Dad's Nuke

Dad's Nuke, first published in February, 1986 by Donald I. Fine, is a science fiction dark comedy novel written by Marc Laidlaw. It is a parody of middle class suburban life, and tells the tale of a nuclear family in the post-nuclear (holocaust) age. The protagonists are a father, mother, daughter, and eight biologically-engineered children living in a gated suburban enclave following the near collapse of modern civilization. The story consists of a series of episodes demonstrating the ridiculousness of the family's sheltered, conformist lives, and culminates in the collapse from within of the suburban community. The title refers to a nuclear reactor purchased by the family's father figure, as part of his hostile, one-upmanship, "keeping up with the Joneses" competition with his next door neighbor.