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The Warming
‘The sun was so brutal, so twisted in its brutality, it seemed to grip us by the neck and push us down into the drowning waters. And, in the end, that was our choice: by water – or by sun.’
The year is 2221 and the world is dying. Temperatures soar as high as fifty degrees every day. Sea levels are rising year by year. The population has fallen to below 2 billion people. The ruined cities of the north – Sydney, Brisbane and beyond – were abandoned as the rising sea and the sun’s intensity turned them to wastelands.
In an isolated coastal town south of Sydney, young Finch Taylor is captivated by the mysterious beauty April Speare and her pianist husband William when they move into a nearby beach house with a piano and a tragic secret. Finch soon begins a lifelong love affair with music, and with April. But as he and April follow the great migration south to Tasmania, and eventually to a warming Antarctica, they must decide whether to bring children into a world without a future.
Hauntingly beautiful, The Warming depicts a nomadic existence, where love and hope are the only means of enduring a world that has turned against humanity.
The year is 2221 and the world is dying. Temperatures soar as high as fifty degrees every day. Sea levels are rising year by year. The population has fallen to below 2 billion people. The ruined cities of the north – Sydney, Brisbane and beyond – were abandoned as the rising sea and the sun’s intensity turned them to wastelands.
In an isolated coastal town south of Sydney, young Finch Taylor is captivated by the mysterious beauty April Speare and her pianist husband William when they move into a nearby beach house with a piano and a tragic secret. Finch soon begins a lifelong love affair with music, and with April. But as he and April follow the great migration south to Tasmania, and eventually to a warming Antarctica, they must decide whether to bring children into a world without a future.
Hauntingly beautiful, The Warming depicts a nomadic existence, where love and hope are the only means of enduring a world that has turned against humanity.
- GenresScience FictionDystopia
318 pages, ebook
Published January 1, 2019
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59 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
June 3, 2019
So let’s take it from the start. It’s the 24th century, and things aren’t, for the Earth, going well.
Because global warming has, of course, managed to eliminate a whole lot of the planet’s population. (What’s a few billion between friends?) Between increasing heat and rising sea levels, a whole load of the planet is now uninhabitable, and what’s left of humanity keeps a brave face on while moving towards the poles, in the hope that the areas of declining iciness might provide a place to live, at least for a time.
That’s the setting of Craig Ensor’s debut novel, and it’s a pretty timely one, if you’ve paid any attention to the climate catastrophe on our doorstep. And as far as cli-fi goes, this is a pretty great first salvo. And while the overwhelming fuckery of a dying earth is the stage for the story, the meat of the work is the relationship of a young boy, Finch, and a married woman, April Speare. Yes, we’re aware that the seas and mercury both are creeping up, and that that is horrifying, but the twists and turns of interpersonal relationships are always foregrounded.
After all: don’t you think about your family more than you think about the ice caps? Even though you know that Big Issues are critical, it’s almost impossible to internalise such things. Sure, we all know that we’re going to die. But how many of us internalise that, or make peace with it until it’s almost upon us? Likewise, the characters in The Warming focus on their relationships, on their failings, even in the face of a world where enormous escape-pods are constructed for the wealthy to make a nautical escape upon.
The relationships in the novel, particularly that of parents and their children, are finely drawn. The author has a great eye for emotion, and the manifold confusions of interpersonal communication. The way words fall short and emotions overplay themselves is conveyed adroitly, and a lot of the text reads like uncorked memory. There’s a slipperiness to some of the chapters which puts me in mind of Carey’s writing: at once factual but full-throated in its emotional heft.
Music – composition particularly – is key (ha) to the novel, and so it’s unsurprising that the book’s arranged in movements. (The duel meaning obviously is important, given the couple of changes of locale which feature as time passes and heat increases.) The idea of repetition, of thematic variation is important, too; the novel revisits ideas and thoughts again and again, replaying disappointments and joys in other emotional keys to provide some alternate meaning.
This sense of harking back to things is important, as Ensor’s writing does not unspool neatly in chronological order. Rather, the narrative’s short chapters have the feeling of recounted memories, and contain all the pitfalls and unreliability of own own reminiscences. Parts of the story only become clear later on, and there’s a continual revision, continual refinement of the reader’s understanding of the story. I found plenty of little AHA! moments throughout, and it kept pulling me through the major characters’ lives.
