All safe!

René Barjavel is undoubtedly one of our best writers of the twentieth century. Although he always denied write science fiction, his books are heavily laced with anticipation. And among his many favorite subjects, it is one that appears frequently: the end of time, the death of humanity, the annihilation of the world 'Since Ravage, written in the early 1940s to the Storm, one of his latest novels (1982).

Imagine the Earth ready to crack. Geopolitical conflicts peaked, all are equipped with the most deadly bombs. Imagine also an eminent scientist who manages to develop a molecule that removes all violent thoughts, warlike and vindictive 'Imagine, finally, that last weapon used is that of absolute happiness' All inhaled this molecule' could then believe that utopia which means that people live in peace is acquired. And yet not. For two reasons. The first is that if Man is essentially good, it remains an economic producer, so polluter in the soul. And total peace does not improve the quality of air, far from it 'The second is that there is a flaw in this molecule: some humans do not assimilate and remain violent. So when one of them takes the technical direction of a division to destroy the bombs 'that no longer serve to anything, one can not doubt the terrible danger hanging over the heads' And if Judith was the only of the entire planet to still be able to save humanity? And if love was the last ultimate weapon? The storm will blow '

This book is a fable. It does not find the detailed style of the author we could appreciate in works such as Le Voyageur Reckless (I recommend the audio adaptation '). The writing is stripped, simple, funny or sometimes almost childish 'in contradiction with the thickness of the subject. Barjavel and awaken in us almost obvious questions yet terrifying 'The Tempest may not be his best novel, but it remains one of the most impactful.