The Free People's Village

by Sim Kern

In an alternate 2020 timeline, Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared a War on Climate Change rather than a War on Terror. For twenty years, Democrats have controlled all three branches of government, enacting carbon-cutting schemes that never made it to a vote in our world. Green infrastructure projects have transformed U.S. cities into lush paradises (for the wealthy, white neighborhoods, at least), and the Bureau of Carbon Regulation levies carbon taxes on every financial transaction.

English teacher by day, Maddie Ryan spends her nights and weekends as the rhythm guitarist of Bunny Bloodlust, a queer punk band living in a warehouse-turned-venue called "The Lab" in Houston's Eighth Ward. When Maddie learns that the Eighth Ward is to be sacrificed for a new electromagnetic hyperway out to the wealthy, white suburbs, she joins "Save the Eighth," a Black-led organizing movement fighting for the neighborhood. At first, she's only focused on keeping her band together and getting closer to Red, their reckless and enigmatic lead guitarist. But working with Save the Eighth forces Maddie to reckon with the harm she has already done to the neighborhood—both as a resident of the gentrifying Lab and as a white teacher in a predominantly Black school.

When police respond to Save the Eighth protests with violence, the Lab becomes the epicenter of “The Free People’s Village”—an occupation that promises to be the birthplace of an anti-capitalist revolution. As the movement spreads across the U.S., Maddie dreams of a queer, liberated future with Red. But the Village is beset on all sides—by infighting, police brutality, corporate-owned media, and rising ecofascism. Maddie’s found family is increasingly at risk from state violence, and she must decide if she’s willing to sacrifice everything in pursuit of justice.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Dystopia, Politics, Adult

388 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 12, 2023

Reviews

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 5 out of 5]

As per usual when I really, really love something I feel entirely inadequate to review it. I received an ARC of this book, I finished reading well ahead of publication date and yet here we are 3 days post publication date and I still haven't been able to string a coherent sentence that might entice someone to read this book together.

I adored this book, I loved the characters and how real they came across as. It was uncomfortable to read at time but in a way that felt important and like it was opening ground for conversations that need to happen. It's complex, nuanced, and raw. It made me cry a couple of times but it also invited me to look in the mirror.

If you've ever had your heart broken by a social movement you need to read this book, it's both healing and bracing.

I think this book comes at a time where we really need that type of fiction immensely, something that isn't about a hero, that isn't about someone who saves the day and makes it all better but about how revolution and societal change doesn't happen overnight and that sometimes (most of the time actually) it's about doing what you can when the opportunity arises and slowly building towards these opportunities. Also it's an excellent reminder for white people (such as myself) that being cringe and getting called out on it isn't the worst thing and that we can still do some good and grow which is often too easy to forget.

And because I always like to see it: points for casual/comfortable use of neopronouns.

[whatssophiareading · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

Wow. This book. So far, it's my favorite read of 2023. I'm not surprised how many people who got an ARC said they binge-read it until early in the morning, finishing it with a good cry. I wish I had had the time to read it all in one go, too. It was hard to put down: every chapter grabbed and pulled me through, I loved Maddie and all the varied personalities that surrounded her, and of course I became invested in their Free People's Village.

This alternate timeline Kern has designed is fascinating. Kern tackles so many huge topics and questions, turning them inside out, all while having me enthralled by the personal journey of Maddie, and Red, and the yearning that had me flip-flopping between excitement, nail-biting, pain, and hope. Don't hesitate to pick up The Free People's Village when it comes out this September 12th.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to NetGalley, Sim Kern, and Levine Querido for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.


For 2023, I’ll be using this rating scale:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I mourned the ending of this journey 🥹
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ really enjoyed and would recommend
⭐️⭐️⭐️ it was fine
⭐️⭐️ I didn’t enjoy this journey
⭐️ I dnf’d or wish I’d dnf’d
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ this is smutty smutty erotica 🥵
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ medium burn
🌶️🌶️🌶️ slow burn
🌶️🌶️ romantic b plot / closed door / YA romance
🌶️ no romance / nonfiction

[Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was very excited to read this book after seeing the author talk about it in a tiktok and got a e-arc off of NetGalley. Sadly, my excitement didn’t last and I found it quite a slog to go through. Though there was a lot of diverse characters, all of them felt very flat and two-dimensional. The book wanted to talk about so many leftist topics that are all interesting to read about, but too many to the point that the book doesn’t have the time to go into enough detail to get a full view of them. It felt more like getting lectured at by the most annoying leftist you know, cut between drama of characters I don’t know enough to care about.

The main character Maddie’s white guilt victim complex gets annoying to the point of tedium. In her mind, Maddie others herself from any group of non white people she interacts with, feeling like an outsider basically any time she talks to anyone that isn’t white which is the majority of interactions she has.

I had high hopes but the execution was disappointing.

