![]() Jemisin’s brilliant allegorical premise lands with an uncanny prescience. While the larger metaphors.are clear, the narrative is gripping, not just because of the systemic catastrophes the “Alt Artistes” of Jemisin’s fantasy (because of course they call themselves the Alt Artistes) represent, but also because of the specificity with which Jemisin literalizes that system. ![]() ![]() ![]() The novel is at its best when the conflicts facing each borough’s avatar feel as human as they do symbolic. At times, though, it’s exactly the neatness and wit of the premise that trip up the book. filled to the brim of fantastically clever details that infuse focused political points with wild imagination. The short story The City Born Great is included as the prologue (with slight modification) to The City We Became. The City We Became takes a broad-shouldered stand on the side of sanctuary, family. After introducing us to each character in engrossing and vivid set pieces, the bulk of the novel is dedicated to the team tackling parallel crises. Its a glorious fantasy, set in that most imaginary of cities, New York. Part of Jemisin’s genius is rooted in her ability to come up with fantastically inventive premises that, while unthinkable before her writing, feel intuitive once read, to the point that one is baffled that nobody came up with them before. ![]()
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