Earth has become a Utopia, guided by a strange unseen people from outer space whose staggering powers have eradicated war, cruelty, poverty and racial inequality. When the 'Overlords' finally reveal themselves, their horrific form makes little impression. Then comes the sign that the Overlords have been waiting for. A child begins to dream strangely - and develops remarkable powers. Soon this happens to every child - and the truth of the Overlords' mission is finally revealed to the human race. . .A classic of the science fiction genre, Childhood's End is an intelligent, beautifully written exploration of what it means to be human from the inimitable Arthur C. Clarke. Now adapted as a three-part miniseries on Sky.

A first-rate tour de force, Frighteningly logical, believable, and grimly prophetic . . . Clarke is a master, As a science fiction writer, Clarke has all the essentials, There has been nothing like it for years; partly for the actual invention, but partly because here we meet a modern author who understands that there may be things that have a higher claim on humanity than its own 'survival'

Arthur C. Clarke was a British science fiction author, inventor and futurist, most famous for the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, written in collaboration with director Stanley Kubrick, a collaboration which also produced the film of the same name. He was the chairman of the British Interplanetary Society from 1947-1950 and again in 1953. Clarke emigrated to Sri Lanka in 1956 and lived there until his death in March 2008. He was knighted in 1998.