What's the Name of That Book??? discussion

I'm not sure if this was a book, short story or episode of a twilight zone type show.

What I remember is that a small town (or part of one) is covered by a dome. The people inside don't know what is happening, and I believe that outside the dome, the whole domed section is gone, leaving a large hole.

(view spoiler)[I think that the whole section had been taken by aliens. A boy and a girl I think got out of the dome and into a control section of the space ship. (hide spoiler)]

I don't remember how it ended or much else about it.

I think the main characters were a young boy and girl 11 or 12 years old.

I'm thinking that the time frame that I read this might have been late 1980's.

There was an episode of Twilight Zone where there was a dome over a town but the plot was completely different from what you've described above. I'm not familiar with a book fitting your description but somebody else should be able to help you soon. Good Luck.

I remember the recent show, but that was King's book. There was a zombie novel I was reading where aliens put up a barrier to protect the rest of the populace.
Then there's
Asimov, Isaac: The Caves of Steel A murder mystery, set in a far future, when vast domed cities house an over-populated Earth. Detective Elijah Bayley teams with a humanoid robot to solve the crime.

The Dome (The Dome Trilogy, #1)
and Logan's Run.

That does sound a lot like Stephen King's book.

Michael Grant has a Young Adult series that has a dome and alien issues. The first one is called Gone.

Here are a couple of Listopias of books with domes:

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...

Yeah, I know that it sounds a lot like Stephen Kings novel, that's why I put the qualifier right in the title. Maybe it was his inspiration, because it's a lot older. It's not Logan's Run, the Dome Trilogy or Gone either. Thanks for the suggestions

It's not post-apocalyptic with people living in a dome, it's much more like King's Dome, but with less infighting I think.

I don't think the world is destroyed, though it's possible that the aliens were saving a piece of the world while the rest of earth is being destroyed. I think though that the world just continues on as usual.

I'll check out those dome lists, thanks.

Here's another "dome" book. Not all the details fit but you might give it a look:

Life on the Preservation

Thanks for the try, but it's not that one. I read it pretty recently.

All Flesh is Grass by Clifford D. Simak ?

A really old Andre Norton book fits. Young girl growing up in a domed city, because the outside world is destroyed (my memory is environmental damage). Outside (view spoiler)[ The girl starts encountering a clown who everyone things is crazy, but leads her on a trail to the very edge of the dome. She learns that outside is healed, but a group of people are only telling children and letting them outside, or the adults will start spoiling the environment again. (hide spoiler)]

It's possible that it may be All Flesh is Grass. I'll have to find a copy and take a look. Thanks for the suggestion.

It's not Outside or The Sky Inside. I don't believe that there was any sort of environmental disaster or genetic engineering, but thanks for the tries.

I'm pretty sure it was just a normal town, in a regular world until the dome is put over the town.

Trouble is, it's an old, old, concept, and had been done many times before Stephen King stole it was errr... "inspired" by it.

James Blish used it in "The Box" (short story, 1949). John Wyndham used it in The Midwich Cuckoos(1957). I've also seen it in a bunch of pulp short stories that I cannot now call to mind.

More recently there's been Michael Grant's Gone, and James Follett's Temple of the Winds.

If it wasn't a book, but a movie or TV show, there's the 1966 movie "The Bubble" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bubb..., and an episode of "The Outer Limits", "Feasibility Study" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feasibil....

Have fun with your search.

Thanks. It wasn't any of your suggestions, but thank you for the effort in looking.

I have a distinct memory of one of the kids riding a bike through some trees and coming to the edge of the dome. The girl I believe, but not positive on that. I don't remember what she saw on the other side.

I'm pretty sure about the hole in the neighborhood. I believe the aliens just took a whole chunk of neighborhood.

OK. Tell us all that you remember about this story. Tell us everything - even stuff you think you imagine. The full hit. Go for it - don't be embarrassed. The worst you can do is to be mistaken, and the worst we can do is to identify the wrong story.

I remember reading a YA book set under a dome, written by a male author, but the only other thing I recall about it is that there's a scene where a girl and a boy -- the boy is the narrator -- take turns looking at each other naked while they change into swimsuits. The boy observes how precious and beautiful his girlfriend is and resolves not to do anything that would hurt her. Does that ring a bell?

As I said earlier, -lots- of authors have used this theme. Here's another try -

Barry Aitchison's Miss Alice Merriwether's Long Lost Cakes & Further Arcane Inducements to Wonder

Terri Hall's The Line

Elizabeth Knox's Wake

Robert McCammon's Stinger

Jeff Vandermeer's Annihilation

Phil Tomlinson's Monkey Puzzler

Ok, everything I remember:

I encountered this story sometime in the 80's I think. Possibly early 90's, but no later than that.

There was male and female main characters, probably around 12 or 13 who were friends, I don't think they were siblings.

I think that the father may have also been captured under the dome.

I remember the kids riding a bike around through the woods and coming to the edge of the dome, but I don't remember what it looked like or if you can see beyond it.

I remember that there was a huge section missing from the rest of the town and I think that aliens took this larged domed section of town.

I think the kids found a way out of the dome and confronted the aliens in a control room.

I don't remember the outcome of the confrontation or if anyone got home.

I'm pretty sure the setting was 70's or 80's, but not absolutely positive.

I think that's it. I don't remember anything else about it.

Eavan, that scene doesn't ring a bell. I don't think there was a romantic connection between the kids, but thanks for the thought.

Mike: Thank you so much for the effort, but it wasn't any of those stories. I will, however, be adding a bunch of them to my TBR list, so thank you for that.

Right. Let's try again (did I say there's a lot of these?).

Brian Keene's Darkness on the Edge of Town.

Robert Charles Wilson's Mysterium.

John E Stith's Manhattan Transfer.

Howard Fast's 1960 short story “The First Men” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Firs...

Haruki Murakami's Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World.

The Luna Brothers' graphic novel “Girls” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girls_(c...

I am looking for a similar book, released in the late 80's early 90's about a dome over a Texas town, an alien creature is hunting? looking for? a different alien and the chaos that ensues from being under the dome. If I remember correctly the good alien inhabits a small girl?? Hopefully this may shake someones memory.

Jeff, please start your own thread.

How about "Phytosphere", by Scot Macay?

Link for Bob's suggestion - Phytosphere by Scott Mackay.

There was another one, a short story, in which a dome was made to protect against atomic attack. Of course, things went wrong....

Definitely sounds like episode of
Outer Limits- Feasibility Study

Thanks Kathy, I went and found it to watch online and you're right, that's it.

Sorry I sent people on a bit of a wild goose chase and thanks everyone for trying. Some of the old stories that are floating around in my head I'm not sure whether I read, watched, heard or dreamed them.