The book expands on a screenplay "LA 2017" filmed for the NBC-TV series "The Name Of The Game". Glenn Howard (played by Gene Barry, a regular in the series) attends a high level corporate conference in current day (1971). The meeting is about what the corporate leaders can do suppress these "environmentalists" who are complaining about the poisoning of the environment via industrial wastes.
Glenn Howard leaves the meeting early to return to his publishing offices in LA. He stops at a rest stop and the next thing he knows it's 2017 and the air is unbreathable. He is found by a search and rescue team and taken to the underground city of LA which is now a bunker.
There he recovers and comes face to face with a "Brave New World" dystopian system. The government of the city (and what is left of the country) is corporate fascism. Status is determined by class and grouping based on the level of genetic damage.
Because the book and the screenplay were written in 1971 ("free Love" and all of that), there is a lot of focus on sex. There is a drug similar to SOMA from "Brave New World" which enhances sex drive and encourages lots of sexual activity in the underground bunker. Sex is used to calm and control the population.
Despite that, there is a lot of discord and things are not as they seem.
This book is probably one of the last things Philip Wylie wrote prior to his death. Wylie was a strong proponent of the looming disasters related to the environment and climate. I remember the Cuyahoga River in Pittsburgh catching fire because of the polluted water. The book is very relevant to its time.
I have to say the focus on sex in the book can become tedious after a while. Nevertheless, I found the book to be a quick read. And, there is quite a twist at the end. But, remember, it's based on a screenplay so that's not too surprising.
I would say it's an "average" dystopian novel.
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