The Death of Grass cover art

The Death of Grass

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends December 16, 2025 11:59pm GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

The Death of Grass

By: John Christopher
Narrated by: William Gaminara
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends December 16, 2025 11:59pm GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Only £0.99 a month for the first 3 months. Pay £0.99 for the first 3 months, and £8.99/month thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Start my membership

About this listen

A viral strain has attacked rice crops in East Asia, causing massive famine; soon a mutation appears that infects the staple crops of West Asia and Europe, such as wheat and barley, threatening a famine engulfing the whole of the Old World, while Australasia and the Americas attempt to impose rigorous quarantine to exclude the virus.

Christopher's classic post-apocalyptic novel follows the struggles of architect John Custance and his family as they make their way across an England that is rapidly descending into anarchy, hoping to reach the safety of John's brother's farm in an isolated Westmorland valley. Along the way, they find they must sacrifice many of their morals in order to stay alive.

Here is an unusual and absorbing piece of science-fiction about the relentless transformation of civilisation when the balance of nature is upset.

©1956 Samuel Youd (P)2011 Audible Ltd Fantasy Fiction Scary Funny

Listeners also enjoyed...

 On the Beach cover art
When the Tripods Came cover art
Survivors cover art
Alas, Babylon cover art
John Wyndham: A BBC Radio Drama Collection cover art
Survivors Series 01 cover art
The Black Cloud cover art
Patrick Hamilton: Rope, Gaslight, Hangover Square and More cover art
The Night of the Triffids cover art
This Is the Way the World Ends cover art
Parable of the Sower cover art
Agnes at the End of the World cover art
For King and Country (SAS Operation) cover art
The Zombie War Battle for Britain cover art
Bosnian Inferno (SAS Operation) cover art
Positive cover art

Critic reviews

"I admire The Death of Grass. It was published at roughly the same time as The Day Of The Triffids. In my judgement, it is by far the better book. It is a thrilling and sensible work." (Brian Aldiss)
"Gripping! Of all science fiction's apocalypses, this is one of the most haunting." ( Financial Times)
All stars
Most relevant
a must for sci fi fans ..one of my favorite moves from the 70s and the book doesn't disappoint

CLASSIC SCI FI AT ITS BEST

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The reader has the right plummy voice for the setting of this book: Posh British people during the apocalypse. He makes a good stab at using different voices for each character and more importantly he has a wide range of regional British accents. This is important as the story is a travel-log. People in London have a safe place to go to in the country and must get there. Over-all not a bad book . I would recommend it if you like day of the Triffids.

The reader is right for the period setting.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great book, great reading , so I've given it five stars. But, once again Audible have fouled up. If you listen to the sample you will hear the introduction being read, putting the novel into historical and literary context. Sounded very interesting so I bought it. When I downloaded it the introduction had mysteriously disappeared. Duh!

Oh audible

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have listened to this several times
it is very well told and I like the fact that it is a family with others joining.

loved it

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I’ve listened to numerous apocalyptic stories but none move me like this one. I first read this in my teens and it drew me into the genre. You won’t find many better stories out there and you certainly won’t find a better story teller than John Christopher. This is genuinely haunting in its accurate observations and I fear it could one day be truly vatic in its prophecy.

Stunningly prescient

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews