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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I found most of the characters extremely frustrating. The female main character is also quite annoying. This story definitely hitting quite close to home and how our world could look in short order.
DNF 12%. I just can't do climate fiction- it causes way too much anxiety for me.
This is my Parable of the Sower. Kind of exaggerating because I don't think I love this as much as Parable fans love that novel, but I think this is a very good exploration of a climate apocalypse future that feels very real. I love how The Great Transition engages with so many of the contradictions that the climate justice movement has to deal with as well as the internal conflicts that individual activists and organizers have to reckon with. But the thing that really elevated this book for me was the human heart at its core. It's really about living through crisis. We see how it pulls the Vargas-Brinkman family apart and brings them back together. The only thing I really wish this novel had done differently is that I wish Kristina had been forced to confront the trauma that shaped her, grow from it, and maybe even heal a bit. She refers to the horrible events of her childhood and adolescence, but she isn't ever forced to look at this open wound and see how it's affecting her relationships with her family. Larch and Emi develop throughout the novel, but Kristina remains flat.
I originally picked this book up because I adore speculative fiction and I wanted to read about how this author saw the world after the climate crisis "was over." And it did not disappoint. My mind was reeling from the stories of the survival of the climate crisis and what was lost and how humans survived and the political shift that happened due to the catastrophe (and that sports were still a thing?).
But what I was not expecting (and completely enamored me) was how different characters reacted to "the end" of the crisis in their own ways, and the thought-provoking conversations about what we, as humans, do in the middle of horrible things that seem out of our control (but are they?). I kept relating this to my own experiences with racial equity and covid and even the war in the middle east right now. The idea of justice is huge in this book, and how far people should go.
I don't have the answers, but I loved this story, and it has my mind thinking about all of these things so much more, so I think the author did a fantastic job. I will be suggesting this book to many friends this year.
But what I was not expecting (and completely enamored me) was how different characters reacted to "the end" of the crisis in their own ways, and the thought-provoking conversations about what we, as humans, do in the middle of horrible things that seem out of our control (but are they?). I kept relating this to my own experiences with racial equity and covid and even the war in the middle east right now. The idea of justice is huge in this book, and how far people should go.
I don't have the answers, but I loved this story, and it has my mind thinking about all of these things so much more, so I think the author did a fantastic job. I will be suggesting this book to many friends this year.
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to @atriabooks for the advance @netgalley copy of The Great Transition! Given how much I enjoyed dipping back into a little sci-fi earlier this year (with The Ferryman) and all of the buzz around this book, I had to put in a request. And I’m so glad I did, this was an impressive debut.
Cli-Fi is not for the faint of heart these days, and this book was no exception. Especially while heading into wildfire season here in the Pacific Northwest, and seeing fires affect the rest of the country earlier this summer, it’s mildly terrifying, though ultimately hopeful (if we could just figure out a way to value people over corporate profits).
The author makes excellent use of each character to explore the different political facets of climate change: the cynical and extremist mother, the optimistic and hopeful father, and the daughter taking it all in to forge a path forward of her own. At times the missives from her mother, illustrated through interviews for a school report, become a little repetitive and didactic. But it was a clever storytelling device - provocative and illustrating how the ‘Transition’ came about.
This is an excellent mash up of genres: thriller, sci-fi, dystopian, and family drama. The ending felt somewhat open ended, so I am curious (and hopeful) to see if there will be a follow up!
Cli-Fi is not for the faint of heart these days, and this book was no exception. Especially while heading into wildfire season here in the Pacific Northwest, and seeing fires affect the rest of the country earlier this summer, it’s mildly terrifying, though ultimately hopeful (if we could just figure out a way to value people over corporate profits).
The author makes excellent use of each character to explore the different political facets of climate change: the cynical and extremist mother, the optimistic and hopeful father, and the daughter taking it all in to forge a path forward of her own. At times the missives from her mother, illustrated through interviews for a school report, become a little repetitive and didactic. But it was a clever storytelling device - provocative and illustrating how the ‘Transition’ came about.
This is an excellent mash up of genres: thriller, sci-fi, dystopian, and family drama. The ending felt somewhat open ended, so I am curious (and hopeful) to see if there will be a follow up!
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
my first introduction to true cli-fi and I loved this. fast-paced and engaging, well-researched and on-the-nose in its politics. a hopeful and bleak look at a better-case-scenario of a climate future. does what it means to do and more, in that its characters are unique, human, and likeable
Content Warnings
Minor: Eating disorder