The White Mountains

No cover — John B. Christopher: The White Mountains (Undetermined language, 1974, Hutchinson)

Undetermined language

Published Dec. 30, 1974 by Hutchinson.

(1 review)

Young Will Parker and his companions make a perilous journey toward an outpost of freedom where they hope to escape from the ruling Tripods, who capture mature human beings and make them docile, obedient servants.

This is the first book of the original Tripods trilogy written under the name John Christopher. These young adult science fiction stories are set on Earth ruled by the alien Tripods. A prequel detailing the conquest was added 20 years later.

John Christopher is a pseudonym of Sam Youd.

The series: 0.5 (Prequel) When the Tripods Came (1988) 1. The White Mountains (1967) 2. The City of Gold and Lead (1967) 3. The Pool of Fire (1968)

Young Will Parker and his companions make a perilous journey toward an outpost of freedom where they hope to escape from the ruling Tripods, who capture mature human beings and make them docile, obedient servants.

This is the first book of the original Tripods trilogy written under the name John Christopher. These young adult science fiction stories are set on Earth ruled by the alien Tripods. A prequel detailing the conquest was added 20 years later.

John Christopher is a pseudonym of Sam Youd.

The series: 0.5 (Prequel) When the Tripods Came (1988) 1. The White Mountains (1967) 2. The City of Gold and Lead (1967) 3. The Pool of Fire (1968)

36 editions

Thom reviewed The White Mountains by John Christopher

Review of 'The White Mountains' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Somehow missed this series when I was a kid; really enjoyed this author's The Death of Grass and thought the prequel novel was pretty good too.

Teen Will lives in a world that has regressed considerably due to the foreign influence of the Tripods. In a society without serious science or decent propulsion, Will is certain of only one thing - he doesn't want to be "Capped". Nobody in this book knows what the caps do, but they suspect an unswerving loyalty to the overlord aliens.

Will escapes to the south, reluctantly joined by his cousin and later by another boy called Beanpole (a derivation of his French name, Jean-Paul). Their adventures are well described and episodic, culminating in a run to the south and a battle with one of the Tripods.

The first of a series, this book comes to a rather abrupt end, with a two page summary …

Somehow missed this series when I was a kid; really enjoyed this author's The Death of Grass and thought the prequel novel was pretty good too.

Teen Will lives in a world that has regressed considerably due to the foreign influence of the Tripods. In a society without serious science or decent propulsion, Will is certain of only one thing - he doesn't want to be "Capped". Nobody in this book knows what the caps do, but they suspect an unswerving loyalty to the overlord aliens.

Will escapes to the south, reluctantly joined by his cousin and later by another boy called Beanpole (a derivation of his French name, Jean-Paul). Their adventures are well described and episodic, culminating in a run to the south and a battle with one of the Tripods.

The first of a series, this book comes to a rather abrupt end, with a two page summary of "what happened next". This seemed clumsy to me, and didn't end the story well at all. I dislike being forced to read the next book to get the rest of the story - especially when it is the middle book of a trilogy and so will probably have to read two.

That aside, the story is good, and stands up well some fifty years later. I would recommend it to young adults, and would caution older readers to read the whole series or perhaps see The Death of Grass instead. Read this with my daughter, whose overall rating was "Meh".