What is the name of this book?
January 12, 2007 8:19 AM
Help me figure out the name of this book!
When I was in fifth grade, our teacher read us a book -- or a trilogy, perhaps -- that was sort of sci-fi. My memories of it are fragmented (and maybe incorrect), but I think it had some human characters, maybe a couple of kids, who were in a world with nonhuman characters. I remember something about tripods and something like a chip being implanted in people’s necks. There were maybe some strange creatures that were big, round blobs and had weird facial features, like a mouth in an unusual place or maybe no mouth at all. There were also pools of some kind of liquid, and I think the liquid was harmful. The main characters were on some kind of mission, but I couldn't tell you what.
If anybody recognizes the story from this horrible, spotty description, I will be very impressed (and grateful).
When I was in fifth grade, our teacher read us a book -- or a trilogy, perhaps -- that was sort of sci-fi. My memories of it are fragmented (and maybe incorrect), but I think it had some human characters, maybe a couple of kids, who were in a world with nonhuman characters. I remember something about tripods and something like a chip being implanted in people’s necks. There were maybe some strange creatures that were big, round blobs and had weird facial features, like a mouth in an unusual place or maybe no mouth at all. There were also pools of some kind of liquid, and I think the liquid was harmful. The main characters were on some kind of mission, but I couldn't tell you what.
If anybody recognizes the story from this horrible, spotty description, I will be very impressed (and grateful).
The Space Trilogy by C.S. Lewis? I've read Perelandra at that meets some of the criteria at least.
posted by slimepuppy at 8:31 AM on January 12, 2007
posted by slimepuppy at 8:31 AM on January 12, 2007
How old are you? If you were a kid in the late 80s and early 90s, you could be talking about the My Teacher is an Alien series.
posted by roll truck roll at 8:40 AM on January 12, 2007
posted by roll truck roll at 8:40 AM on January 12, 2007
jazon, that's it! I'm very impressed, and kind of impressed that so many of my memories aren't all that inaccurate. Anybody read these books as an adult? I'm thinking of going back and reading them again because I was a bit enchanted with the stories when I was a kid.
posted by lilybeane at 8:44 AM on January 12, 2007
posted by lilybeane at 8:44 AM on January 12, 2007
And allow me to add that I feel like a total moron for not even considering Googling "children's literature tripods." Apparently, my brain subconsciously assumed that would get me nowhere.
posted by lilybeane at 8:53 AM on January 12, 2007
posted by lilybeane at 8:53 AM on January 12, 2007
I own them and reread them a few years ago (I'm 35 and I read them as a kid also - they were still in print a couple of years ago) and I thought they held up very well. These books are recognized science fiction classics for young adult readers.
They were also made into a BBC Television Series (my first exposure to the series).
posted by nanojath at 9:01 AM on January 12, 2007
They were also made into a BBC Television Series (my first exposure to the series).
posted by nanojath at 9:01 AM on January 12, 2007
I re-read them in the past few years & think they've held up quite nicely. My husband had never read them, so I passed them on to him & he enjoyed them as well.
posted by mogget at 9:13 AM on January 12, 2007
posted by mogget at 9:13 AM on January 12, 2007
I re-read them a couple of years ago (after reading them as a child). They really are great books. I love anything with a dystopian/post Apocalyptic future setting.
There's a also a follow up for younger readers, called "When the Tripods came". It's an interesting telling of the story of how the Tripods arrived. It's availble in a oxed set from Scholastic I think.
The TV series is really, really poor. They only adpated the 1st two books and deviated quite significantly from the original story. It's dated really badly.
posted by tonylord at 10:38 AM on January 12, 2007
There's a also a follow up for younger readers, called "When the Tripods came". It's an interesting telling of the story of how the Tripods arrived. It's availble in a oxed set from Scholastic I think.
The TV series is really, really poor. They only adpated the 1st two books and deviated quite significantly from the original story. It's dated really badly.
posted by tonylord at 10:38 AM on January 12, 2007
They are great books.
I re-read them too, a few years ago, and found them just as good as they were when I was a kid. I still remember, when I was a kid, I was on a long car trip with my mom and sister, and while we were traveling I finished the second of the two Tripods trilogy books that I had. We stopped in a little old-fashioned drug store in Texarkana, of all places --- and in a little rotating book rack they had the third volume of the Tripods Trilogy that I was missing!
posted by jayder at 11:07 AM on January 12, 2007
I re-read them too, a few years ago, and found them just as good as they were when I was a kid. I still remember, when I was a kid, I was on a long car trip with my mom and sister, and while we were traveling I finished the second of the two Tripods trilogy books that I had. We stopped in a little old-fashioned drug store in Texarkana, of all places --- and in a little rotating book rack they had the third volume of the Tripods Trilogy that I was missing!
posted by jayder at 11:07 AM on January 12, 2007
I remember loving these as a kid. Maybe it's time to reread them. Thanks for the reminder!
posted by alms at 12:34 PM on January 12, 2007
posted by alms at 12:34 PM on January 12, 2007
Great books, read them as a child and was only thinking the other day about digging them out and re-reading them.
posted by arcticseal at 2:50 AM on January 13, 2007
posted by arcticseal at 2:50 AM on January 13, 2007
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by jazon at 8:22 AM on January 12, 2007