While it’s set in the future, none of the novel is particularly outlandish in terms of tech. Everything seems pretty much in line with what you’d imagine may occur, and there’s no huge paradigm shifts. Avoiding a technological MacGuffin, Ensor manages to make the future appear as the present with a better phone system and shittier climate. It’s subtle, and it underscores how quickly today may become tomorrow.
Where the novel excels in proper SF-style terms is in its description of the ravages climate change levels on the earth. There’s a portion of the book describing a trip to a ruined Sydney, and it is a properly Ballardian excursion. Similarly, the futuristic Hobart skyline – yes, really! – is finely drawn. The speculative part of the fiction is so firmly grounded in fact that it’s almost impossible to view it as speculation. It seems that it’s something that will come to pass. Which, let’s face it, is an enormous bummer, though not one that stopped my reading.
It’d be great to believe that The Warming will be an alternate version of our planet’s future. It’d be wonderful if it proves to be quaintly outdated in the years Ensor writes about. Too much of it, though, rings true.
If, as I suspect, we’re all stuck heading southwards in heat-shielded cars, I hope readers of the future are able to take some solace in the portrait of dreams, love and the downfall of hopes portrayed here.
Ensor’s created an enjoyable bummer with The Warming. Whack it on your shelf next to On the Beach; the pair would make a good tandem read.
(I received a pre-publication copy of The Warming thanks to Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review. It’s due to be released in July 2019.)
Because global warming has, of course, managed to eliminate a whole lot of the planet’s population. (What’s a few billion between friends?) Between increasing heat and rising sea levels, a whole load of the planet is now uninhabitable, and what’s left of humanity keeps a brave face on while moving towards the poles, in the hope that the areas of declining iciness might provide a place to live, at least for a time.
That’s the setting of Craig Ensor’s debut novel, and it’s a pretty timely one, if you’ve paid any attention to the climate catastrophe on our doorstep. And as far as cli-fi goes, this is a pretty great first salvo. And while the overwhelming fuckery of a dying earth is the stage for the story, the meat of the work is the relationship of a young boy, Finch, and a married woman, April Speare. Yes, we’re aware that the seas and mercury both are creeping up, and that that is horrifying, but the twists and turns of interpersonal relationships are always foregrounded.
After all: don’t you think about your family more than you think about the ice caps? Even though you know that Big Issues are critical, it’s almost impossible to internalise such things. Sure, we all know that we’re going to die. But how many of us internalise that, or make peace with it until it’s almost upon us? Likewise, the characters in The Warming focus on their relationships, on their failings, even in the face of a world where enormous escape-pods are constructed for the wealthy to make a nautical escape upon.
The relationships in the novel, particularly that of parents and their children, are finely drawn. The author has a great eye for emotion, and the manifold confusions of interpersonal communication. The way words fall short and emotions overplay themselves is conveyed adroitly, and a lot of the text reads like uncorked memory. There’s a slipperiness to some of the chapters which puts me in mind of Carey’s writing: at once factual but full-throated in its emotional heft.
Music – composition particularly – is key (ha) to the novel, and so it’s unsurprising that the book’s arranged in movements. (The duel meaning obviously is important, given the couple of changes of locale which feature as time passes and heat increases.) The idea of repetition, of thematic variation is important, too; the novel revisits ideas and thoughts again and again, replaying disappointments and joys in other emotional keys to provide some alternate meaning.
This sense of harking back to things is important, as Ensor’s writing does not unspool neatly in chronological order. Rather, the narrative’s short chapters have the feeling of recounted memories, and contain all the pitfalls and unreliability of own own reminiscences. Parts of the story only become clear later on, and there’s a continual revision, continual refinement of the reader’s understanding of the story. I found plenty of little AHA! moments throughout, and it kept pulling me through the major characters’ lives.
While it’s set in the future, none of the novel is particularly outlandish in terms of tech. Everything seems pretty much in line with what you’d imagine may occur, and there’s no huge paradigm shifts. Avoiding a technological MacGuffin, Ensor manages to make the future appear as the present with a better phone system and shittier climate. It’s subtle, and it underscores how quickly today may become tomorrow.
Where the novel excels in proper SF-style terms is in its description of the ravages climate change levels on the earth. There’s a portion of the book describing a trip to a ruined Sydney, and it is a properly Ballardian excursion. Similarly, the futuristic Hobart skyline – yes, really! – is finely drawn. The speculative part of the fiction is so firmly grounded in fact that it’s almost impossible to view it as speculation. It seems that it’s something that will come to pass. Which, let’s face it, is an enormous bummer, though not one that stopped my reading.
