This month's book is A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys.
Happy Earth Month! This month we are reading a book with heavy climate themes. What if we stopped pretending that climate change wasn't as big of a problem as it is and it changed the course of how society functioned? And then suddenly ALIENS! A little solarpunk, a little dystopian, a little first contact, and a lot of intercultural and interspecies relationship navigation.
A little more info from Bookshop.org:
On a warm March night in 2083, Judy Wallach-Stevens wakes to a warning of unknown pollutants in the Chesapeake Bay. She heads out to check what she expects to be a false alarm—and stumbles upon the first alien visitors to Earth. These aliens have crossed the galaxy to save humanity, convinced that the people of Earth must leave their ecologically-ravaged planet behind and join them among the stars. And if humanity doesn't agree, they may need to be saved by force.
But the watershed networks that rose up to save the planet from corporate devastation aren't ready to give up on Earth. Decades ago, they reorganized humanity around the hope of keeping the world livable. By sharing the burden of decision-making, they've started to heal our wounded planet.
Now corporations, nation-states, and networks all vie to represent humanity to these powerful new beings, and if anyone accepts the aliens' offer, Earth may be lost. With everyone’s eyes turned skyward, the future hinges on Judy's effort to create understanding, both within and beyond her own species.
Content Warnings: kidnapping, transphobia
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