A review by alyssabookrecs
Everything for Everyone: An Oral History of the New York Commune, 2052–2072 by Eman Abdelhadi, M.E. O'Brien

4.0

What a fascinating book! I love the idea of taking ethnography and applying it to a futuristic version of the world post-revolution (but not too far away from the revolution). This takes all the dystopia of revolution and the fall of empire and capitalism and turns it into a literal transposition of brighter futures, but not without acknowledging the pain and grief along the way. Sometimes it felt a bit preachy, but the cast of characters is wildly diverse from their occupations to who they were as people. The book covers a lot of ground from the formation of communes, fighting police and fascists, the fall and rebirth of the Internet, ecology, and much more. I particularly loved the part on liberating the Levant and the chapter about sex work (in here called “skincare/craft”). Overall, I’ve never read anything quite like this, and I’m here for it. Hooray for some hopeful sci-fi!