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jdybs 's review for:
A Children's Bible
by Lydia Millet
Shades of Lord of the Flies, this allegorical novel is a painful read. It’s hard to witness the cruelty, wastefulness, and depravity depicted here. How can the parents be so irresponsible, the children so cynical and mean? In order to accept this story you must leave literal reality at the door, and flow with the metaphor; then it will make more sense. This is a story about climate change, humankind’s selfish destruction of the planet, poured through the Biblical metaphor.
The book is well-written. So why only a 3-star rating? I felt the allegory was just too heavy-handed, the Biblical metaphors too obvious. What is the author’s goal here? Is she trying to educate about climate change? Is she trying to convert non-believers? I can’t imagine that this book will change anyone’s mind about the reality of climate change. More likely, non-science-believing Christians will either be offended by the “distortion” of Biblical teachings or be focused on thinking about those stories themselves.
Still, it’s great that climate change is becoming a backdrop (or center-stage) for novels. This is the reality of our world, and we can only speculate about what our society will look like in the future.
The book is well-written. So why only a 3-star rating? I felt the allegory was just too heavy-handed, the Biblical metaphors too obvious. What is the author’s goal here? Is she trying to educate about climate change? Is she trying to convert non-believers? I can’t imagine that this book will change anyone’s mind about the reality of climate change. More likely, non-science-believing Christians will either be offended by the “distortion” of Biblical teachings or be focused on thinking about those stories themselves.
Still, it’s great that climate change is becoming a backdrop (or center-stage) for novels. This is the reality of our world, and we can only speculate about what our society will look like in the future.