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3.24 AVERAGE
3.24 AVERAGE
This was a more gentle and emotionally focused novel than I’m used to for Beukes. I like the premise still, and even though it was action packed I still thought it lulled sometimes. I really enjoyed Billie and in general how human all of the characters were.
Lauren Beukes’ speculative, dystopian novel Afterland follows Cole and her son Miles in a world where almost all men have been wiped out by a virus. The mother-son duo is on the run trying to leave the US to get back to their home country South Africa. But boys and men have become a special commodity and their plan is not easy to execute. Even less so with Cole’s sister being the one hunting them down. Cole and Miles hide in a bunker, an anarchist commune, and join a cult. This is a fast-paced novel that made me feel tense following the many wrong decisions Cole and Miles make (but if we have learned anything in our own pandemic is that people make a lot of questionable decisions all the time).
Going in I wondered how Beukes would handle the premises of the novel as it could be easily incredibly cis-sexist and heteronormative. But the novel is aware of this potential pitfall and tries to evade it by mentioning trans men and women though this happens rather in passing and the novel’s concept doesn’t seem to be thought through in all these details. So trans people are mentioned but it has no effect on the rest of the narrative (people still say repeatedly that there are no more men). Also one of the main arguments is that (cis) men (in theory also partially trans women or some non-binary people but that’s never addressed) are needed for reproduction. Technically that’s not factual (not even thinking of the possibilities of speculative fiction) but other options are again never mentioned. This just felt quite a bit inconsistent in an otherwise suspenseful narrative and so while reading I was constantly bugged by this.
Going in I wondered how Beukes would handle the premises of the novel as it could be easily incredibly cis-sexist and heteronormative. But the novel is aware of this potential pitfall and tries to evade it by mentioning trans men and women though this happens rather in passing and the novel’s concept doesn’t seem to be thought through in all these details. So trans people are mentioned but it has no effect on the rest of the narrative (people still say repeatedly that there are no more men). Also one of the main arguments is that (cis) men (in theory also partially trans women or some non-binary people but that’s never addressed) are needed for reproduction. Technically that’s not factual (not even thinking of the possibilities of speculative fiction) but other options are again never mentioned. This just felt quite a bit inconsistent in an otherwise suspenseful narrative and so while reading I was constantly bugged by this.
Set in a dystopian world where a pandemic has wiped out most of the men. Cole has lost everyone except her sister and her son Miles.
The story begins with a shocking scene in which Cole discovers that Miles has been drugged by Billie her sister and the escape they had been planning was instigated by someone who wants Miles. As a 13 year old boy, he is a rare commodity in a world where very few men have survived the HCV virus.
Cole has to take drastic action to escape with Miles so they decide that he must become Mila. She decides that they must get home to Johannesburg and this is not going to be easy.
Two sisters who are on very different roads. The story switches between the present day, the past and the two sisters. It took me a little while to figure out how this worked but when I did the story really accelerated for me. There is a lot of violence as these people are really desperate.
Billie has messed up badly not only has she destroyed the trust of her family she has not delivered Miles and the people who want him are not going to stop until they get him.
Cole has been held by the Army for trying to escape previously and Miles was held in quarantine with other men and boys. He has an immunity to the virus and she knows if she is caught she will never see him again.
This is a slow burning of a story but it has real tension and reading at this time made it all the more poignant and scary. It has a lot of detail about the virus and the background of how they are on the run. The finale is a real cat and mouse scenario with the two sisters both desperate to reach their goal. It is also about the lengths that a mother will go to, to protect her child.
If you like a hard hitting feminist drama then this is the book for you.
The story begins with a shocking scene in which Cole discovers that Miles has been drugged by Billie her sister and the escape they had been planning was instigated by someone who wants Miles. As a 13 year old boy, he is a rare commodity in a world where very few men have survived the HCV virus.
Cole has to take drastic action to escape with Miles so they decide that he must become Mila. She decides that they must get home to Johannesburg and this is not going to be easy.
Two sisters who are on very different roads. The story switches between the present day, the past and the two sisters. It took me a little while to figure out how this worked but when I did the story really accelerated for me. There is a lot of violence as these people are really desperate.
Billie has messed up badly not only has she destroyed the trust of her family she has not delivered Miles and the people who want him are not going to stop until they get him.
Cole has been held by the Army for trying to escape previously and Miles was held in quarantine with other men and boys. He has an immunity to the virus and she knows if she is caught she will never see him again.
This is a slow burning of a story but it has real tension and reading at this time made it all the more poignant and scary. It has a lot of detail about the virus and the background of how they are on the run. The finale is a real cat and mouse scenario with the two sisters both desperate to reach their goal. It is also about the lengths that a mother will go to, to protect her child.
If you like a hard hitting feminist drama then this is the book for you.
Set in a dystopian world where a pandemic has wiped out most of the men. Cole has lost everyone except her sister and her son Miles.
The story begins with a shocking scene in which Cole discovers that Miles has been drugged by Billie her sister and the escape they had been planning was instigated by someone who wants Miles. As a 13 year old boy, he is a rare commodity in a world where very few men have survived the HCV virus.
