Nevil Shute (1899–1960) was a British novelist and aircraft engineer who later settled in Australia. His books range from War, combat and military adventure fiction to Science fiction, and many are published by Penguin Random House Group under its Vintage Classics imprint.
His best-known novels include A Town Like Alice, On the Beach and In the Wet.
His autobiography, Slide Rule, describes his work as Chief Engineer on the R100 airship project alongside Barnes Wallis, whose remarkable engineering career is explored in Dam Buster.
Readers who enjoy Shute’s adventure stories might also like Hammond Innes, whose novels share his interest in aviation, engineering and dangerous situations. Fans of On the Beach might also enjoy the post-apocalyptic fiction of John Wyndham.