It’d be great to believe that The Warming will be an alternate version of our planet’s future. It’d be wonderful if it proves to be quaintly outdated in the years Ensor writes about. Too much of it, though, rings true.
If, as I suspect, we’re all stuck heading southwards in heat-shielded cars, I hope readers of the future are able to take some solace in the portrait of dreams, love and the downfall of hopes portrayed here.
Ensor’s created an enjoyable bummer with The Warming. Whack it on your shelf next to On the Beach; the pair would make a good tandem read.
(I received a pre-publication copy of The Warming thanks to Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review. It’s due to be released in July 2019.)
July 11, 2019
Whilst I am most definitely impressed with the premise of the plot- set long after the world, the land, everything we know of is sparse and near deteriorated - and even having children isn't really an option, the world is dying - I was definitely impressed by that and it did make me wonder about the pending state of the world - however, I struggled with the storytelling of this. It was told from the perspective of our main character, recounting his life as an old man, telling us about how he grew up with his father, to when he fell in love with the mysterious female half of the married couple who move in to the nearby beach house. It definitely felt more like a journal, as it didn't have any quotation marks whatsoever- which is fine, I like books with journal entry aspects, or reading books told in this format- but in this instance it was just a struggle to constantly pick up who was saying what at times without those quotation marks!
Full review can be found here on my blog: https://wp.me/p82sSb-na
Full review can be found here on my blog: https://wp.me/p82sSb-na
July 5, 2019
This was a languid, wordy book that took me quite a while to get into. For the first third of it, I wasn't sure that it was the book for me, it was full of prose (bordering on the purple, in some cases) and I was wondering what it was all about.
And then, it hit its stride and I was glad that I persevered.
Yes, this book is about the effects of global warming on Australia (and as an Australian who has lived in many different parts of it, I could visualise the settings quite well), but that was just a tiny part of it. It was about Finch and April's relationships; with each other, with their family and also April's first husband. It was quite poignant in parts and I found myself getting emotionally involved.
If you want a straight, end-of-the-world kind of book, this isn't it. It is sobering to realise that the author's vision of Australia in the nearish future could well end up being true, unfortunately. It will be interesting to see what happens with it all.
I gave it 3 stars because it was a pretty good book, but not a great one, at least, not for me. I found it hard work to continue reading it, but I think it was because it was a different kind of book than what I thought it was.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster.
And then, it hit its stride and I was glad that I persevered.
Yes, this book is about the effects of global warming on Australia (and as an Australian who has lived in many different parts of it, I could visualise the settings quite well), but that was just a tiny part of it. It was about Finch and April's relationships; with each other, with their family and also April's first husband. It was quite poignant in parts and I found myself getting emotionally involved.
If you want a straight, end-of-the-world kind of book, this isn't it. It is sobering to realise that the author's vision of Australia in the nearish future could well end up being true, unfortunately. It will be interesting to see what happens with it all.
I gave it 3 stars because it was a pretty good book, but not a great one, at least, not for me. I found it hard work to continue reading it, but I think it was because it was a different kind of book than what I thought it was.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster.
September 2, 2019
The Warming was beautifully crafted, complex and visually very strong. The eloquence of the sentences floored me time and again, and the structure of the three parts, Sydney, Hobart and Mawson, was wonderfully conceived and executed. An important story for the times we live in.
June 27, 2019
Average sea levels have risen around 23 centimetres since 1880 and that rate is accelerating, with another 3.2mm of rise each year in 2019. What if that rate continues to accelerate as the polar ice caps melt and the water heats up? Most of the eastern seaboard of Australia would be underwater, drowning Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
By 2221 most Australians might have moved to Hobart in southern Tasmania to escape the sea rise and ever-increasing temperatures.
This is the world Craig Ensor imagines in his new novel, The Warming.
The Warming is an intriguingly positive rendering of the future death of our planet. Told through the lens of a life-long love story, it shows that perhaps descending into war and mayhem amid environmental chaos is not necessarily our destiny.
This is a very different kind of climate fiction. It depicts a world where every country welcomes climate refugees and we’ve created artistic and academic enclaves towards the north and south poles. I have to say, though, I did wonder a little what our future descendants might have done with all the poor people and the football nuts when they formed these intellectual paradises.
In an isolated coastal town south of Sydney, young Finch Taylor is captivated by the mysterious beauty April Speare and her pianist husband William when they move into a nearby beach house with a piano and a tragic secret. Finch soon begins a lifelong love affair with music, and with April. But as he and April follow the great migration south to Tasmania, and eventually to a warming Antarctica, they must decide whether to bring children into a world without a future.
In 2221 the world is dying. Scientists have accepted it’s only a matter of a few generations until the earth will be unfit for human life. Many people have stopped having children; others have children as a protest of hope. But mostly, they bide their time. There is nothing to be done except move further south. As Finch Taylor muses:
The technological advancements in The Warming also fascinating. Self-driving cars, of course, but also new ways to mark university students. For piano students, grades are based on the player’s ability to emotionally impact the listeners. Technology measures the level and type of emotion felt by each individual listener.
The Warming is a story that starts small and slowly creeps outwards until you can see the whole picture stretching back through time. For many chapters it’s simply the story of a 15-year-old boy with a major crush on a married 22-year-old woman, who also happens to be the only female for miles around.
It moves beyond this as both Finch and April age and grow towards each other. But in essence, The Warming remains throughout a love story at the end of the world.
By 2221 most Australians might have moved to Hobart in southern Tasmania to escape the sea rise and ever-increasing temperatures.
This is the world Craig Ensor imagines in his new novel, The Warming.
The Warming is an intriguingly positive rendering of the future death of our planet. Told through the lens of a life-long love story, it shows that perhaps descending into war and mayhem amid environmental chaos is not necessarily our destiny.
This is a very different kind of climate fiction. It depicts a world where every country welcomes climate refugees and we’ve created artistic and academic enclaves towards the north and south poles. I have to say, though, I did wonder a little what our future descendants might have done with all the poor people and the football nuts when they formed these intellectual paradises.
In an isolated coastal town south of Sydney, young Finch Taylor is captivated by the mysterious beauty April Speare and her pianist husband William when they move into a nearby beach house with a piano and a tragic secret. Finch soon begins a lifelong love affair with music, and with April. But as he and April follow the great migration south to Tasmania, and eventually to a warming Antarctica, they must decide whether to bring children into a world without a future.
In 2221 the world is dying. Scientists have accepted it’s only a matter of a few generations until the earth will be unfit for human life. Many people have stopped having children; others have children as a protest of hope. But mostly, they bide their time. There is nothing to be done except move further south. As Finch Taylor muses:
By the time I arrived at the University of Tasmania, over two hundred years after the first scientific acknowledgement of the warming, the universities had accepted the fact that there would be no stay or reversal. There was no technological solution. The warming had a momentum which no amount of political change or technological advancement could stop. The solution was simple: to move. As we had done for thousands and thousands of years. Move from land to land. Southwards. Or northwards, for those on the other side of the equator. Two choices.
The technological advancements in The Warming also fascinating. Self-driving cars, of course, but also new ways to mark university students. For piano students, grades are based on the player’s ability to emotionally impact the listeners. Technology measures the level and type of emotion felt by each individual listener.
The Warming is a story that starts small and slowly creeps outwards until you can see the whole picture stretching back through time. For many chapters it’s simply the story of a 15-year-old boy with a major crush on a married 22-year-old woman, who also happens to be the only female for miles around.
It moves beyond this as both Finch and April age and grow towards each other. But in essence, The Warming remains throughout a love story at the end of the world.
July 26, 2019
I would rather have given The Warming 3.5 stars if possible because I felt it does drag a bit in places. But 3 seems too low for the quality of writing found in this novel.
To me, this is a mood book. If you are in the right mood it will carry you away to a melancholy, daydream reality where the poignant echoes of youthful memory are overlaid on the self-inflicted twilight of the human race.
The writing is evocative and lyrical but also contains a rugged Australian quality. As if a stockman was reading poetry.
I don't know if the author intended the central love story to be a vessel for a message about climate change, or vice versa, but either way it has an impact. It reminds you of lost love, regret over things said and unsaid, the fragility of life, and the fundamentals of the human condition.
I wouldn't recommend this book unconditionally, but I would say it is worth having for when the right mood is upon you and you can appreciate its qualities.
To me, this is a mood book. If you are in the right mood it will carry you away to a melancholy, daydream reality where the poignant echoes of youthful memory are overlaid on the self-inflicted twilight of the human race.
