Ship breaker
a novel
by Paolo Bacigalupi · first published 2010
5mentions
5recommended by
5HN commenters
2017–2024first – last mentioned
100% recommend
In America's Gulf Coast region, grounded oil tankers are being broken down for parts by crews of young people. Nailer, a teenage boy, works the light crew, scavenging for copper wiring just to make quota and hopefully live to see another day. But when, by luck or by chance, he discovers an exquisite clipper ship beached during a recent hurricane, Nailer faces the most important decision of his life: strip the ship for all it's worth or rescue its lone survivor, a beautiful and wealthy girl who could lead him to a better life...
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Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi is another candidate. In that post-ecological catastrophe, things are a good deal worse than they are today, but life isn't hopeless. Well, for many it is, but is that so different…
on “Kim Stanley Robinson’s “New York 2140”” ↗Anticipated by Paolo Bacigalupi in Ship Breaker. Great book if you're looking for some semi-dystopian SF.
on “Future sailors: what will ships look like in 30 years?” ↗…as you can see from the low rez. The photographer has a doco - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0832903/ As others are posting there are better videos / pics out. Good book, not too long, easy read - "Ship Breaker" by "Paolo Bacigalupi" - https://booko.us/9780316056199/Ship-Breaker I think cyberpunk, Amazon says dystopian romance.
on “Shipbreaking” ↗Paolo Bacigalupi’s novel “Ship Breaker” deserves a mention here. It’s set in Paolo’s dystopian solarpunk universe, where old tankers are cut up to extract the last tons of fossil fuels from their hold, and it really emphasises how dangerous…
on “Shipbreaking” ↗The author Paolo Bacigalupi has a great sci-fi story set in the Gulf Coast of the near future, centering on a teenage boy who works as the titular Ship Breaker [1]. Even though it is technically “young adult” fiction, I found plenty to enjoy for this middle-aged reader. His novel The Water Knife is also excellent and more “grown up.” [1] https://windupstories.com/books/ship-breaker/
on “The toxic tide of ship breaking” ↗