The Iron Man (novel)
Adamson cover of first edition | |
| Author | Ted Hughes |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | George Adamson (first) Andrew Davidson (1985) Chris Mould (2019) |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Published | 1968 (Faber and Faber, UK) 1968 (Harper & Row, US) 1985 (Faber and Faber, int'l) 1999 (Knopf, 30th Anniv. Ed.) |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 59 pp. |
| Followed by | The Iron Woman |
The Iron Man: A Children's Story in Five Nights is a 1968 science fiction novel by Ted Hughes, future British Poet Laureate, first published by Faber and Faber in the UK with illustrations by George Adamson. Described by some as a modern fairy tale, it narrates the unexpected arrival in England of a giant "metal man" of unknown origin who rains destruction on the countryside by eating industrial farm equipment, before befriending a small boy and defending the world from a dragon from outer space. Expanding the narrative beyond a criticism of warfare and inter-human conflict, Hughes later wrote a sequel, The Iron Woman (1993), describing retribution based on environmental themes related to pollution.