''The Watch Below'' (1966) is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novel by British writer James White about a colony of humans stranded underwater in a sunken ship, who survive by air pockets, and a water-breathing alien species in search of a new home. The two

generation ship A generation ship, or generation starship, is a hypothetical type of interstellar ark starship that travels at sub-light speed. Since such a ship might require hundreds to thousands of years to reach nearby stars, the original occupants of a gene ...

s encounter each other in the Earth's ocean.

Reception

Algis Budrys Algirdas Jonas "Algis" Budrys (January 9, 1931 – June 9, 2008) was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names Frank Mason, Alger Rome (in collaboration with Jerome Bixby), Jo ...

of ''

Galaxy Science Fiction ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published in Boston from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by a French-Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break into the American market. World Editi ...

'' liked the novel, stating that it was the first generation ship story to expand on

Robert Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

's ''

Orphans of the Sky ''Orphans of the Sky'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, consisting of two parts: "Universe" (''Astounding Science Fiction'', May 1941) and its sequel, "Common Sense" (''Astounding Science Fiction'', October 1941). ...

''.

References

External links

* * 1966 British novels 1966 science fiction novels Novels by James White (author) British science fiction novels Ballantine Books books 20th-century Irish novels Irish science fiction novels Underwater civilizations in fiction Novels about extraterrestrial life Underwater novels {{1960s-sf-novel-stub