The Inverted World

Inverted World (The Inverted World in some editions) is a 1974 science fiction novel by British writer Christopher Priest. The novel's basic premise was first used in the short story "The Inverted World" included in New Writings in SF 22 (1973), which had different characters and plot. In 2010, the novel was included in the SF Masterworks collection. In the novel, an entire city and its residents travel slowly across a supposedly alien planet on railway tracks (it is left unclear to the reader whether it truly is not planet Earth). The city's engineers lay track for the city, reusing old track the city has crossed over. Many people are unaware that the city is even moving. A crisis ensues as its population decreases, the people grow unruly, and an obstacle looms ahead.