First of all, this audiobook is now one of my absolute favourite experiences. All three character perspectives have a narrator to themselves, and the language really lends itself to the format. Highly, highly recommend it.

This is a relatively plotless, highly interior book predominantly examining one character, who is left at the high house to raise a child that is not her own. Post climate effects, her sister, the mother of the child, is intwined in dealing with the aftermath, or stymying of further effects (it’s not concerned with these specifics), and in the process alienates her child, who endears himself to the person who is around.

This book is absolutely perfect at encapsulating the push-pull of selfishness and altruism intrinsic to humanity, especially regarding the climate crisis. The dynamic is replicated within this small, unusual family and slightly larger cast as the story grows. It is certainly bleak, leaning toward realistic outcomes, while not interested in the granular survival aspects (which I personally was very grateful for). The point is the human element and the relationships between one another being the same ones correlating to why we are failing the present catastrophe, even as some of us negotiate ourselves to moments of hope; reasons to continue on and live.

There is a liminal, subjective space in which the ending could be taken a few ways, depending on what resonates. I think it’d just as bleak as any other confrontation with death in fiction. The fact that the problem is essentially manmade didn’t particularly give me more anxiety than I already do with the state of climate change and effects. I like that this has an element of hope, even as there is also a heavy handed tempering hand that telegraphs how because our empathy often doesn’t extend to those we don’t know, we are already hampered in the monumental battle to save future generations from the global situation currently unfolding. For that reason, I find it one of the most effective books of its kind.

I didn’t necessarily expect a character study drilling down into a problem we face that isn’t convincing people this is happening, or the logistics and science needed to combat effects—but I think it certainly is an insight into the core frustration of not enough people simply caring to even begin the work that needs doing, and why that is.