experience integrating with the society there once they arrive. About a half dozen characters from that ship are followed, including Jacob (a black man), Joshua (the artist), Mark (the leader on the ship and a gay man), Isaac (a sick man), Ruth (a teacher), Martha (she didn’t stick out too much in my memory) and Simon (a racist who may have committed a hate crime). Through their eyes, we are introduced to the society that has been stood up on Mars, and how it operates.

It’s not really a plot driven book. Each chapter shines a light a little more on what life is like on Mars. There isn’t really much of a plot to speak of, it’s definitely about the experience of the colony rather than going anywhere. As it progresses, you see how hard scrabble life is, and what the title of the book means becomes clear. Little kindness from earth survives in this environment, which is ultimately run by a despot.

By the end, the characters that have survived have integrated into this society, been shaped by it, and the cracks in the new society have been made clear.

This was written in the 60s. What did the author think of having such unlikable characters and their beliefs? It’s hard for me to imagine. Do they appear more reprehensible from a modern viewpoint, or did the author see them that way himself?

Ultimately a thought provoking book, but falls just shy of the 4 star mark.

[Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Farewell, Earth's Bliss* was brilliant. I read it in three sittings across two days, I couldn't seem to put it down. It's a short 188 pages, but manages to say more within those confines than many 1000+ page epics. Nothing about this world is pleasant or "fun", but it is brilliantly written and each of the several focal point characters are well fleshed out and interesting.

I understand the commentary that Compton was conveying, but the extremely harsh racism and some of the more misogynistic narratives will be off-putting to most. It does feel like it is in service to the narrative, as opposed to something like a Stephen King novel where it honestly feels shoved into nearly every book for no reason.

The book spends no time on Earth, but paints a clear picture of just what kind of society is being left behind. Despite being set on Mars, there is very little in the way of typically "sci-fi stuff", with the genre framing being used entirely in service of the humanist story that Compton is telling.

This is one of the best things I have read this year, and I strongly recommend it, as long as you know going in just how harsh the story is from start to finish.

[Jesse Jasek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great companion to the previous book i read: We Who Are About To. Both grapple with the harsh realities of life on an alien planet, and while We Who Are About To approached it with pessimistic cynicism, Farewell Earth's Bliss goes for brutal pragmatism. To survive Mars, rules are needed and strict adherence to those rules are necessary. Where the book shines is it's depiction of the ways the system which creates these rules is not, and cannot ever be equal. It points out the necessity of some rules, and then pivots to pure bigotry while using the same justification. In the end this is a cold dark book that delves deep into the excuses we make towards a society that has left too many people behind.

[Samuel Guglielmo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprise favorite, and another really good read.

The book is about a group of prisoners who are exiled to a colony on Mars because of their crimes. Their crimes range from "rape" and "political assassination" to "petty theft" and "indecent exposure." The nine-week trip very quickly gives them a pecking order and drama. Worse, the colony itself is an extremely conservative nationalistic hellhole that almost entirely lives off the words of an eccentric leader.

The group either fitting in or spinning out is an instantly interesting and dramatic story, and over the book's 200ish pages there's basically not a single wasted page. This is a somewhat terrifying examination of humanity and social groups that immediately gets to the punch.

That said, this is also a social group examination sci-fi book written in 1966. Racism and homophobia play a large part in the book. There are a ton of scenes difficult to read because of this. I think the book handles it well, and I honestly and wholeheartedly suggest reading it, but several characters are horrifying racist dirtbags more than happy to drop the n-word.

Another book where the ending is an absolute gut punch, also.

[Flaviano Winther · Rating 3 out of 5]

Considering the difficulty acquiring the physical text in the U.S, the second hand price is not worth it. Certainly, it has a compelling plot with a familiar setting of Mars that offers dark/depressing themes with these unfortunate characters. Much of what is revealed demonstrates racism, sexism, and religion are still prevalent. However, many of the characters do very little to be invested by the reader. Fortunately, the novel is short and its structure is rigid. Having placed the negatives in the spotlight, I may confess that there were moments that I found were captivating; the setting and world building I found to be the best part of the novel.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...

"Another D. G. Compton novel, another wonderful (and terrifying) experience… The only one of his novels so far that has failed to hold my interest was The Missionaries (1971), a lackluster satire on religion. The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe (variant title: The Unsleeping Eye) (1973) is a masterpiece and Farewell, Earth’s Bliss (1966) and Synthajoy (1968) are close behind.

Farewell, Earth’s Bliss is best " [...]

[The Gnome’S · Rating 4 out of 5]

As every other review of this novel has stated, this is a very bleak story. While there isn’t very much action, the characters, philosophical explorations, and the plot twists are excellent. This is also has one of my favorite “titles” of any book I’ve read. While I think that it could’ve been just a little longer to flesh out the world and characters, I think that this is a very under appreciated piece of science fiction. If you’re looking for a quick read that examines race and human isolation in a very blunt way, you should definitely give this a read!

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grim novel about Mars being used as place to ship convicts. These convicts develop a brutal society. The story is grim. This could be considered an anti-Heinlein science fiction novel, or even an anti-SF novel. It was first published in 1966, during the early days of the New Wave.

Despite its grimness, it does have something to say. Its purpose may have been to dispel the illusions around the final frontier.

[Adam Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinary. An easy five stars for the first third, but didn’t quite maintain that level throughout. Still, frequent moments of brilliance, and characters of real substance. Sparse, grim, with flashes of Malzbergian insanity that were the book’s finest moments.