[KMart Vet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. I need to stop crying and process this first, though.
--
Updated review:

In an alternate 2020, where Al Gore won the election and declared a War on Climate Change, Sim Kern's "The Free People's Village" presents a powerful narrative set in a transformed world that is no less bleak than our own. Maddie Ryan, an English teacher and a member of a queer punk band, becomes involved in "Save the Eighth," a Black-led movement fighting against gentrification and racial inequalities in Houston's Eighth Ward.

"The Free People's Village" is an extraordinary and transformative book that left a lasting impact on my perspective. This book will live in my brain for years to come. Sim Kern skillfully navigates themes of activism, racial injustice, and the complexities of life in a capitalist society. This powerful narrative delves deep into issues that may be difficult for readers to confront, but it is precisely why every white-cis ally, and indeed everyone, should read this book. The emotional depth of the characters and their relationships is profound. It fearlessly explores shame, white guilt, and the resilience of marginalized communities against overwhelming forces. Through heart-wrenching scenes and thought-provoking discussions, the novel encourages readers to confront uncomfortable truths about our society.

Despite its challenging themes, "The Free People's Village" offers hope and a reminder that even amidst darkness, there is worth in seeking a better world despite overwhelming odds. It emphasizes the importance of showing up for others and using our privilege to uplift those who have less. This book is a rallying cry for change, a call to action, and a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. "The Free People's Village" is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the struggles faced by marginalized communities and a renewed commitment to fight for a more just and equitable world.

Thank you to Netgalley and Levine Querido for the eARC. Thank you to Sim Kern for writing this important and visceral novel; I sobbed like a baby.

[Brittany]

Disclaimer if you’ve read other reviews by me and are noticing a pattern: You’re correct that I don’t really give starred reviews because I don’t like leaving them. Most often, I will only leave them if I vehemently despised a book.I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all.

Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless if I add stars or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial

premise:
dystopian adult science fiction, set in an alternate 2020 where Al Gore won the Presidential Election, and blows full steam ahead to the war on climate change, charging a carbon tax for almost everything
first-person perspective of Maddie
Maddie has left behind a toxic, abusive marriage to a Catholic man and is reckoning with and questioning her religious identity now too
She works as an English teacher during the day, and goes to a punk space called The Lab at nights
Maddie joins a band, Bunny Bloodlust, meets new people (Red, Gestas, Fish), and begins to examine her own privilege and complacency in white supremacy
She joins a Black-led movement/occupation protest to save the Eighth Ward, the primarily Black neighborhood that the Lab is in
Maddie goes from extremely religious (as a way to rebel from her parents surprisingly) to being part of an anarchistic revolution, and unpacking her place in the world!
themes and topics covered: race, religion/shame, white saviorism, gender, sexual orientation, climate change, drug abuse, gentrification
check the content warnings I've noted below!

thoughts:
Maddie was a great main character to follow! She was representative of white saviorism, white guilt and white liberalism all in one, yet Sim still fleshed Maddie out, and let her make mistakes (like it was extremely cringe sometimes hahaha), take accountability for them, and try to do better in the future. I think more people need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, with knowing they are going to fuck up, and practicing taking accountability in saying "I didn't know that" or "I should have known better, and I will be more mindful in the future".

Maddie's path to becoming an ally and fighting for justice is full of relatable conversations with her new found family, and I think most people will feel seen by both the defensiveness and naivety displayed at times, as well as the genuine yearning to be better. I firmly believe Maddie is a great main character for people who are new to learning these concepts (abolition theory, mutual aid, anti-racism, intersectional feminism, etc) to follow, as we see that Maddie is not perfect, but she is given the space to be brave, and to try again.

I loved how Gestas recommended books to Maddie for her existential journey to "becoming an ally 101": Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur, Are Prisons Obsolete? by Angela Davis, Black Marxism by J. Robinson, and a few more. The scene where these book recommendations happen is definitely one of my favorites. I appreciated how the discussion played out between Gestas & Maddie, and even though Maddie fumbled a lot (as Maddie does), I felt like this was a helpful way to outline the ideas of equity and social justice for people who are possibly reading about this for the first time!

Overall, this book felt like a call to action, and a reminder to keep putting in the work, even if you don't see the fruits of your labor *right now*, it's still worth it, and the community/revolution still needs you to keep planting seeds! I loved the ending chapter with the metaphors of the mushrooms, and felt hopeful and inspired by the end of it.

This is the first book I've read by Sim, but I'm excited to check out more of their work!

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 5 out of 5]

My goodness this was good.

It was so hard to get into, and then I was sucked in, devouring the last 50%.

Read it.

Read it.

Read it.

[Jude · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our main character, Maddie, is white woman who spends most of her time in a mainly black neighborhood in (an alternate timeline) Houston called the Eighth Ward, working as a high school teacher during the day and spending her evenings at an old warehouse turned punk space called The Lab. Disillusioned with her teaching job, she has joined a queer punk band, Bunny Bloodlust.

In this timeline, Al Gore won the election and declared a War on Climate Change. He made a ton of green changes, including things like charging carbon taxes for basically anything requiring energy. Sweeping changes are made across the US, including the use of maglev trains.

When Maddie finds out that the neighborhood the Lab is in, she joins a Black-led movement to save the Eighth Ward.

This book could have positioned Maddie as a white savior but it doesn’t. Instead, Kern chose to turn the story onto the unlearning and relearning of old ideas one must do if they’re going to be a true ally.

Throughout the book, Maddie makes some really bad decisions and repeats some old cycles and I just wanted to scream, “What ARE you doing?!” But Maddie is 24 years old and who among us had it all figured out at that age?

The book is full of diverse well-rounded characters and their interactions ring true. This book would be especially good for the “beginning” white or queer ally who is looking to learn more about queer culture or how to be a decent white ally.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, Levine Quierdo, and the author, Sim Kern, for the opportunity to read this advance copy.

[Maia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in an alternate timeline in which Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared the War on Climate Change instead of the War on Terror, this novel is an interesting mix of hopeful and dystopian elements. The main character is Maddie Ryan, a white high school English teacher working in a primarily Black neighborhood in Houston, TX. The novel is Maddie's written account of a tumultuous year in which the grungy music warehouse where her punk band practices and performs is threatened by a proposed high way and oil line which will rip up not only their art space but also a historically Black neighborhood. Maddie starts attending activist meetings which quickly morph into a full blown protest encampment surrounding the warehouse. Dubbed the Free People Village, this protest movement goes viral and is met with the exact same kind of violent police response as the current student encampments protesting for Palestine on college campuses. Woven through this depressingly accurate political forecast are multiple queer love stories, interracial friendships, a 101 crash course in anarchist philosophy and bracing look at what long-term activism takes. Folks with more of an organizing or activist background than I might find some of this book a bit basic; but I was completely drawn in by the relationships and conflicts of Maddie, Red, Gestas, Angel, and Shayna. This book feels almost painfully timely, and I hope a lot of people read it and gain both courage and perspective.

[Tory · Rating 4 out of 5]

[ARC] I read it in one day! If you like your cli-fi dystopias with punk-rock party houses and a lot of well-informed social commentary, then this is a great pick for you! The radical leftist/eat-the-rich vibes are *chef's kiss*

It's an alternate history set in a world where Gore won in 2000 and directly tackled climate change...but as we learn, that didn't change anything in the entrenched power structures of our world. Author Kern (who is also the founder of the #TransRightsReadathon, if you saw that on your socials a couple months ago) is an environmental journalist and VERY well-versed in the intersectionality of activism -- we get discourse on race, religion, capitalism, politics, gender roles, and so much more, through the lens of a naiive white lady MC and ooooof I cringe-related to her so deeply 😅

My only critique is some of the conversations got kind of teachy/preachy/didactic **BUT** that's actually realistic! When you've got ignorant oblivious Maddie putting her foot in her mouth left and right, surrounded by hyper-aware activists, of COURSE she's going to get schooled. Side note: someone should write up Gestas's radical education reading list!

[Priscilla]

There’s a famous quote by César A. Cruz that can best sum up how this book made me feel. “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.”

[Logan Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like this book can be taken a couple of ways, some more charitable than others. For context, I lean left politically.

The more charitable way is to accept that it is being told from Maddie's perspective, and that her experience colors the narrative. It affects how other characters are portrayed and how the growing movement is showcased. Characters condense themselves into ideals and representations, since that is how Maddie sees them. Her shame and guilt causes her to make decisions that are consistent with her character, though I might find them irritating.

This lines up well with the actual events of the book: these are told with remarkable realism, despite Maddie's perspective. It doesn't shy away from the ugly parts of leftist political movements, nor does Maddie examine them critically. The plot holds together as a faithful simulation of what the Village might be. I appreciate that it faces the reality of how potential revolutions work, and the resulting backlash. The story preserves suspension of disbelief in its human element, even if its science leaves much to be desired. It acknowledges the good parts of the world, even if groups disagree within coalitions.

The less charitable way to look at the book is to take it as a guideline, as a set of ideas and morals to follow. I suspect that the author largely intended this, judging by their acknowledgments.

In that viewpoint, this book is roughly 300 pages of being lectured at by the most annoying leftist that you know. It is quick to criticize, quick to complain, but slow to offer tangible solutions. Each character is a talking point, each interaction a collision of histories and oppression. It offers resentment and protest, but fails to provide good outlets for them. It goes so far down its political rabbit hole that I almost took it for satire at first.

Kern's prose is fine. The problem with this book is that it oozes vitriol, but doesn't have a plan for what happens after tearing down unjust power structures. It doesn't offer ways to solve problems within existing systems, or at least reduce harm.

It's a justified temper tantrum, but it doesn't change the fact that tantrums make you look like a kid.

[Geonn Cannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

There comes a point where, even if you agree with the politics and message an author is presenting, you want to just scream at the book to STOP PREACHING and just tell the damn story. The first half of this book has hints of a really good story that screeches to a halt so characters you haven't had a chance to really get to know yet sit and give speeches. It gets so tedious and overwhelms the narrative.

The writing is good, but if the author had just let the characters exist/live instead of being stereotypes and mouthpieces, it would have been so much more enjoyable.

[Yash Wadhwani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't get neopronouns.

The first time I read Xe/Xir I thought my ebook copy had been uploaded with errors. It felt like driving over potholes.

I also found the writing quality to be just average.

I've wanted to ask Sim Kern:
Why were there so many exclamations?
Why were the characters
- who are adults trying to overthrow capitalism - giggling at each other?

And personally for me,
the romance between Maddie and Red felt too much
like teen dramas from the early 2000s.

Maddie is incredibly hormonal to every little thing Red does.

On page 163 she is
"blushing all the way up to my forehead"
and then on page 165 she is
"blushing all the way up to my hairline."

I'm being this harsh because I want to get my criticisms out of the way.
This is a worthy book.

Set in an alternative America where Al Gore won the 2000 presidential election,
‘The Free People's Village’ shows us a world in which
The War On Climate Change is just like
The War on Drugs.

Another way for the rich to distance themselves from the poor.

The Eighth Ward - a historically black and brown neighbourhood - is about to be razed to the ground for an apparently green hyperway.

This is a highway meant to connect the city to the suburbs where much of the wealthier class lives.

Also - because even in Al Gore's America we'll never entirely be free of neoliberalism’s addiction to Dino Juice - the hyperway serves as a subterranean cover for a pipeline.

And so, all the rockers and the artists and the socialists and the indigenous come to live together at ‘The Lab’ - a warehouse located in the middle of the hyperway's construction path.

This graffitied den - formerly the center of Huston's Pop-Punk scene - shows us how an anarchist state can be run as a democratic utopia.

Even though at times I felt the character's dialogues were just excuses for the author to preach *their ideals, I did find those ideals vigorous.
(*a change was made here to account for unintentional misgendering on my part. I apologize).

I’m biased. But,
I don't think we talk enough about the intersection between class, race, and gender.

I may not totally understand why someone wants to be a Xe/Xir.

But I know,
I have more in common with xir than I do with the people trying to subjugate xir freedom.

And hey, who doesn't want to live in a warehouse cooking and eating and arguing with comrades who make music and art and spend their life fighting for the voices of those who the state will ignore?

That's the incredible thing about ‘The Free People's Village.’

This eco-punk-sci-fi novel is a life-altering world.
Especially those last 100 pages.

I charged through the last 100 in a fevered state.
Up all night under the light of my lamp.
Physically still but for my moving lips.
Mentally fighting for libertad.

I finished the book full of hope. Full of vigor.
And the responsibility to never say "it is what it is."

But to speak up when I see injustice. To do something to make the world a little bit better.
To always fight against the systems that wait for the masses to get jaded and give up.

‘The Free People's Village’ is not the most well written novel.

But that doesn’t make it any less important.

- The Free People's Village by Sim Kern
- Published by Levine Querido
- Cover by Ganzeer

(This review has been re-edited a few times. My initial rating was 3 stars but revised to one star because the author blocked me on IG. I have come to understand they did this not to quash criticism but due to my unintended misgendering of them in my review. The correction has been made and the star rating has been returned to 3. I have also deleted the post on Instagram. Apologies if I have caused any pain in this matter).

[Kristin Hoyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC of the book and to Sim Kern for organizing the Trans Rights Readathon. I look forward to reading all the other books I have on deck by trans authors and hope this becomes a yearly event!

The Free People's Village is a radically entertaining, enlightening, rollercoaster of a novel. Maddie, the relatable everywoman in the book, meets a rich app developer with some progressive ideals that include creating a music and arts space in a historically poor, black neighborhood in Houston. Renters in the building include Red, a charismatic and irresistible musician, Gestas, a black trans man who is on a version of House Arrest, and a host of other artists, musicians, and idealists. It is through these new friends that Maddie begins to question her own ideas and beliefs.

When developers threaten to take down half the neighborhood to build a new highway (called a hyperway), Maddie and her friends join the mostly black local activists in fighting to keep the neighborhood intact. How far will they go to protect the home they have grown to love, and what would it take to actually help the marginalized people of the neighborhood?

This book takes place in an alternate reality where Al Gore won the 2000 election and made climate change a top priority. What I loved was the thoughtful examination of what that would mean for marginalized groups. We follow Maddie, a white, educated, former-Christian as she learns how racist and classist even progressive policies can be. When gas cars are illegal, who can afford to buy electric vehicles? Who can afford to upgrade their home and get the tax breaks involved? Who can afford to eat meat and dairy when they are heavily taxed? Maddie spends a lot of time getting things wrong, putting her foot in her mouth, and making assumptions about how other people feel and what they want. It was refreshing to watch her struggle to grow and learn. That's really what it takes to understand how other people experience the world and to get outside of our own lives. It's painful, but Maddie does the work to become a better person.

Though Kern is clearly focused on environmentalism and social justice, they don't skimp on the characters. Maddie, Red, Angel, Gestas, Shayna, and others, are deep and well-rounded, wonderful and flawed. It's fascinating to watch the movement grow and to see how people with differing beliefs contribute in their own ways. Kern writes the good and the bad, not glossing over the difficulties or logistics it would take to organize a social justice movement, including food, space, endless planning meetings, and even bathrooms.

I absolutely loved the feeling, while reading, of being part of the movement, seeing the ups and downs, the problems and solutions, and the mental struggles of Maddie and others. She's an imperfect helper and observer, selfish and selfless at the same time, someone who cares deeply and wants to do right but often screws it up.

This book gave me hope for the future, while keeping me grounded in the reality of the trials marginalized people continue to face. It reminded me that progressive beliefs and ideals are generally not enough to make a change. We need radical people and radical ideas to keep the world moving in the right direction.

I give it a 10/10 and recommend it to anyone interested in social justice, science fiction, and environmental issues.

[Dawn (DeDe) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, publisher Levine Querido, & author Sim Kern for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Sim Kern’s, The Free People’s Village is the first climate fiction coming-of-age story I've read. I found them through TikTok and the Trans Rights Readathon this month. The author is a climate fiction writer and journalist, which lends to their intersection of climate, identity, and social justice.

The story reveals an alternative timeline where Al Gore won his presidential bid in the 2000 election and proclaimed a War on Climate Change. The war, even after twenty years, has not benefited all citizens equitably. Instead, it has allowed the affluent, white neighborhoods of the suburbs to be a lush environment of performative climate ‘activism.’ At the same time, lower-income black, brown, and indigenous communities in the cities pay a heavy carbon tax for every part of their lives.

The main character, Maddie Ryan, is a teacher at a mostly Black high school in Houston, Texas, during the day and a guitarist with her queer punk band, Bunny Bloodlust, during her off hours. Maddie finds herself amid a Black-led movement called to protect the neighborhood she works and plays in called the Eighth Ward.

Maddie’s reasons for her activism change as she matures in her different connections and interactions with folx in the Eighth Ward and what becomes the Free People's Village. As a white female presenting individual, Maggie struggles with her identity and privilege, which influences how she interacts with her shame and guilt.

You will meet incredibly complex people through Maddies POV, like her bandmate & person, Red. Red’s anarchist friend Gestas and Red’s brother Angel. Shayna, the leader of the movement. Vida and Peter activists, Nimo and Lorenzo. These relationships are significant catalysts in Maddie’s finding her identity and social justice compass.

I enjoyed every minute of reading this story and truly believe that we need more stories like Sim Kerns. These are important to help us realize the part to play in overcoming climate change, standing up & defending social and economic justice for black, brown, and indigenous people, and bringing real and equitable change for marginalized folx. I highly recommend The Free People's Village!

[SJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still don’t really have the words to explain how incredible this book was and how much I loved it. It was truly captivating. There is a romance subplot to this book, but that is not the focus. Free People’s Village is set in an alternate 2020 America in the midst of the War on Climate. This book is a dystopian allegory. Environmental racism and gentrification are two huge arcs in the storyline. It is not a light or easy read. It covers intense and heavy topics and there are parts of the story that might be hard to read for some (trigger warnings at the bottom).

This story isn’t just about protest, it’s about revolution. About what it takes to start a revolution. And the risks that come with being involved, especially if you aren’t white. It’s about the resiliency of humanity and power we can have when we come together. Kern tackled topics like capitalism and communism. Police brutality and racial profiling. Gentrification. Activism. The importance of unlearning the lies we’ve been taught and learning about our real history.

Maddie is not your typical MC/narrator. She is not the heroine or even anti-hero of this story. She is simply telling us the story of what happened at the Free People’s Village from her perspective. Maddie has so much growth as a character in this story. She starts from a place of selfishness and ignorance but begins to educate herself about history and politics and all manner of things. I love that while this story was told from the perspective of a white character, the story did not center whiteness. In fact, there were constant moves to decenter whiteness throughout. There is also SO MUCH representation in this book - BIPOC, trans, non-binary, and all kinds of queerness.

Free People’s Village was powerful and heart wrenching and beautiful and eye opening and just amazing. This book will both call you out and call you to action. It will challenge and inspire you. Simply put, this book was phenomenal!

Thank you NetGalley, Sim Kern, and Levine Querido for the ARC!

TW: drug/alcohol use, addiction, overdose, rape/sexual assault, death, violence, religious trauma, suicide/suicidal ideation, racism, homophobia, transphobia (Not all of these things appear on the page in graphic detail. Some are just mentioned. Some are past things that are talked about. Some are more prevalent parts of the story line.)

[Jenia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had so much fun with this book. It's not perfect, but it's just so nice to read something unashamedly political, leftie and green. The main characters drove me a little crazy - in a way very true to life as these sorta people very much exist in such spaces and do drive me crazy 😂 And I teared up a little in the end. I think I needed that, when I'm feeling quite depressed about my own activism work..

[MissBecka Gee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me extremely uncomfortable.
Did I see pieces of myself in Maddie?
Unfortunately, yes.
Did I know what was going on the whole time or understand why everything was happening?
Nope.
Did that seem to matter?
Also no.

The book takes place in an alternate dystopian past that has bit of our past and could also be our future if we aren't more present. That shit scared the hell outta me.
I felt nervous, swoony, angry, empowered, confused, wistful, sad, fearful and ashamed while reading this.
Full emotional onslaught and I am not mad about it!
This was my first book by Sim Kern and the only thing I wish for, was that I had picked it up sooner.
I cannot wait to dive into more of Kern's writing!
Much love to NetGalley & Levine Querido for my DRC.

[Ari · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are already quite a few reviews about how the characters are mostly mouthpieces for leftist talking points. I'm actually quite sympathetic to the mouthpiece stuff. Sometimes I look at, say, work by Aaron Sorkin (whom I find annoying, but who is very beloved by his audience) and I agree that other writers should sometimes get away with more telling than showing, that we should have our explainers and infodumps, too. I find it interesting to think about what a writer is able to "get away" with when it comes to writing propaganda, or inviting readers to engage with political ideas. Because politics in fiction is part of the craft, too. When it comes to politics, why write fiction and not an essay? Because fiction is subversive, and because stories, when they're compelling, are accessible, and entreat us to retell them. But for all those things to be true, it has to be a good story with good characters. These characters are the the most not-real characters I've ever encountered. They explain things to each other like how the fake friends in prescription drug commercials tell each other about the side effects. So in that sense, I don't think the author gets away with very much.

I also want to make a note on the politics, which other reviews don't seem to touch on. Ironically, I think the book suffers from what many leftist art suffers from: liberalism. The book hammers home that these characters are cool, artsy, tortured, and valiant. Therefore, their decisions (and the risks that come with them) are heroic, and the book doesn't seem to treat them as anything but. The book romanticizes their actions and any consequences turn the characters into martyrs for the cause, which is only a bittersweet thing that inspires more hope. There's no real room for interrogation, strategy building, organization, or lessons learned. The revolution is just the friends we make along the way. (Honestly, it reminds me of the romanticism of the Seattle CHOP/CHAZ. The way so many people remember it through rose tinted glasses and are unwilling to seriously critique it, because to do so would violate a sacred memory of a beautiful thing that was lost. This is a whole other conversation about how leftists can be very precious about projects because the projects are meaningful to us, even though many of these projects wind up being failures and could use some serious scrutiny.) So the book tries to make a case for activism, but it's moralistic, preachy, and it rings hollow. It is earnest, but oftentimes comes off as naive. Similarly, The Free People's Village is a noble effort with a pretty poor result. I don't think it convinces anyone who isn't already convinced.

[Bella · Rating 3 out of 5]

i cannot count the number of times my eyes nearly rolled out of my head

[Whitney Weinberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t exactly know how to describe how I feel after finishing this book. It felt… chewy? Like a lot to sit and digest in the best way possible. So many feelings and concepts to think about. Discusses so much-race, white saviorism, gender, sexuality, climate change, gentrification and more I missed I’m sure.

Revolutionary.

The main character Maddie was so relatable as she goes from hyper religious to in the thick of an anarchistic revolution- with the best characters in her circle. All of the other characters were written so well I felt like I was friends with everyone too.

Definitely check cw, everything was handled with care but some things could be especially triggering to some readers.

Thanks to NetGalley and Levine Querido and Sim Kern for an eARC.

[Elle · Rating 2 out of 5]

God, I really disliked this book. I don’t understand the raving reviews at all. I was so sorely disappointed in it because the premise sounds so interesting, but the execution just wasn’t there. I found the main character (in first person narrative) exceedingly annoying and I couldn’t sympathize with her at all. It felt like I was reading a cheesy love story made for 6th graders at times. I also think the educational aspects of activism didn’t work well in a novel format because it ended up sounding preachy.

[Liv Ab · Rating 1 out of 5]

garbage.

[Hannah Joslin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean, if a book can have me endlessly crying for the last like 40 pages of it, it’s 5 stars for me.

“Through the music, we were telling each other a little of what we knew about pain and loneliness and the beauty that springs up in the ugliest places.”

“letting go of regret is particularly hard, because it means finally letting go of the notion that the past can be changed. As long as we cling to regret, we haven't truly accepted what has happened.
As long as we cling to regret, we don't have to fully grieve what we've lost.”

“shame is not rational. Like regret, shame can be a coping mechanism, a way of convincing ourselves that we matter, that our actions could've changed these highly complex events that were set in motion by zillions of chain reactions stretching back to the dawn of time.
Shame is also the most uncomfortable feeling for our psyche to handle. People will destroy relationships, blow up their lives, do terrible violence to avoid feeling shame for even an instant. Because shame is a bottomless pit, and once you trip over that edge, you might never stop falling.”

“Maybe 99.99% of our lives will be spent stuck trudging down the narrow sidewalks afforded to us by capitalism. Roads have taken away our land, our right to roam and play. Artificial scarcity forces us to work ourselves sick at shitty, soul-crushing jobs or we risk death from starvation, homelessness, or medical neglect.
Environmental destruction has severed us from our nurturing nonhuman relatives. Colonization has erased our ancestors and histories. Step out of line, raise your voice against the state, make a mistake, and you'll be crushed with swift and brutal violence.
But once in a while, for a brief bubble in time, enough of us get together to defy the ruling classes. To step out in the street and carve our own path. And even if I get to experience that for less than 0.01% of my time on this earth, I'll take it.”

[Rachel Dalton (relisedreads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️

In a world where Gore won the 2000 election instead of Bush, the war against climate change is in full swing 20 years later. Carbon credits are required as tax for things like beef, dairy and electricity, only the rich have cars, the police use drones and robot dogs to track people and there’s a war over a fire in the Amazon. But just like our reality, people of color, LGBTQIA people, and the impoverished are disproportionately affected by laws and police violence.

Maddie Ryan is a sheltered girl. She grew up religious and married way too young to a man that used the Bible to shame her. Newly divorced and wanting something different, she meets Red and his roommate Gestas and they show her the world of the resistance. They become part of “The Free People’s Village,” and attempt to form an anti-capitalist society while fighting back against an overpowered government while searching for justice.

I really liked the butterfly effect aspect of this story. If Al Gore had won the election and the US focused on climate change rather than the War on Terror, how different would our world be now? I liked how even with all the changes were made, racism and classism is still rampant. There are a lot of tongue and cheek events that almost break the fourth wall; the republican candidate winning when no one thought the country was that racist, the violence and disproportionate incarceration of people of color, and an animal based virus threatening to spread across the nation.

There is a part in the book where Red tells Maddie not to make everything about her and that’s truly a summary of every action Maddie takes. She’s upset that people think she’s gentrifying the neighborhood which inspires her action but it all comes across very disingenuous. She started all this to impress Red. Every things she did was either to impress Red or to relieve her of her white guilt. At times she clearly doesn’t understand her privilege and just wants the people who are hurt by these injustices to tell her she did good. She was not a sympathetic character and it took way too long for her to have any character development.

Thank you NetGalley and Levine Querido for providing this ARC to me!

[Brandi McPherson · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC BOOK REVIEW

I read this book as part of the #transrightsreadathon 2023.

"...all xir energy and vibrations are still ricocheting around inside me, setting off chain reactions down a zillion quantum pathways, echo-
ing out in the world, influencing the universe forever."

In an alternate 2020 timeline, Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared a War on Climate Change rather than a War on Terror. But really, not much has changed. Corporations and rich white people still make all the rules and bend or break them without consequences. Meanwhile, marginalized people are still criminalized and live in poverty.
The book follows a young disillusioned teacher, Maddie, who finds her place at the Lab, an old warehouse in the poverty-stricken Eighth Ward where she teaches. There, she connects with Red, with whom she quickly falls in love, along with several other people who become her found family throughout the course of the book. When the Lab is slated to be torn down for a new "green" highway, she joins the fight to save the neighborhood.
This book is a powerful statement about capitalism, colonialism, and revolution. While Maddie begins the fight for selfish reasons (to stay with Red and keep her safe haven) she begins to become "radicalized" by the movement. While her romance with Red was an important part of her story, I actually feel like the most meaningful person to Maddie's growth was Gestas, her trans band mate and a self-proclaimed anarchist. It's through Gestas that she educates herself and sees beyond herself. And then through her friendship with Shayna, the main organizer of "Save the Eighth," she learns to keep fighting even if you keep losing.
This book tipped the scales for me from being personally anti-capitalist in thought, to wanting to find ways to be anti-capitalist in practice! Not everyone in Sim's book gets a happy bow-wrapped ending (quite the opposite), and yet it still left me with hope. A hope that each new fight makes a difference in the long run.

