as the world stopped turning...

...the personal, idiosyncratic, often frustrated, sometimes angry, but ultimately sad observations of a life long soap opera fan...

Notwithstanding the title and cover photograph, as the world stopped turning... is not a post-apocalyptic novel, but a collection of 18 essays considering the final years of As the World Turns, the soap opera that redefined the genre when it premiered in 1956. Written by a lifelong fan of the show, these essays weave together the show's history, characters, storylines, writers and producers to create a context within which to consider, not just ATWT, but all soap operas, past and present. The book opens with a biographical essay about soap opera's single mother, ATWT's creator, Irna Phillips, and includes her original proposal for the show.