Review: Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel

Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel

Setting yet another book in a post-apocalyptic wasteland is a pretty bold move, given how crowded that genre has become. This text dates back to 2014 so I suppose one may believe that it wasn't quite as played out then as now, though it was still on the edge. As the author themselves comments at one point 'the post-apocalyptic movies she'd seen had all involved zombies. �I'm just saying,� she said, �it could be much worse.�'

And, that pretty much sums it up! In fact, I found the book to be enjoyable, and the time-skipping was actually effective and interesting, and allowed the reader to dwell on different threads and different character arcs in a pleasantly fit-together way. One somewhat gets the feeling that the survivors are, almost to a person, unable or uninterested in rebuilding any of the trappings of civilization that were very recently up and running, but contented themselves with camping out in hotels and gas stations and airports, using up dwindling supplies and hunting a conveniently never-ending supply of deer for easy nourishment. I'd have liked to see at least a few engineers in there getting things running again, but I suppose we all write what we know.

Overall an engaging, well realized, thoughful read, and one that I would recommend.