complex interlocking of topography, climate, and human society; and their general tone is objective and optimistic." References to other works The book makes a reference to Robinson Crusoe and The Swiss Family Robinson. Ish compares the situations within these books to what he is going through. He finds Robinson Crusoe less appealing, because "his religious preoccupations seemed boring and rather silly". He looks at the ship in The Swiss Family Robinson as an "infinite grab-bag from which at any time they might take exactly what they wanted," which is similar to the situation of those living after the Great Disaster. Stewart also mentions Ecclesiastes 1:4 in the title and theme: "Men go and come, but Earth abides". Legacy and homages Stephen King has stated that Earth Abides was an inspiration for his post-apocalyptic novel, The Stand. Composer Philip Aaberg wrote a piece of music, titled "Earth Abides", inspired by the novel. The piece was originally written as part of a sound track commissioned by the National Geographic Society for a documentary on the Earth. The track can be found on the Windham Hill CD "A Winter's Solstice III" (track 15). Jimi Hendrix claimed that Earth Abides was his favorite book and his song "Third Stone from the Sun" is inspired by the novel. Footnotes References Stewart, George R. (1969). Earth Abides. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. External links Boston Globe review by James Sallis Review by Rich Cross at Survivors: A World Away Review and Discussion on We Read Science Fiction #3 All-Time Best Science Fiction Novel A large version of the painting by Robert Abbett for the 1962 Ace Books cover. Two versions of the painting for the Ace Books cover and blurbs about the book Earth Abides book covers Art Elliot, Earth Abides EP George R. Stewart weblog by Stewart biographer Donald M. Scott Audio Escape "Earth Abides" Part One (November 5, 1950) Escape "Earth Abides" Part Two (November 12, 1950) 1949 American novels 1949 science fiction novels American post-apocalyptic novels American science fiction novels Books about the San Francisco Bay Area Environmental fiction books Libertarian science fiction books Novels by George Rippey Stewart Post-apocalyptic novels Social science fiction Fiction set in 1949 Fiction set in 1971 Novels about viral outbreaks Random House books