THE CRYSTAL WORLD

Published in 1978, this is the Triad/Panther Books paperback edition of The Crystal World (© J.G. Ballard/Peter Goodfellow/Triad-Panther Books – reproduced here on a strictly non-commercial Fair Use basis for educational/review purposes only).

The Crystal World is a science fiction/fantasy novel written by renowned English novelist and sci fi/fantasy author J.G. Ballard (1930-2009), and was originally published in 1966. Continuing a theme introduced two years earlier in his short story 'The Illuminated Man', it is set in a dense West African jungle through which English physician Edward Sanders is attempting to trek in order to reach an isolated, concealed leprosy colony, but is confronted by a bizarre, seemingly apocalyptic phenomenon that is transforming everything that it touches into multicoloured crystals, including living organisms. In short, dazzling but deadly – beautiful to behold, yet lethal to life. Here is this fascinating novel's official blurb:

The dawning of the Glass Age…

The West African jungle starts to crystallize. Trees are metamorphosed into enormous jewels. Crocodiles encased in second glittering skins lurch down the river. Pythons with huge blind gemstone eyes rear in heraldic poses. Most men flee the area in terror, afraid to face what they cannot understand. But some, dazzled and strangely entranced, remain to drift through this dream-world forest. There is a doctor in pursuit of his ex-mistress, an enigmatic Jesuit wields a crystal cross, a gunman searches for his wife, and a tribe of lepers search for Paradise.

This is Ballard weaving magic.

In a review of it published in 1966 by The Observer, London's longest-running Sunday newspaper, The Crystal World was described as: "A haunting picture of diseased beauty and Mr Ballard sustains it with extraordinary intensity" – sentiments with which I wholly concur. I first read this compelling novel while at university in the early 1980s, and its mesmerizing premise has remained in my memory ever since – enhanced immensely by eminent British artist Peter Goodfellow's spectacular front-cover illustration for the paperback edition showcased here, which is the one that I owned (back in those days, the paperback editions of many celebrated sci fi/fantasy novels were famously graced by his incredibly eyecatching and imaginative cover artwork). Unfortunately, however, during a clear-out some years later, I gave my copy away.

Subsequently regretting my decision, I've frequently scoured bookshops and online sites since then, in search of a replacement that sports this specific cover illustration, but the few that I've found have invariably been hugely expensive. Happily, patience is indeed a virtue, because in 2019 I finally located and purchased a reasonably-priced copy – nice to have it back in my collection.

With the cinematic wonders of CGI nowadays so readily available and of such an incredibly high standard, I feel sure that a visually breathtaking big-screen version of The Crystal World could surely be made – indeed, I'm surprised that this hasn't already happened. Time to look beyond new additions to old franchises, movie-makers, and try something original? Just sayin'.