The writing is evocative and lyrical but also contains a rugged Australian quality. As if a stockman was reading poetry.
I don't know if the author intended the central love story to be a vessel for a message about climate change, or vice versa, but either way it has an impact. It reminds you of lost love, regret over things said and unsaid, the fragility of life, and the fundamentals of the human condition.
I wouldn't recommend this book unconditionally, but I would say it is worth having for when the right mood is upon you and you can appreciate its qualities.
August 3, 2019
Written in three parts if you persevere past the first section which I found long & dense you’ll get to the heart of ‘The Warming’. There has been a lot of talk & discussion about climate change & this book of speculative fiction pulls you head first into what it would feel like as life as we know it falls away. An interesting, thought provoking read.
August 4, 2019
As far as first novels go this is a good read. Like global warming this novel is a slow burn. It’s one boys story of growing up in a world constantly changing with the effects of global warming.
Part warning and part hopeful this story really rang true for me.
Part warning and part hopeful this story really rang true for me.
October 1, 2019
I enjoyed this well written book which spans three generations of a family forced to move south as the climate changes. It's interesting given it's optimism - no wars, no famine and a benevolent government. The story is a love story. I'd recommend it.
July 29, 2025
Now, before I go on, I should say that I haven’t finished the book, but I am open to finishing it. I’ve stopped just short of page 200. I’ve been feeling like leaving a review for a while now, likely because I’ve been bored. So, here’s a review, for where I’m up to so far. I might, should I finish it, and change my mind for whatever reason, come back and edit this.
I’d never heard of this book before; I came across it at my local library. The cover drew me in, as did the premise. I’m surprised that it hasn’t garnered more attention than this, and that the author, given his potential, hasn’t written anything else.
It’s a good book, for the most part. The language is rich, and replete with figurative phrases. I would say that it’s almost too rich, and borders on being excessive at times. Almost every page is full of rehashed, and reworked, descriptions of the weather, and the environment (which I guess you’d expect given what the book is about). All of this is very imaginative, and does breathe life into the world.
My main gripe with the book is that the characters, especially the boy (when the narrator was young), are annoying. Not only that, but it becomes very boring once the couple move out of the beach house, and movement 2 begins.
Why do I think that the boy is annoying? Because he’s - and I know I’m being petty and reductionistic here - a little pervert, and he sneaks away at every chance to spy on the couple, particularly the girl. Yes, fine, he’s a teenage boy, and that’s what they do; but still, it annoyed the shit out of me. Every page is him hiding here or there, watching, listening. The whole time I was wanting someone to drag him out of his hole and give him a good smacking. Much of him being able to spy on them, and talk to the girl, felt contrived: the man is always playing the piano, and I mean always, meaning that his attention is diverted, allowing the girl to do whatever she wants, have an affair with a 15 year old. The boy is allowed to leave whenever - I used to wonder how he’s out and about without his father knowing, up into the night, but there’s a convenient explanation revealed later: the father knew, but didn’t say anything. Sure, that might happen, but still, it felt like everything was designed, in an unrealistic way, to push April and Finch together, and advance the plot. Oh, and let’s not forget that once April runs away, years later, Finch somehow runs into her at university. But wait, there’s more: when he and April are travelling, they stop at a petrol station and who should they meet? The now legendary pianist, April’s ex, Speare. What are the odds? I know the world has been shrinking on account of rising waters, but is it really that small?
The characters don’t act their age. The boy, when he’s 15, acts like a 10 year old, then when he’s 20, he acts like a 50 year old, fresh from a Harvard reunion. The couple, too, both in their early 20s, act like they’re in their 50s, sipping wine like distinguished scholars fresh from a gabbing at Oxford Union. I was 15 once, as was I 20. Trust me. They don’t act or talk like that. In fact, I may be coming across as bitter here, but they’re pretty darn dumb, or, if you’d prefer, lacking in their intellectual/cognitive development, not far along the way, however far they may go... Are these two particularly bright/precocious? Maybe, dearie, but annoying nonetheless.
Like I said, it’s a good book, if not only for the language, and yes, the sort of touching relationship between Finch and April. It does deserve more recognition.
I’d never heard of this book before; I came across it at my local library. The cover drew me in, as did the premise. I’m surprised that it hasn’t garnered more attention than this, and that the author, given his potential, hasn’t written anything else.
It’s a good book, for the most part. The language is rich, and replete with figurative phrases. I would say that it’s almost too rich, and borders on being excessive at times. Almost every page is full of rehashed, and reworked, descriptions of the weather, and the environment (which I guess you’d expect given what the book is about). All of this is very imaginative, and does breathe life into the world.
My main gripe with the book is that the characters, especially the boy (when the narrator was young), are annoying. Not only that, but it becomes very boring once the couple move out of the beach house, and movement 2 begins.
Why do I think that the boy is annoying? Because he’s - and I know I’m being petty and reductionistic here - a little pervert, and he sneaks away at every chance to spy on the couple, particularly the girl. Yes, fine, he’s a teenage boy, and that’s what they do; but still, it annoyed the shit out of me. Every page is him hiding here or there, watching, listening. The whole time I was wanting someone to drag him out of his hole and give him a good smacking. Much of him being able to spy on them, and talk to the girl, felt contrived: the man is always playing the piano, and I mean always, meaning that his attention is diverted, allowing the girl to do whatever she wants, have an affair with a 15 year old. The boy is allowed to leave whenever - I used to wonder how he’s out and about without his father knowing, up into the night, but there’s a convenient explanation revealed later: the father knew, but didn’t say anything. Sure, that might happen, but still, it felt like everything was designed, in an unrealistic way, to push April and Finch together, and advance the plot. Oh, and let’s not forget that once April runs away, years later, Finch somehow runs into her at university. But wait, there’s more: when he and April are travelling, they stop at a petrol station and who should they meet? The now legendary pianist, April’s ex, Speare. What are the odds? I know the world has been shrinking on account of rising waters, but is it really that small?
The characters don’t act their age. The boy, when he’s 15, acts like a 10 year old, then when he’s 20, he acts like a 50 year old, fresh from a Harvard reunion. The couple, too, both in their early 20s, act like they’re in their 50s, sipping wine like distinguished scholars fresh from a gabbing at Oxford Union. I was 15 once, as was I 20. Trust me. They don’t act or talk like that. In fact, I may be coming across as bitter here, but they’re pretty darn dumb, or, if you’d prefer, lacking in their intellectual/cognitive development, not far along the way, however far they may go... Are these two particularly bright/precocious? Maybe, dearie, but annoying nonetheless.
Like I said, it’s a good book, if not only for the language, and yes, the sort of touching relationship between Finch and April. It does deserve more recognition.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2019
Let me say this first. I read a lot of chick-lit this book is NOT my usual genre. However, I can only read so many chick-lit books before I feel the need to "expand my palette" and this enticing blurb caused me to do just that.
A lot of the sci-fi books/movies believe after the 2400's humans will have fled Earth as it is a dying planet. What happens before humans leave Earth (in sci-fi terms). Cue in Craig Ensor's 'The warming'. The before hand of these sci-fi times.
Set throughout the 23rd century starting in 2215, the Earth is dying. With the exception of the non-believers, what's left of the human race (about 2 billion people) are moving towards the Poles of the Earth to escape the intense heat. Then what happens when the poles get too hot? Guess 'we'll make an arc' someone in the book said. The Earth is warming at an increasing rate, not just centuries but decades.
This book is a fictional memoir of Finch Taylor, we meet him as a fifteen year old boy and watch him navigate his life with his love April who is seven years older then him but I get the impression age doesn't stop people from dating in the 23rd century. Neither does race. Getting married two or three times is also considered the norm. What's not normal is having children, with a dying Earth a lot of people do not want to bring children into the the world if there is no future for them?
The best elements (no pun intended) of this book is definitely the weather and location. It was nice to see an Australian centred book on this sensitive topic. Ensor tries to paint us a picture of what Australia looks like in the 23rd century, everyone being glued to their screens is out, classical music is in (really?). I do find it interesting how basic the technology is described in 'the Warming', the setting allows for a lot more creativity but since the book focuses so much on the weather, that's ok.
What I would have liked to see in this book was the warming's effect on the economy. This caused a few plot holes for me. For example, the characters were always eating meat and drinking wine which from my knowledge requires a lot of grain and temperate conditions which would not grow properly in the warming weather, hence jacking up the prices and making these commodities for the wealthy. Why is nobody starving? Or why do these luxuries still exist?
Over his lifetime though, we read more about Finch's family than the weather because thinking about it. We spend a lot more time worrying about our family than the weather.
Did I find this book an enjoyable read? No, it was painful. Then I realised, that was what Ensor was trying to make us feel along and for that very reason 4 stars. It was the most thought provoking book I have read in a long time and it will stay with me for a while.
Wow, that book was exhausting, time to go back to chick-lit!
A lot of the sci-fi books/movies believe after the 2400's humans will have fled Earth as it is a dying planet. What happens before humans leave Earth (in sci-fi terms). Cue in Craig Ensor's 'The warming'. The before hand of these sci-fi times.
Set throughout the 23rd century starting in 2215, the Earth is dying. With the exception of the non-believers, what's left of the human race (about 2 billion people) are moving towards the Poles of the Earth to escape the intense heat. Then what happens when the poles get too hot? Guess 'we'll make an arc' someone in the book said. The Earth is warming at an increasing rate, not just centuries but decades.
This book is a fictional memoir of Finch Taylor, we meet him as a fifteen year old boy and watch him navigate his life with his love April who is seven years older then him but I get the impression age doesn't stop people from dating in the 23rd century. Neither does race. Getting married two or three times is also considered the norm. What's not normal is having children, with a dying Earth a lot of people do not want to bring children into the the world if there is no future for them?
The best elements (no pun intended) of this book is definitely the weather and location. It was nice to see an Australian centred book on this sensitive topic. Ensor tries to paint us a picture of what Australia looks like in the 23rd century, everyone being glued to their screens is out, classical music is in (really?). I do find it interesting how basic the technology is described in 'the Warming', the setting allows for a lot more creativity but since the book focuses so much on the weather, that's ok.
What I would have liked to see in this book was the warming's effect on the economy. This caused a few plot holes for me. For example, the characters were always eating meat and drinking wine which from my knowledge requires a lot of grain and temperate conditions which would not grow properly in the warming weather, hence jacking up the prices and making these commodities for the wealthy. Why is nobody starving? Or why do these luxuries still exist?
Over his lifetime though, we read more about Finch's family than the weather because thinking about it. We spend a lot more time worrying about our family than the weather.
Did I find this book an enjoyable read? No, it was painful. Then I realised, that was what Ensor was trying to make us feel along and for that very reason 4 stars. It was the most thought provoking book I have read in a long time and it will stay with me for a while.
Wow, that book was exhausting, time to go back to chick-lit!
November 28, 2020
There were parts of this book which were average but there were also parts which were gut wrenching and brilliant.
The book raises some of the questions we all ask as we reach adulthood. Should we have children? Is the world in a fit state to subject children to it? Is love and hope enough reason to keep going?
The difference is that Finch's story is set at a time when global warming has accelerated and rising sea-levels have drowned most of the cities of Australia. The population has moved to Hobart or Mawson (Antarctica, which now has a temperate climate). There is nowhere left to move other than the polar arks. Is it right to bring children into that world when they may be the last generation of humanity?
This is Finch's life story from 15 onwards. It is a life lived as best he can with the most morality he can manage. It is his gratitude to his dad, his losses, his loves, his joy and his confusion. It is deeply human but set in a more extreme time.
The book raises some of the questions we all ask as we reach adulthood. Should we have children? Is the world in a fit state to subject children to it? Is love and hope enough reason to keep going?
The difference is that Finch's story is set at a time when global warming has accelerated and rising sea-levels have drowned most of the cities of Australia. The population has moved to Hobart or Mawson (Antarctica, which now has a temperate climate). There is nowhere left to move other than the polar arks. Is it right to bring children into that world when they may be the last generation of humanity?
This is Finch's life story from 15 onwards. It is a life lived as best he can with the most morality he can manage. It is his gratitude to his dad, his losses, his loves, his joy and his confusion. It is deeply human but set in a more extreme time.
October 6, 2020
I loved everything about this novel, from the depth of the characters to the description of the environment and places well-known to me. I recognised my own thoughts and feelings throughout the story, which led to many teary moments. Countless sentences were written so beautifully, and delivered such important messages, that I would pause to read them again. It has made me want to appreciate my days more. It has reminded me to hold my loved ones a little tighter because it is inevitable that one day the people and places we love will change or even disappear completely. It is a story that dances between youthful joy and wonder, love, ageing, grief, and hope. A critic describes this novel as "hauntingly beautiful" ... and it certainly is that. I can't wait to read more Craig Ensor!
October 6, 2022
This is an end of the world book following Finch's life from 15 year old boy to his elderly years. Global warming has passed that tipping point and the earth boils; humanity migrates towards the poles and shrinks under a blistering unforgiving sun.
It is a love story, a story of human choices. It has a slow pace to doom but there are quiet moments of joy and celebration of life, living in your now.
I struggled with some of the climate science to come to terms with Sydney, Melbourne being underwater, whilst Hobart' Salamanca market is a bustling functioning and clearly above water.
There's more to say on this novel but I need to chew on it for a bit before writing and unintentionally spoiling it.
It is a love story, a story of human choices. It has a slow pace to doom but there are quiet moments of joy and celebration of life, living in your now.
I struggled with some of the climate science to come to terms with Sydney, Melbourne being underwater, whilst Hobart' Salamanca market is a bustling functioning and clearly above water.
There's more to say on this novel but I need to chew on it for a bit before writing and unintentionally spoiling it.
August 9, 2019
I’ve read a few post climate change speculative fiction books, including John Lanchester’s The Wall and Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Krake trilogy. By comparison this book paints a very rosy and peaceful picture of what such a world would look like. Personally I’m not so optimistic. That said, I really enjoyed this book, in particular the story of the relationship between Finch, Speare and April and how it evolves over Finch’s life. As an Australian I loved the fact that it was set in Australia and enjoyed visualising all of the places mentioned in the book. A captivating read.
September 1, 2019
This book was nothing at all like I expected.
I did like the setting and the idea of the earth slowly drowning and how people have to deal with it. If this book had been about that I would have loved it, or at least liked it.
But this book is a story mostly about love. Finch is obsessed with April from the moment he sees her and in all 300 odd pages of the book I could never understand why.
The way the book is written you only really get to know Finch and mostly his thoughts. It gets really boring and in the end, I had started to skim the pages because I just didn't care anymore.
I did like the setting and the idea of the earth slowly drowning and how people have to deal with it. If this book had been about that I would have loved it, or at least liked it.
But this book is a story mostly about love. Finch is obsessed with April from the moment he sees her and in all 300 odd pages of the book I could never understand why.
The way the book is written you only really get to know Finch and mostly his thoughts. It gets really boring and in the end, I had started to skim the pages because I just didn't care anymore.
September 29, 2019
The Warming is a languid, almost dreary book, which might reflect the pace of global warming, heating us to extinction by degrees. There's a switch about two thirds of the way through, and then it feels rushed, glossing over things, with just hints of what this third location (in Antarctica) is like, like the smell of melting permafrost. Ending is unsatisfying, though I rated some ideas along the way, like measuring the success of a recital by how moved people were through their seats.
November 10, 2019
This is a book that I would not have normally chosen for myself. However, because it was a book club choice, I read it. It took me a while to get into it, wondering if I should persevere but I'm glad that I did. Having lived in coastal and inland Victoria all my life and travelled throughout Australia, I could visualise and only imagine what could become of this land. This is a very thought-provoking story and a good one for discussion in a book club.
July 20, 2019
A dystopian novel that runs out of steam after the plot is revealed in first few pages, then begins to seem like poorly done William Boyd fan fiction. Chapter after chapter little or nothing happens with only the tedious day to day lives of the translucent characters to fill them. For me the water could not rise fast enough to put this book out of its misery.
September 14, 2019
For me this book suffered from misguided expectations. I was expecting sci fi, but what I got was a nicely written story about relationships, about growing up and growing old, and about music. The setting (soaring temperatures and rapidly rising sea level) although mentioned often, was largely incidental to the story, which was a shame, as that is what drew me to this book
July 8, 2023
This book is trying (and sometimes succeeding) in being a literary work, while also trying to meet dystopian expectations. The focus is more on external relationships to people and the planet, rather than interior worlds. But the central romance is problematic and the characters feel a bit under developed. I do enjoy an Australian book, with locations that are familiar to me.
October 27, 2021
Really enjoyed this book. The author expresses himself beautifully. It made me cry which doesn’t happen very often. The messages about global warming in this book are very strong, I won’t be forgetting it
November 18, 2019
Extraordinary. Dripping in detail. A literary dystopia.
April 9, 2020
The writing in this read is elegantly well-formed, but it's a slow starter I ultimately couldn't warm to.
August 24, 2020
This is a great read, just the ending didn’t really satisfy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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