Thank you to @atriabooks for the advance @netgalley copy of The Great Transition! Given how much I enjoyed dipping back into a little sci-fi earlier this year (with The Ferryman) and all of the buzz around this book, I had to put in a request. And I’m so glad I did, this was an impressive debut.
Cli-Fi is not for the faint of heart these days, and this book was no exception. Especially while heading into wildfire season here in the Pacific Northwest, and seeing fires affect the rest of the country earlier this summer, it’s mildly terrifying, though ultimately hopeful (if we could just figure out a way to value people over corporate profits).
 The author makes excellent use of each character to explore the different political facets of climate change: the cynical and extremist mother, the optimistic and hopeful father, and the daughter taking it all in to forge a path forward of her own. At times the missives from her mother, illustrated through interviews for a school report, become a little repetitive and didactic. But it was a clever storytelling device - provocative and illustrating how the ‘Transition’ came about.
This is an excellent mash up of genres: thriller, sci-fi, dystopian, and family drama. The ending felt somewhat open ended, so I am curious (and hopeful) to see if there will be a follow up!