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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Title: The Light Pirate
Author: Lily Brooks-Dalton
Genre: Speculative Fiction
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: December 6, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Compelling • Eerie • Atmospheric
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Florida is slipping away. As devastating weather patterns and rising sea levels wreak gradual havoc on the state's infrastructure, a powerful hurricane approaches a small town on the southeastern coast. Kirby Lowe, an electrical line worker, his pregnant wife, Frida, and their two sons, Flip and Lucas, prepare for the worst. When the boys go missing just before the hurricane hits, Kirby heads out into the high winds in search of his children. Left alone, Frida goes into premature labor and gives birth to an unusual child, Wanda, whom she names after the catastrophic storm that ushers her into a society closer to collapse than ever before.
As Florida continues to unravel, Wanda grows. Moving from childhood to adulthood, adapting not only to the changing landscape, but also to the people who stayed behind in a place abandoned by civilization, Wanda loses family, gains community, and ultimately, seeks adventure, love, and purpose in a place remade by nature.
💭 T H O U G H T S
With the end of the year approaching, I've been attempting to refocus on and complete some of my 2024 personal reading challenges. For the month of October, I chose The Light Pirate as my recommendation from a friend. I knew very little about this one, beyond the climate fiction element. And I was really hoping this would be a pleasant surprise.
Told in four distinct parts - power, water, light, and time - the story follows Wanda over many years as she navigates the ever-changing world around her. It all felt eerie given the storms that have hit Florida in recent months. What begins as a climate fiction narrative, soon translates into a coming-of-age story, and eventually progressing to a dystopian world.
While there are several important characters, it is Wanda who is at the heart of the story. She's such a strong female character I was rooting through as she progressed through her ever changing life. The resilience and perseverance she demonstrates is inspiring and it is through her the reader sees that working together rather than against each other is more important now than ever before.
Despite the harsh and realistic realities, The Light Pirate ultimately has an uplifting ending. The fact I managed to read this quiet and genre defying novel in one sitting speaks volumes given I have struggled to prioritize reading lately. Lily Brooks-Dalton delivers a unique and immersive story that kept me engaged and reminds us of the power of community. It would not surprise me to see this one turned into a film, as I think it would translate well to the big screen.
📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• climate fiction
• stories of survival
• the wilderness
⚠️ CW: death, death of parent, child death, animal death, grief, bullying, murder, violence, gun violence, murder, injury/injury detail, blood, pregnancy, dementia, divorce, natural disaster, hurricane
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"What is magic, but science that is not yet understood? What is science, but magic with an explanation?"
"Life costs more than it gives."
"She can't bring herself to say the goodbye she feels coming out loud. They are old now - maybe it doesn't need to be said. Maybe it's already woven into each moment they share. Someone will be left behind; this is what love costs."
Author: Lily Brooks-Dalton
Genre: Speculative Fiction
Rating: 4.00
Pub Date: December 6, 2022
T H R E E • W O R D S
Compelling • Eerie • Atmospheric
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Florida is slipping away. As devastating weather patterns and rising sea levels wreak gradual havoc on the state's infrastructure, a powerful hurricane approaches a small town on the southeastern coast. Kirby Lowe, an electrical line worker, his pregnant wife, Frida, and their two sons, Flip and Lucas, prepare for the worst. When the boys go missing just before the hurricane hits, Kirby heads out into the high winds in search of his children. Left alone, Frida goes into premature labor and gives birth to an unusual child, Wanda, whom she names after the catastrophic storm that ushers her into a society closer to collapse than ever before.
As Florida continues to unravel, Wanda grows. Moving from childhood to adulthood, adapting not only to the changing landscape, but also to the people who stayed behind in a place abandoned by civilization, Wanda loses family, gains community, and ultimately, seeks adventure, love, and purpose in a place remade by nature.
💭 T H O U G H T S
With the end of the year approaching, I've been attempting to refocus on and complete some of my 2024 personal reading challenges. For the month of October, I chose The Light Pirate as my recommendation from a friend. I knew very little about this one, beyond the climate fiction element. And I was really hoping this would be a pleasant surprise.
Told in four distinct parts - power, water, light, and time - the story follows Wanda over many years as she navigates the ever-changing world around her. It all felt eerie given the storms that have hit Florida in recent months. What begins as a climate fiction narrative, soon translates into a coming-of-age story, and eventually progressing to a dystopian world.
While there are several important characters, it is Wanda who is at the heart of the story. She's such a strong female character I was rooting through as she progressed through her ever changing life. The resilience and perseverance she demonstrates is inspiring and it is through her the reader sees that working together rather than against each other is more important now than ever before.
Despite the harsh and realistic realities, The Light Pirate ultimately has an uplifting ending. The fact I managed to read this quiet and genre defying novel in one sitting speaks volumes given I have struggled to prioritize reading lately. Lily Brooks-Dalton delivers a unique and immersive story that kept me engaged and reminds us of the power of community. It would not surprise me to see this one turned into a film, as I think it would translate well to the big screen.
📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• climate fiction
• stories of survival
• the wilderness
⚠️ CW: death, death of parent, child death, animal death, grief, bullying, murder, violence, gun violence, murder, injury/injury detail, blood, pregnancy, dementia, divorce, natural disaster, hurricane
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"What is magic, but science that is not yet understood? What is science, but magic with an explanation?"
"Life costs more than it gives."
"She can't bring herself to say the goodbye she feels coming out loud. They are old now - maybe it doesn't need to be said. Maybe it's already woven into each moment they share. Someone will be left behind; this is what love costs."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Dementia
divorce, natural disaster, hurricane
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
This beautiful and sad story set in Florida as Mother Earth reclaims the land that humans have so thoughtlessly taken over. The main character, Wanda, is named after the violent hurricane during which she was born, and setting, the inland waterways and swamps, remind me of Where the Crawdads Sing but with equal parts science and maybe magic weaved throughout. Another audiobook where the narrator brings the characters to life.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is one of those books that upon reflection, I might come back to give a higher rating. There were some things that bothered me while reading (mainly the touch of magical realism that went largely unexplained and infrequently mentioned even), but I think by the end it all made sense to me. This book is a beautiful poem and an example of the best of what we can hope for in an ever changing world. I think it’s difficult to perceive how different things might be in the future, but this book does a good job of painting a harshly realistic story and reminding us that we’re better off working together instead of against each other.
This was a solid 4.5 stars for me. I loved how strong all of the female leads were. I read this book as SoCal was burning and then Florida was hit with their hurricanes. It felt preordained. This book hits so close to what reality could be in the next few decades. I would have rated this 5 stars if the books focused more on Wanda once she found happiness and herself.
This book got better as it went along. The early parts are contemporary, setting up the dystopian world that climate change creates in low-lying Florida. It takes half the book to set up the light pirate, but then focuses on her in this survivalist future.