The venom in her voice is palpable throughout the speech. I want to binge on the entire series right now. My only real issue with the book is that it comes to a relatively abrupt end.

New York has been hit hard, and people in that lively, densely populated city are being asked to stay home, socially distance and take precautions to protect themselves and their neighbors from an invisible terror. The coronavirus is currently spreading across the country and the world. The City We Became is Jemisin's first book in her Great Cities series, a series that asks: What if a city had a soul? What if it could come alive, embodied in a human avatar? And though inconvenient for a commercial release, this book's theme and the story could not have landed at a more necessary time. It may come as a surprise to some fans, then, that her latest book is set, not in a distant future world or another one entirely, but in New York City, right now. Stories that also speak to modern themes of oppression, race and conflicts of cultures, supported by deep, layered worldbuilding that draws you into her beautiful but harsh landscapes. Jemisin is known for her stories of fantastic powers and gods among us.

So what does a writer like that do next? Something completely different. Her most recent story collection received near universal praise, and she's been called ' the most celebrated science fiction and fantasy writer of her generation' (and rightly so). Her Broken Earth trilogy swept the Hugo Awards for three consecutive years. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Close overlay Buy Featured Book Title The City We Became Author N.

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