Michael Bunker’s The Last Pilgrims is a post-apocalyptic story set in Texas 20 years after a global economic collapse. The story centers around a large pacifist agrarian group called the Vallenses that are much like present day Amish, though they do have access to beer.
Beer is a good place to note that the book has many interesting bits of information on things I’d love to try or know how to do after a collapse. The beer is question isn’t what most of us would recognize as such, but made with a very old-world traditional method of brewing that actually produces antibiotics. This isn’t fiction, tetracycline has been found in he bones of Nubians who lived about 2,000 years ago. Another tip is that mesquite pods can be used to make coffee – highly caffeinated coffee. Aside from general ideas on preparing, these little or lesser known tips are why I read this sort of fiction.
The Vallenses were a group that practiced an agrarian and pacifist lifestyle before the collapse. Jonathan Wall is the pastor and leader of the group, while his former best friend Phillip commands a militia group that protects the Vallenses. Think Rangers protecting the Shire, or almost.
After the collapse countries dissolved into smaller kingdoms, one of which is Aztlan – taking the name used by some various Mexican nationalist movements that claim part of the U.S. southwest. The King of Aztlan has decided to wipe out the Vallenses, but the pacifist group refuses to fight, though the will flee.
Although the Vallenses won’t fight, or at least most of them, the Phillips militia does. There is a lot of back and forth, twists and turns, this book is part action-adventure. I recommend this book to anyone interested in this genre, but also just for the action.
The Last Pilgrims, as the title and nature of the main groups of actors suggests, also deals with religion, though not in a preachy or even very descriptive way. They pray, they have Christian values, but they don’t really get into it much. I’m Christian but I don’t think a non-Christian would feel put off by this book.
The author editorializes at times on the fundamental and systemic causes of the collapse, primarily the completely unsustainable lifestyle of most of the planet since the 20th century. I think most survivalists would agree with most of what he has to say about that. Personally, I wish our standard of living could stay nearly as good as it is now, but I just don’t think it’s possible.
There are a few negatives but I don’t think they detract too much. While the story, explanation of the cause of the collapse, and action was excellent, the dialogue was pretty wooden, with an exception or two it’s impossible to tell who’s talking. Also I thought the description of how prosperous the Vallenses community was and how well they lived probably painted a bit too rosy of a picture of post-collapse living, even 20 years later.
Normally I prefer books that get more into the mechanics of the collapse rather than years or decades down the road, but found that I’m sort of getting burned out on that and this book was a welcomed change of pace. Even so, there are several flashbacks that describe events of the collapse, so some of that itch is scratched. Also welcomed was the fact that it’s very well written and edited, not so common for self-published post-apocalypse books and a real pleasure.
Disclaimer: I was provided a free Kindle version of The Last Pilgrims to review.
The books that are set to far past the point of collapse (POC) often are simply trying to setup a plausible scenario to do a reset on current reality. In this case it sounds like he is trying to set up a comparison between the ideals of the Christian warrior and the ideals of a pacifist, turn your cheek approach. I seem to recall that there was at least one Western that was done along those lines. Even the T.V. show Kung Fu had some elements of that: except that David Carradine would eventually say enough is enough and whip everyone’s rear end.
A fair number of apocalypse-in-progress (AIP) books have similar to Western novels. Truthfully, having had more time to develop, the best of the Westerns are usually better written if a bit dated by today’s standards.
I had already looked at the online excerpts and got the book. All the reviews I have seen so far have been positive, which I take as a good sign.
Russell,
I think you’ll enjoy this book – as I mentioned the dialogue is so-so but the rest is really well written. And he adds some philosophical cometary that’s also worthwhile.
One thing I forgot to mention was that things in the book have shifted medieval in that there are kings, lords, etc. Kings I can see, but not lords and dukes after less than 20 years, sounds king of SCA.
They certainly would not call them Dukes and Lords, thats for sure.
One reason that the Fuedal system was set up was that there had been such a dieback in population, that there was now a lot of prime unsettled land. The idea of serfdom (and slavery) is that there is a shortage of labor, and that it is easier to force people to work, than it is to pay them. Slavery is also used when you have a very high value work product, that tends to kill the workers (sugar plantations, various mining activities, etc.).
If you have a large dieback in a collapse, you very likely will get some sort of enforced work system.
That part of medievalism is very likely to return. But maybe not in 20 years.
Nice book! I’m a big book fan,the books are the friend of us,aren’t they?