I think 2024 is the year I fully realize that I’m deeply fond of speculative, character-driven science fiction. I loved how the vanished birds gives off a distinct feeling of negative space and technological minimalism that doesn’t distract from the characters’ interactions. it’s frankly impossible not to immediately buy into every relationship nia has ever formed. simon jimenez writes natural dialogue so easily it feels like reading a transcript of *real people* conversing, arguing, courting, etc. but not at the cost of world building—he can easily evoke beautifully sparse images of futuristic cities, natural environments, and different planets within the universe he’s imagined.

I do think the third act could’ve been a bit tidier and had a less abrupt transition, but it’s a small nitpick in the grand scheme of a heartwrenching story. at its core this is a found family, coming of age cosmic drama that reflects on the figurative and literal power of human connections and what ordinary, but conflicted, people are willing to do to preserve them.