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Roadside Picnic

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Roadside Picnic is a 1971 science fiction novel by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky (commonly known as the Strugatsky Brothers), widely considered to be one of the most important Russian creations in the entire genre.

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Roadside Picnic is a 1971 science fiction novel by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky (commonly known as the Strugatsky Brothers), widely considered to be one of the most important Russian creations in the entire genre. The book begins a decade after something alien, (called Visitors by human scientists) very briefly (approximately 12-24 hours) landed at 6 different locations around Earth (called Visitation Zones by human scientists). Neither the Visitors themselves nor their means of arrival were ever seen, but the people who lived in those areas reported explosions and loud noises that blinded some and caused others to catch a type of plague. Some areas of the Zones later became labeled by scientists as the 'First Blind Quarter', 'Plague Quarter', 'Second Blind Quarter' based on the effects the Visitation had on the population. These 6 areas (some populated towns) became infested with deadly phenomenon and littered with mysterious objects with various properties whose original purpose was incomprehensible by humans and so advanced that it bordered on the supernatural. Each Zone was perhaps the size of a few square miles in size, with abandoned buildings, railways and cars, some slowly decaying while others looking brand new. The Visitation Zones became extremely deadly areas to all forms of Earth life containing space-time anomalies, and random spots capable of killing by fire, lightning, gravity or other bizarre ways. The laws of physics sporadically worked in the Zones. Armies surrounded the Zones with strict orders to arrest or kill anyone attempting to sneak inside or out. Governments feared that some artifact could be found inside the Zones with enough power to cause a plague, permanently damage or even destroy the planet. A frontier culture arose along the perimeter of the Zones, men known as "Stalkers" who risked their lives to illegally recover alien artifacts (called swag) from within the Zone for large profit. This was extremely dangerous work since one wrong move inside the Zone could be deadly. Stalkers could only work during the night since the Zone was observed during the day by soldiers and scientists. Only one out of three Stalkers made it out alive. Even though the original purpose of the artifacts recovered was not understood, some objects had beneficial properties like a round black stick (called so-so) that produced endless energy and used to power vehicles. Others artifacts were deadly like the "Death Lamp" which emitted rays destroying all life around it. Most artifacts had no known function either because they were broken and discarded by the Visitors as trash or because their purpose was too advanced to be understood by scientists. The most desired and legendary artifact was the "Golden Sphere", which was rumored to have the power to make any wish come true, but was located so deep inside the Zone and surrounded by such deadly 'traps' that only one Stalker knew the route to reach it.