Living in a Bunker

In Susanne Winnacker's THE OTHER LIFE, Sherry and her entire family have been living in a bunker for over three years when they finally have to venture out due to lack of food and supplies.  Despite its offering of refuge from the zombie-like Weepers, Sherry finds the bunker claustrophobic and blossoms once back in the world, finding community and even a love interest against the backdrop of total societal collapse.

But if Sherry thought three years was bad, then she definitely wouldn't envy Adam Webber - the main character of the 1999 movie BLAST FROM THE PAST who was born and raised 35 years in a fallout shelter before finally emerging in modern day Los Angeles.



Where Sherry was itching to get out of her bunker, the father and son of Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD wish they could stay longer in the fully stocked bunker they come across in their wanderings. It offers a short refuge from the terrible hunger and violence of their post-apocalyptic world, but the father worries that it leaves them too exposed.

Sherry might not have relished being trapped underground with her family for so long, but at least her family was not a danger to her like Eli's father in S.A. Bodeen's novel THE COMPOUND.  After 6 years in a bunker, Eli begins to suspect that they were brought to "safety" under false pretenses.

Maybe you'd like to try living in a bunker for awhile? Well, there are some out there in real life.  Check out this BBC video featuring a man who converted a former US missile silo into a home.




REMINDER: you can read the first chapter of THE OTHER LIFE here, and once you're hooked, you can also already buy your own copy! Also, Susanne will be giving away a signed copy of THE OTHER LIFE at the end of the week. To enter, just comment on any our posts during the week. The contest is open internationally.

7 comments:

Andrea Mack said...

This sounds like a story my daughters and I would enjoy. Thanks for the link to the first chapter!

JennaQuentin said...

Great bunker stories! I loved Blast from the Past. Thanks for the heads up on the first chapter and contest - though it is a little cruel to give a first chapter, i think ;) I'd love to be entered in the contest!

LM Preston said...

Loved this. Bunker first comes to mind from when I watched Grease 2 where the guy tries to convince the girl to stay with him all night in a bunker.

Susan Light said...

Since I don't even really like the thought of being trapped in an elevator, I know I would be digging at that bunker's walls!

books4susie@aol.com

Vivien said...

I've been watching Doomsday Preppers...and it's just terrifying. The idea that I'm not prepared at all. Scary stuff!! Really looking forward to this one :D

Vivien
deadtossedwaves at gmail dot com

M.A.D. said...

Bunkers rock!!

Even though I'm somewhat claustrophobic and wouldn't last 5 minutes in a bunker lol, I just LOVED watching Lost and one of the coolest story-plots was when they found Desmond in the secret bunker :D

P.S. The Other Life is one of the top 2 books on my lonnnnng want list that I simply MUST get to read :D

Mary DeBorde M.A.D.
zenrei57 (at) hotmail dot com

Lenore Appelhans said...

Omg Mary - I can't believe I forgot about Desmond and the bunker on LOST. Good catch :)