Vintage Book Review: A Canticle for Leibowitz

A journey from nuclear anxieties to hard-rock theology.

Cover of the 1st Paperback Edition of Walter M. Miller’s “A Canticle for Leibowitz,” from the author’s collection.

The Highlights:

• In a Sentence: If Hunter S. Thompson and C.S. Lewis had a baby, this might just be it.
• Author: Walter M. Miller, Jr.
• Published: 1959, J.B. Lippincott & Co.
• Genre: Post-apocalyptic dystopian science fiction.
• Recommended For: Adults, sci-fi fans, people who think they don’t like sci-fi, fans of Heavy Metal.
• Best Parts: The setting, but very memorable characters.
• Worst parts: The prose hasn’t aged well, and it may turn off people who aren’t into Christian themes (though it’s not exactly a Christian novel. Not like you’re probably thinking).
• Would I Recommend It: Absolutely.

4 out of 5 stars

“You don’t have a soul, Doctor. You are a soul. You have a body, temporarily.”
― Walter M. Miller Jr., A Canticle for Leibowitz

I was a Christian, once. It didn’t take. I’m a writer (ICYMI) in another part of my life, and I’ve been fairly…critical of what passes for modern Christianity (to say…