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justine_ao 's review for:
The Lightest Object in the Universe
by Kimi Eisele
4.5 stars
Set in the near future, government and society has effectively crumbled in the aftermath of a pandemic and technological collapse. This book takes place after the dust has started to settle and people turn themselves to the process of building anew.
Rather than epic, Eisele focuses the story on two main characters, Carson and Beatrix, and the people who make up their worlds. Before the collapse school principal Carson and fair trade activist Beatrix had recently met and were taking the first steps in finding out what they could be to one another. After, the long distances between their respective homes, New York and California, seem impossible to overcome. Somewhat daunted but nevertheless determined, Carson decides to undertake the long and dangerous journey west, to Beatrix, and maybe to love.
Beatrix, meanwhile, can't stop herself from wondering what happened to Carson, and misses what she glimpsed in him, grieving the lost opportunity to continue their relationship and find out. Her activism has in the past given her so many reasons to leave home to try and make a difference elsewhere. She realises now, though, that in the wake of the collapse the greatest contribution she can make is to build and strengthen the community that is budding around her. Her home can be everything she wants it to be, but she is needed to undertake the hard work to nurture it.
The parallel journeys of Carson and Beatrix are both about self-discovery, growth, and community building. Sometimes you have to leave home to find what you need in both yourself and in others; sometimes you need to stay where you are to do the same thing.
This isn't an action packed post-apocalyptic story. It is a quiet, reflective book that puts the characters front and centre in the narrative. For the most part, people try their best to do the right thing, although not always. There is certainly some trauma, but it doesn't take they story over or eclipse the larger themes of compassion and community building explored by Eisele. The main message remains one that we can all relate to: when things get tough, be kind, be compassionate, and help each other.
It's remarkably similar to the mantra we hear daily here in British Columbia from our public health authority and government during our own time of crisis: Be kind, be calm, and be safe.
Set in the near future, government and society has effectively crumbled in the aftermath of a pandemic and technological collapse. This book takes place after the dust has started to settle and people turn themselves to the process of building anew.
Rather than epic, Eisele focuses the story on two main characters, Carson and Beatrix, and the people who make up their worlds. Before the collapse school principal Carson and fair trade activist Beatrix had recently met and were taking the first steps in finding out what they could be to one another. After, the long distances between their respective homes, New York and California, seem impossible to overcome. Somewhat daunted but nevertheless determined, Carson decides to undertake the long and dangerous journey west, to Beatrix, and maybe to love.
Beatrix, meanwhile, can't stop herself from wondering what happened to Carson, and misses what she glimpsed in him, grieving the lost opportunity to continue their relationship and find out. Her activism has in the past given her so many reasons to leave home to try and make a difference elsewhere. She realises now, though, that in the wake of the collapse the greatest contribution she can make is to build and strengthen the community that is budding around her. Her home can be everything she wants it to be, but she is needed to undertake the hard work to nurture it.
The parallel journeys of Carson and Beatrix are both about self-discovery, growth, and community building. Sometimes you have to leave home to find what you need in both yourself and in others; sometimes you need to stay where you are to do the same thing.
This isn't an action packed post-apocalyptic story. It is a quiet, reflective book that puts the characters front and centre in the narrative. For the most part, people try their best to do the right thing, although not always. There is certainly some trauma, but it doesn't take they story over or eclipse the larger themes of compassion and community building explored by Eisele. The main message remains one that we can all relate to: when things get tough, be kind, be compassionate, and help each other.
It's remarkably similar to the mantra we hear daily here in British Columbia from our public health authority and government during our own time of crisis: Be kind, be calm, and be safe.