Not the End of the World [Hardcover]

Geraldine McCaughrean (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 2004

Everyone knows the story of the Flood, the men God chose to survive, the animals that went in two-by-two. But what about the others that sailed on the Ark, the women and the children? This adventure story asks what it was really like when the heavens opened and the world drowned - and what might have happened in the days that followed. With a frighteningly zealous and single-minded Noah; Japheth and his young wife, Zillah concerned for the welfare of the animals; the stowaway boy and baby found by Noah's daughter, Timna; and the animals themselves, continuing to act as animals do, whatever their surroundings, this is an extremely compelling and at times very frightening story, beautifully written as ever by Geraldine McCaughrean.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 9 Up–McCaughrean moves far beyond cozy picture-book images of arks and animals to what life onboard might really have been like for Noah and family. The monstrous tidal wave that crashes in the first pages sets the scene and puts the huge boat afloat. Although McCaughrean allows both human and animal narrators to offer their perspectives on the ordeal, the main storyteller is Noah's daughter, Timna. Despite Noah's warnings that demons might seek a place onboard, she helps rescue a young boy and his baby sister from drowning. Japheth and his reluctant wife help her care for the children but devote most of their attention to the animals. Shem, convinced of his own righteousness, cares only for his own unborn child and the future glory of his line. The foul air, rotting food, and continuing crises take their toll on all of the creatures trapped in the huge boat. Yet Noah never doubts God's plan or the persistence of miracles. Only his wife, in the presence of the other women, ultimately questions God's reasons and figures out a way to save Timna and the stowaways. Vivid descriptions help readers hear the cries of the drowning and experience the claustrophobia of shipboard life. Distinct voices for humans and animals add to the textual richness. The novel, which won the Whitbread Children's Book Award, raises thought-provoking questions in its expansion and exploration of an ancient tale.–Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. Using diverse voices from the ark, McCaughrean offers a story of the voyage that is brutal, physically and mentally, even as some aboard find their humanity. This is not the familiar "two-by-two" vessel. Fetid, filthy, and full of frightened animals, this ark is home to the zealot Noah, his dutiful wife, and his children and in-laws--some angry, some righteous, some who border on insanity. Unbeknownst to most of the voyagers are young Kittem and his baby sister, whom Noah's (unbiblical) daughter, Timna, has smuggled onboard. McCaughrean uses her cast well, letting them voice the many emotions that voyage evokes, with Timna as the steady beacon. A powerfully crafted, uneasy read, this will have the same effect on younger readers as Anne Provoost's In the Shadow of the Ark (2004) had on older ones. Questions^B of spirit, honor, obedience, and obligation are raised here; the answers aren't easily discerned. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Oxford Childrens (October 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0192719726
• ISBN-13: 978-0192719720
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,149,200 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not the End of the World, January 3, 2007

By 

Jewish Book World Magazine (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Not the End of the World (Paperback)

If you're looking for a slavish retelling of the Bible story about Noah and the Flood, this book isn't for you. If you're hoping to read a book about pretty rainbows and obedient doves, this isn't for you. But if you want a story that will grip you from the beginning to the end with a realistic cast of human and animal characters, a plot that will keep you on the edge of your chair, and a setting that is both horrific and fascinating, then you must read this masterful book. Timna, Noah's daughter, is the main character and hero. What? You've never heard of her? Was she just another invisible woman from the Bible? Timna herself realizes the truth: " `Shem, Ham, and Japheth: sons of Noah.' They are the only ones who will be mentioned a hundred years from now when people tell our story. I know I won't figure" (p. 2). You must read until the very end to discover Timna's fate.
Timna isn't the only narrator in this book. Her three brothers, their wives, her mother, and even some of the suffering animals tell the tale from their various points of view. Each voice is expressive; each voice has a different cadence and leads us to a deeper understanding of the catastrophe of the Flood. Interestingly, Noah does not tell his side of the story. The author portrays him as a religious fanatic, a monomaniac. She leads us to question whether he is as "blameless" as the Bible story would suggest. Almost all the people on the Ark are cast in an unflattering light. After all, Noah's family saved themselves while thousands of people drowned: "The water boiled with people. They were swimming, or clutching hold of logs, doors, cartwheels. Animals, too, were swimming among them--dogs and horses, cattle, goats. The sky was full of displaced birds, circling, circling, with nowhere to land" (p.11). However, the family's faults--large and small--make them seem more human. Not likeable, but human.
McCaughrean tells this story through powerful language and imagery. The sensory world engulfs us. "Below us, in the bowels of the ship, along its entire length, beasts squealed and shrieked and keened, scrabbling with claws and talons and tails for some purchase on the rolling world . . . . Huge mounds of hot dung slid about the decking, dislodging small creatures in their path" (p.6). What did we expect? That all these animals would quietly behave themselves during the forty days and nights and all the claustrophobic days thereafter while they waited for the waters to recede? The Flood was not a pretty sight. Touches of humor and irony occasionally relieve the tragic events. Timna states: "No shortage of jobs for any of us. The end of the world is a busy time if you mean to outlive it" (p. 5). Without giving away the ending, let us say that some small hope sustains the survivors (and the reader). And perhaps even a grain of faith. In our time of natural disasters--hurricanes, tidal waves, earthquakes--the ancient story of Noah and the flood hits uncomfortably close to home. Highly recommended for ages 12 - 18.

Reviewed by Anne Dublin

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Need Read, December 19, 2005

By 

Robert Lanckton "Alice" (Bellevue, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Not the End of the World (Hardcover)

Every teenager raised in a religious world, whether you're christian, jewish, or anything for that matter, should take a day to sit down and read this book. I myself am a huge fan of religiously themed books, and when I picked this one up at the library I wasn't expecting what I got.

Luckily the book is very quick read and I feel it is intended for those mature enough to understand death and religious themes, probably 15+ though I am sure some exceptions can be made. It is interesting to view Noah's Ark in a different light as we are all so used to the Christian happy story of people and animals living harmoniosly* in a boat for a few days... with sunshine and all that jazz, but this puts a very real spin on the everyday tale puts it in the perspective the way I feel the story was meant to be told, even though not completely factual.

I suggest this book to anyone who is interested in religion or raised religiously and wants to delve deeper into their origins.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beyond flannelgraph, January 8, 2007

By 

N. B. Kennedy (Hopewell, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Not the End of the World (Hardcover)

I have often wondered how we can raise our children with a knowledge of the Bible without presenting its people as one-dimensional flannelgraph characters. I know I've struggled all my life to see God's people as just that, people.

While some people are not willing to entertain fictional retellings of Bible stories, I can see from reading this book that it is an exercise that can enhance your faith rather than destroy it. No, you will not get a theologically sound version of the Bible story here. Stop looking for it. What you will get is a very real sense of a disaster of this proportion. You'll experience the claustrophobia, the pettiness, the annoyances, the hardships, the revulsion, the agonizing split-second decisions that characterize daily life, wherever it happens to be unfolding.

While the characters too often are painted as black-and-white, all good or all bad, some nuances are evident, especially in the character of Noah. Our society too often depicts devoutly religious people as unsavory fanatics. Noah's faith and trust in God is not mocked here, but rather presented as a rock-solid moral compass. The members of his family may view that compass differently, some scorning it, but it is not in itself dismissed. I appreciated that.

I think what surprised me most was that this book, in the children or young adults category, is a gripping read for an adult, too. I haven't found that to be the case for many YA books. It has broadened my view of the Bible, helping me to imagine the very real people in its all-too-brief stories. You may not necessarily think that's a good thing, but I would say, read it for yourself before deciding.