Earthman, Come Home

Summary

In James Blish's novel «Earthman, Come Home», readers are presented with a majestic and tragic saga of the City—a colossal space metropolis forever wandering among the stars. Governed by the enigmatic and relentless Council, the City searches for a new refuge, facing the hostility of planets and the indifference of the universe. At the heart of the story is John Amalfi, the mayor of New York, forced to balance his duty to the citizens with the harsh laws of survival. Against a backdrop of cosmic storms, political intrigue, and philosophical quests for meaning, the book's characters fight for the right to a home, humanity, and hope, despite the cold indifference of space. Blish masterfully weaves themes of exile, loneliness, and the eternal striving for light into the narrative, creating a profound and multilayered vision of the future, where the fate of one city mirrors the fate of all humanity.