Alas, Babylon

In 1959, I was in first grade in Ottumwa, Iowa. I loved going to school and everything about it. During that time we practiced duck-n cover drills, because we knew that the Russians were trying to destroy and kill us all. About once a month we would have these drills, just to be on the safe side. I also remember the shelter sign that was posted on my elementary school. Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank was written in 1959 and tells the story of America being hit by an hydrogen bomb.

Randy Bragg is the brother of military man Mark Bragg. When Mark sends his brother a telegram, which ended with their family' private signal "Alas Babylon", Randy knew the country was in big trouble. Mark immediately send his wife and two children to Randy for safe keeping.
As predicted, those Russians hit the United States with multiple bombs, wiping out major cities and communication signals. The residents of Fort Repose, Florida, are left to survive without knowing what is going on in the rest of the country.

This is a great book that I read for my f2f book group and I am anxiously waiting our discussion.
Before 9-11, no one believed it could happen here, now we are all believers. Scary, thought-provoking book.