Book cover for When Worlds Collide by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer

When Worlds Collide

2016 Released
220 Pages
5-6 Hours
★ 3.91 1,978 ratings
Audiobook Unavailable
Hardback Unavailable
Tor Science FictionISBN 9781429991155

Published first as a six-part serial in 1932, When Worlds Collide is a story of golden-age cataclysmic vision, bursting into the hearts and minds of science fiction readers ever since. The thrilling plot follows an astronomer, Sven Bronson, as he tries to save humankind from two approaching rogue planets that are sure to destroy the Earth as they readjust their orbit. Banding together with a team of scientists, the race to escape to the skies begins—but the more immediate threat seems to already be on the ground. When Worlds Collide was made into a film in 1951, and inspired various comic strips and pulp conventions in Science Fiction, and is now available as an ebook for the first time. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Philip Wylie

Philip Wylie (1902–1971) was a prolific writer whose work spanned a range of genres from men’s adventure and detective stories to science fiction and social criticism. Several of his novels, including When Worlds Collide, Night Unto Night, and Los Angeles: A.D. 2017, as well as the Crunch & Des stories, were adapted as movies and television shows, and his novel Gladiator is considered one of the inspirations for the iconic character Superman. Wylie was also a commentator on American society. In 1942 he published Generation of Vipers, a bestselling book of essays that attacked the complacencies of the American way of life. His novel The Disappearance presents a dystopia in which men and women vanish from the perception of the opposite sex, allowing Wylie to explore the issues of women’s rights and homosexuality. Wylie recognized early the potentially catastrophic effects of pollution and climate change and wrote both fiction and nonfiction on those topics.

More by Philip Wylie

Why Readwise Books?

Readwise Books is an ebook & audiobook platform that automatically logs how much you and your friends read, making it fun and easy to read more. Learn more →