What I’m reading in September and October 2022: climate fiction, more climate fiction, and Malaysian heritage

September and October have been super interesting for me in terms of personal development and changes of perspective. It was like a domino effect that put so many things in motion that I am sometimes scared, sometimes over-excited about the future ✨

Nonetheless, I continued reading, and below I share the lovely books I discovered this Autumn.

Oh, one more thing – today marks the 6th anniversary of my blog! 🥳 I am super grateful for all the amazing people I met in this online space – thank you very much for your support, bookish discussions, and kind words 🙏

Now back to the books!

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Currently reading

I am reading Fragile Monsters by Catherine Menon. From what I read so far (approx. 15%) it’s a super interesting story!

Fragile Monsters tells the story of Durga, a 30-ish maths lecturer who grew up in Malaysia and then moved to Canada. She visits her family for Diwali and is having contradicting feelings regarding her cultural heritage (Malaysia & Canada) and her beliefs (science & faith).

The style and theme remind me of Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (my review) – the “fight” between rational arguments and cultural beliefs that Gifty also had.

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Finished reading

First I finished reading Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler, the second book of the Earthseed series. Parable of the Talents continues the story of Lauren, a young woman who created a new community in the midst of social and climate chaos.

The action of the series happens in a post-apocalyptic world, with focus on faith, climate change and social inequality. Super interesting read, I definitely recommend exploring it!

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The second book I started reading, but not finished, is Marple: Twelve New Stories. It brings together imagined adventures of Jane Marple by contemporary writers. My personal favourite is “Miss Marple Takes Manhattan”, a short story that brings Miss Marple in the US vibes 🙂

I read about 50% of the stories, then stopped because it did not captivate me enough. Maybe I will come back to the book later.

However, I think this book is a super good present for Agatha Christie fans – I am sure they will appreciate getting back to the world of Miss Marple and her unexpected adventures! Special thanks to Netgalley for the eARC!

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Then came a big one, both in size and ideas – The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. This famous book imagines a dystopian future where an international taskforce – Ministry for the Future – coordinates global initiatives for fighting the disastrous effects of climate change.

I was expecting to read something similar to Atwood’s novels (e.g. Oryx and Crake – my review) … how wrong I was! The Ministry for the future is a complex book with fiction stories, but also scientific explanations and economic theories, and a lot of climate terrorism.

If you are interested in all-things-climate – it’s a must read!!

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Reading next

For the next weeks I choose to not set any high expectations. I might read Before Your Memory Fades by Kawaguchi Toshikazu, the author of the lovely series Before the Coffee Gets Cold (my review). I had no idea there’s a third book in the series, so when I saw it in the bookstore I knew I have to read it!

Other than that, we’ll see what the future brings 🙂

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How are doing? What are you reading? I’d love to hear from you!!

Till next time … happy reading!

Georgiana

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Cover photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash