John
Wyndham
The Day of the Triffids
Runn time 8+ Hours
Read by anon
17 files approx. 30
minutes each
The Day of the Triffids is a 1951
post-apocalyptic novel by the English science fiction author John Wyndham.
After most people in the world are blinded by an apparent meteor shower, an
aggressive species of plant starts killing people. Although Wyndham had already
published other novels using other pen name combinations drawn from his real
name, this was the first novel published as "John Wyndham".
The protagonist is Bill Masen, a
biologist who has made his living working with triffids—tall, venomous,
carnivorous plants capable of locomotion. Due to his background, Bill suspects
they were bioengineered in the Soviet Union and accidentally released into the
wild. Because of the excellent industrial quality of an oil produced by and
obtained from the triffids, there is heavy triffid cultivation around the
world.
The narrative begins with Bill in
hospital, his eyes bandaged after having been splashed with triffid poison from
a stinger. During his recovery he is told of an unexpected green meteor shower.
The next morning, he learns that the light from the unusual display has
rendered any who watched it blind (later in the book, Bill speculates that the
"meteor shower" may have been orbiting satellite weapons, triggered
accidentally). After unbandaging his eyes he finds the hospital in chaos, with
staff and patients without sight. He wanders through a chaotic London full of
blind inhabitants and meets wealthy novelist Josella Playton, whom he rescues
after discovering her being forcibly used as a guide by a blind man. Intrigued
by a single light on top of the Senate House in an otherwise darkened city,
Bill and Josella discover a group of sighted survivors led by a man. Intrigued
by a single light on top of the Senate House in an otherwise darkened city,
Bill and Josella discover a group of sighted survivors led by a man named
Beadley, who plans to establish a colony in the countryside. They decide to
join the group.