Childhood's End is a slow-burn soft sci-fi classic with two takeaways. Arthur C. Clarke is a master at thought-provoking stories. Yet, there is a passiveness in the execution, which is partly because that's the point and partly because Clarke was always more a storyteller than a novelist. In other words, I've never found his writing that engaging even if what he writes about is engaging.

In this case, Clarke serves up an alien invasion in which the aliens kill us by ticking off every box on Harlow's hierarchy of needs. They bring about the end of wars, crime, essential needs — you name it. And in the process, they also bring about the end of passion, desires, and curiosity — and everything that makes us human. And this, pulse a few interesting twists, is what really makes it worth the read.