*******
I received this eARC from Netgalley, publisher Levine Querido, and author Sim Kern in exchange for an honest review.

[Star.e.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
This book is heavy, but an important read. It hits on many current sociopolitical issues and I appreciated the topic covered.

This story takes place in an alternate timeline where Al Gore had won the 2000 USA presidential election and declared a War on Climate Change. Prior to the 2020 election Maddie is going through her life as teacher at a predominantly Black school by day and a guitarist of a queer punk band by night. Initially she is just trying to keep her band together and hopes to get closer to one of the band members, but as a gentrification project threaten the ward that she teaches in and where her band resides her focus shifts. This takes her on a journey to try to stand up for the communities impacted by a project that will only benefit the wealthy white communities, she gets involved with the Save the Eight, a Black-led organization that mobilizes stand up against social injustices. This is where she stars to pay attention to her white privilege, the white supremacist tendencies that she was raised with, and how she has been part of the harm to her community all along.

She goes through stages of discomfort and encounters learning opportunities. The situations are not always handled perfectly, but I think this is where as a reader we can learn from that perspective. It is ok to be uncomfortable, not be defensive, to know we don’t have to be perfect from the start, and acknowledge it and do better the next time. Change is gradual and awareness is the first step towards action.

Honestly, it was hard to read the parts where the MC struggled, but those situations allowed for me to dig deeper personally and question what I have been socially conditioned to and the harm behind all of it. I know that I have further work to do especially when it comes to next steps of action and more education, but I think the book touched on a lot of important topics that I hope resonates with others and encourages them on their path of learning and action.

Thank you to NetGalley, Levine Querido, and Sim Kern for this ARC.

[Andrew Eder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need to take many naps after reading this. It was a JOURNEY. Very similar to Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow in the sense that you grow with the characters SO MUCH that it’s just nonstop. It’s one of those books where it’ll take me a bit to really get into a new book because this storyline has consumed so much of my mental capacity.

Maddy as the MC was truly a joy. Dynamic and fluid and the growth and the reflection of what we are always asking ourselves??? Iconic.

The side characters didn’t really feel like side characters because they were so well fleshed out and deep that they were so important!!! Fantastic writing.

The central message and storyline is frightening and JUST different enough from real life that I can separate but also nerve wracking to compare real life to this life.

This is NOT a light read by any means and doesn’t really make me feel good??? There’s some joy and excitement but a good amount of tragedy. Do I recommend this? Absolutely because it is a work of ART and CRITIC and ANALYSIS and THOUGHT. But I do feel like you have to be smart, like, socially to get it.

[Fatima A. Alsaif · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever felt let down, defeated, or heartbroken by a social movement? Then this book is a must-read for you! The plot is captivating, with humanly flawed characters in a VERY flawed world.

And I thought Maddie’s journey towards becoming an ally and discovering her identity is both engaging and very well written.

One reviewer on Goodreads described this book as a call to action, urging readers to keep putting the work even when immediate results are not apparent. And I wholeheartedly echo this sentiment!

I highly recommend reading this book. And I look forward to reading more books by Sim Kern.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Taking it in my hands felt like holding a bomb. But I was ready for it to blow up whatever walls it was coming for.”

Massive thanks to Sim Kern for an ARC of their book in exchange for an honest review. It is an absolute MUST READ. Swipe for the full synopsis.

This book feels like an episode of Black Mirror, with an alternate timeline where Al Gore won the 2000 election and declared war on climate change. But what’s so compelling and thought-provoking about this novel is how realistic it still feels. The same people - the white and wealthy - have benefitted from the war on climate change, while poor, Black and Brown people are paying the price.

What’s absolutely astounding about this book is how real it felt. We are following Maddie, a white woman who is having a reckoning with the harm she’s done and gentrification she’s participated in. She is so relatable and it feels like you’re with her every step of the way. As the reader you’re continually learning along with her as she joins the cause to Save the Eighth. Everything feels so visceral; as Maddie is learning and unlearning biases it felt like I was Maddie, constantly checking my own privilege.

“The only war this country has ever fought - has always fought - is the war on Black and Indigenous people!”

Nothing about this book feels forced, and I think I ran through all of the possible emotions while I was reading, and I just couldn’t put it down. The way Kern manages to critique white liberalism while making the reader check their privilege is nothing short of incredible. They manage to tackle intersectionality and connect current issues into this story. It’s as page-turning as it is rage-inducing. This book made me want to get better educated and do something to change the world I live. THAT is how powerful this book is. I have never read anything like this, and I can’t recommend it enough.