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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
As a marine scientist living in Miami, this story was absolutely TERRIFYING but so so so beautiful, especially the ending
Only complaint is the perspective switching and jumping timelines felt a bit choppy at times
Only complaint is the perspective switching and jumping timelines felt a bit choppy at times
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
A beautiful dystopian near future story about survival. I really liked the realistic portrayal of society collapsing and how they get to the post apocalyptic world. I liked how the dark parts were the circumstances and not what the characters were doing.
This book was hard to get through in the best way possible. I had to put it down a few times because of the way it hit my emotions hard. Not sure if it’s becuase I’m a new mom or something else but The Light Pirate just made me want to weep. Not cry, not scream, just straight up weep. My soul hurt from this book and I loved it. Five stars all the way.
This started a bit slow for me but I got more interested and it went on and then was certainly surprised by the magical realism.. (probably could've done without it tbh!)
Spoiler
Wanda is born during Hurricane Wanda; her mom and one brother die during this time. She grows up with her father, a lineman. The story, which takes place in Florida, is split into four parts IIRC, and turns dystopian as Florida increasingly becomes a lost cause and then is literally abandoned by the government. A survivalist neighbor winds up taking her in as a teen, after her father dies. Eventually everything is bad and she lives and finds community among the mangroves. The magical realism bit is that when she touches water, the whole thing lights up? Wasn't really explained.
This coming-of-age/climate crisis/wilderness survival story gripped me from the very beginning. Wanda's story reminded me a little bit of Kya from Where the Crawdad's Sing.
4.5 stars. I loved this book. I love the writing and the beautiful way it's written. It was interesting to read a post-apocalyptic, not-quite-dystopian story that revolves around climate change and also nothing to do with a pandemic or fertility that still manages to give hope. It's gentle and haunting.
The story of a family trying to navigate the end stages of the climate crisis, when Florida is rapidly becoming uninhabitable in any but the narrowest sense of the word. Survivalists survive and others flee to parts of the country not yet destroyed, but which are also devolving into chaos.
Our protagonist is Wanda, a girl who becomes a woman in this disintegrating world. She loses most of those close to her in one way or another, beginning with her mother, who dies giving birth to Wanda during the storm from which her name is derived, leaving her with a lasting legacy of despair. Wanda also has a special talent which gives the book its title.
It is easy to see where Brooks-Dalton was trying to go, telling the story of a young woman coming of age in dreadful times and finding a way to go on, providing her with a touch of magic to spice up a rather grim tale. Oddly, though the book is competently written, the reader is never able to fully engage with Wanda and her cohorts; it's as if the author is holding us at arm's distance and isn't able to make Wanda a fully real character who can engage our hearts as well as our minds. It is difficult to put my finger on where exactly this disconnect lies, but it was distinct and pervasive. It's a shame, really, since she had a beautiful premise to write from. We are no doubt going to see many, many more such novels as our environmental future continues to look increasingly grim, but this novel, lovely as it is in many ways, is not destined for the top shelf on that growing list.
Our protagonist is Wanda, a girl who becomes a woman in this disintegrating world. She loses most of those close to her in one way or another, beginning with her mother, who dies giving birth to Wanda during the storm from which her name is derived, leaving her with a lasting legacy of despair. Wanda also has a special talent which gives the book its title.
It is easy to see where Brooks-Dalton was trying to go, telling the story of a young woman coming of age in dreadful times and finding a way to go on, providing her with a touch of magic to spice up a rather grim tale. Oddly, though the book is competently written, the reader is never able to fully engage with Wanda and her cohorts; it's as if the author is holding us at arm's distance and isn't able to make Wanda a fully real character who can engage our hearts as well as our minds. It is difficult to put my finger on where exactly this disconnect lies, but it was distinct and pervasive. It's a shame, really, since she had a beautiful premise to write from. We are no doubt going to see many, many more such novels as our environmental future continues to look increasingly grim, but this novel, lovely as it is in many ways, is not destined for the top shelf on that growing list.
I have to compose my thoughts about this beautiful, ominous, powerful novel. It's one of the best I've read this year, with luminous writing about the natural world, and memorable characters.
I know some people are going to say that it's impossibly excessive but when things like this (https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/10/us/homes-collapse-nicole-sea-level-rise-climate/index.html) are happening right now, I think looking ahead 50-60 years in speculative fiction can easily lead you to Wanda's world.
I know some people are going to say that it's impossibly excessive but when things like this (https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/10/us/homes-collapse-nicole-sea-level-rise-climate/index.html) are happening right now, I think looking ahead 50-60 years in speculative fiction can easily lead you to Wanda's world.