Cole has to take drastic action to escape with Miles so they decide that he must become Mila. She decides that they must get home to Johannesburg and this is not going to be easy.
Two sisters who are on very different roads. The story switches between the present day, the past and the two sisters. It took me a little while to figure out how this worked but when I did the story really accelerated for me. There is a lot of violence as these people are really desperate.
Billie has messed up badly not only has she destroyed the trust of her family she has not delivered Miles and the people who want him are not going to stop until they get him.
Cole has been held by the Army for trying to escape previously and Miles was held in quarantine with other men and boys. He has an immunity to the virus and she knows if she is caught she will never see him again.
This is a slow burning of a story but it has real tension and reading at this time made it all the more poignant and scary. It has a lot of detail about the virus and the background of how they are on the run. The finale is a real cat and mouse scenario with the two sisters both desperate to reach their goal. It is also about the lengths that a mother will go to, to protect her child.
If you like a hard hitting feminist drama then this is the book for you.
The story begins with a shocking scene in which Cole discovers that Miles has been drugged by Billie her sister and the escape they had been planning was instigated by someone who wants Miles. As a 13 year old boy, he is a rare commodity in a world where very few men have survived the HCV virus.
Cole has to take drastic action to escape with Miles so they decide that he must become Mila. She decides that they must get home to Johannesburg and this is not going to be easy.
Two sisters who are on very different roads. The story switches between the present day, the past and the two sisters. It took me a little while to figure out how this worked but when I did the story really accelerated for me. There is a lot of violence as these people are really desperate.
Billie has messed up badly not only has she destroyed the trust of her family she has not delivered Miles and the people who want him are not going to stop until they get him.
Cole has been held by the Army for trying to escape previously and Miles was held in quarantine with other men and boys. He has an immunity to the virus and she knows if she is caught she will never see him again.
This is a slow burning of a story but it has real tension and reading at this time made it all the more poignant and scary. It has a lot of detail about the virus and the background of how they are on the run. The finale is a real cat and mouse scenario with the two sisters both desperate to reach their goal. It is also about the lengths that a mother will go to, to protect her child.
If you like a hard hitting feminist drama then this is the book for you.
Feminist post apocalyptic action adventure with great characters.
Always lovely to read a book that talks about Joburg.
Always lovely to read a book that talks about Joburg.
I LOVED this book and sped through it. I love dystopian novels & anything related to reproductive rights, and this one had a really interesting premise. Definitely manages to stand out in the “dystopian feminist reproductive rights” genre (thinking of Red Clocks, The Power, etc). Characterisations are excellent and you really feel the different characters and grow to like (or dislike - looking at you Billie!) them. Sharp, witty writing.
I especially loved that the author was South African and threw in so many little nods to our home country. It made me homesick! Highly recommend and can’t wait to read more of this author.
I especially loved that the author was South African and threw in so many little nods to our home country. It made me homesick! Highly recommend and can’t wait to read more of this author.
I felt like I was reading the second book in the series. The story jumped right it and it was hard to understand some things because they were not explained. Also the prose was rough.
Turns out reading about a pandemic that has killed almost all of the male population can be used for the purpose of escapism during a global pandemic. I really enjoyed this book, which is pretty much a road movie turned into a novel.
The book starts in medias res, and switches between the perspectives of Cole, her son Miles (who are both on the run) and Cole's sister Billie, who wants to sell them out. I enjoyed how the author interleaved the current plot with flashback chapters that explain how the current clusterfuck came to be. The book raises interesting questions about what a society would look like if almost everyone with a prostata had disappeared within a couple of years.
The book starts in medias res, and switches between the perspectives of Cole, her son Miles (who are both on the run) and Cole's sister Billie, who wants to sell them out. I enjoyed how the author interleaved the current plot with flashback chapters that explain how the current clusterfuck came to be. The book raises interesting questions about what a society would look like if almost everyone with a prostata had disappeared within a couple of years.
Set in the future year of 2023, written pre-covid about a pandemic that sweeps the world, this time eradicating 99% of men. Starts off with a young mother fleeing with her pre-pubescent boy disguised as a girl, after a deal with her sister goes sour and involves a serious bashing.
I thought the characters and premise were well done, the portrayal of a world with few men and the text subverting our expectations based on things like job descriptions. Not so sure I'm convinced of the _outcomes_ of such an eradication though, but it was fun and quite readable.
Related to other books I read this year on similar themes, it was better than the other book I read this year set in 2023 (Islands In The Net); not as good as The Power which dealt with similar themes of matriarchy; maybe on par with Animals In That Country which dealt with road-tripping through a (post-)pandemic world. Of Beukes' other novels, I'd probably rate Moxyland a tad higher.
I thought the characters and premise were well done, the portrayal of a world with few men and the text subverting our expectations based on things like job descriptions. Not so sure I'm convinced of the _outcomes_ of such an eradication though, but it was fun and quite readable.
Related to other books I read this year on similar themes, it was better than the other book I read this year set in 2023 (Islands In The Net); not as good as The Power which dealt with similar themes of matriarchy; maybe on par with Animals In That Country which dealt with road-tripping through a (post-)pandemic world. Of Beukes' other novels, I'd probably rate Moxyland a tad higher.