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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-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
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
The world building in this is truly incredible and both imaginative and probably not that far away. The story had strong moments but it left me wanting a little bit more from all the characters. I'm into climate change horror or whatever you would call this and this is worth picking up for sure.
Yes. It’s so good. The book starts two years after 2017’s Hurricane Maria, making it 2019 when Wendy is born. By the time Wendy is 10 (in 2029), her small town along with many others in Florida have closed their municipalities. Around this time, Miami has absolved their city government and the big city’s fallout is the final stamp of the federal government’s abandonment of the Florida land.
It’s also the same year the dam breaks due to crumbling infrastructure and continuously intensifying rains, as well as staff layoffs and a general lack of acknowledgment of there being an actual problem. The urgency of the crisis in Florida is first told through the perspective of Wendy’s dad who is an electrical lineman. He and his crew aren’t getting called to fix downed lines nor is he able to get them paid. This choice by the author is such a good one because you know who usually is one of the first responders after natural disasters? Electrical workers working to restore power grids. The weight of Wendy’s dad realizing elected officials are abandoning the electric grid, and thus, people’s access to power, isn’t even explicitly stated. So, if electrical workers are not called into a disaster zone, the government is basically saying “get fucked, disaster zone” and I’ll probably never forget that.
There’s lots of other really smart choices by the author like how the story is mostly following people living their every day lives while society structures crumble around them. You’re aware these things are happening in the background, but like the author says, adapt or die. The characters in the book all have something they don’t want to face; some sort of change that is so rooted in grief that they cannot let go. Again, quoting the author, some things are just unspeakable. But, as we see in the book, change, just like the water, is going to come no matter what.
The fact that the author also referenced real life examples within the fiction makes the ecological collapse even more insidious. The swamp returning to Florida (along with what we can assume is the collapse of the rest of the country) by the time Wendy is 20? 25? Puts the book around 2039.
I’ve been saying for years that if climate change doesn’t kill us by 2030, the United States government will, and this book feels like a continuation of that prophecy. Despite being about ecological and society collapse, this book is really about understanding that change and the water are coming, adapt yourself to be prepared or die.
It also has me thinking about how there has been seven instances where a life form has evolved so many times and ultimately ends up becoming a crab as their final form. This means we could probably comfortably say that crab is the ultimate evolutional goal of any living creature right? Paired with that is the knowledge that humans have evolved in many different ways to adapt their bodies to their surroundings (melanin, eye sight, hearing, height, etc). So, like, how are humans going to evolve when climate change changes everything? Will we grow fins? Will our bodies adapt to be able to drink salt water? Will we wear wigs? I’m not sorry about that last one.
This review is nonsense but I am excited about how good this book was written. Like the plot was fine, whatever, but the actual writing and how the plot was curated is supreme.
It’s also v funny to me that even tho Florida is a stupid swamp town, there’s still tons of feral cats.
It’s also the same year the dam breaks due to crumbling infrastructure and continuously intensifying rains, as well as staff layoffs and a general lack of acknowledgment of there being an actual problem. The urgency of the crisis in Florida is first told through the perspective of Wendy’s dad who is an electrical lineman. He and his crew aren’t getting called to fix downed lines nor is he able to get them paid. This choice by the author is such a good one because you know who usually is one of the first responders after natural disasters? Electrical workers working to restore power grids. The weight of Wendy’s dad realizing elected officials are abandoning the electric grid, and thus, people’s access to power, isn’t even explicitly stated. So, if electrical workers are not called into a disaster zone, the government is basically saying “get fucked, disaster zone” and I’ll probably never forget that.
There’s lots of other really smart choices by the author like how the story is mostly following people living their every day lives while society structures crumble around them. You’re aware these things are happening in the background, but like the author says, adapt or die. The characters in the book all have something they don’t want to face; some sort of change that is so rooted in grief that they cannot let go. Again, quoting the author, some things are just unspeakable. But, as we see in the book, change, just like the water, is going to come no matter what.
The fact that the author also referenced real life examples within the fiction makes the ecological collapse even more insidious. The swamp returning to Florida (along with what we can assume is the collapse of the rest of the country) by the time Wendy is 20? 25? Puts the book around 2039.
I’ve been saying for years that if climate change doesn’t kill us by 2030, the United States government will, and this book feels like a continuation of that prophecy. Despite being about ecological and society collapse, this book is really about understanding that change and the water are coming, adapt yourself to be prepared or die.
It also has me thinking about how there has been seven instances where a life form has evolved so many times and ultimately ends up becoming a crab as their final form. This means we could probably comfortably say that crab is the ultimate evolutional goal of any living creature right? Paired with that is the knowledge that humans have evolved in many different ways to adapt their bodies to their surroundings (melanin, eye sight, hearing, height, etc). So, like, how are humans going to evolve when climate change changes everything? Will we grow fins? Will our bodies adapt to be able to drink salt water? Will we wear wigs? I’m not sorry about that last one.
This review is nonsense but I am excited about how good this book was written. Like the plot was fine, whatever, but the actual writing and how the plot was curated is supreme.
It’s also v funny to me that even tho Florida is a stupid swamp town, there’s still tons of feral cats.
adventurous
mysterious
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:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
sad
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
This beautifully written, unique novel centers around Wanda, named by her mother for the hurricane during which the baby girl was born. Wanda must draw on her own fierce power throughout her life, adapting to an ever-wilder Florida. The story is both a cautionary tale on how we must all prepare for continued climate change and a character study of a strong girl who, despite the odds, grows into an even stronger woman.
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
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:
No