Just a few weeks ago, we experienced record high temperatures here in the Pacific Northwest, with the thermometer hitting an unprecedented 116 degrees in Portland. That’s very unusual for those of us living in this corner of the country. We’re used to warm, dry summers – a season of almost perfect weather after 7 or 8 long months of damp, dark days.
But climate change is here, and it hasn't exactly been creeping up on us. We've been seeing its effects over at least the past decade, trying to block it out, but it's getting more difficult to ignore when living in the midst of its effects: extreme heat, tornados, wildfires, drought, and flooding, to name a few.
On today's show, we welcome two Oregon-based writers -- Suzy Vitello and Cai Emmons -- who have published recent novels, speculative fiction, focused on climate change, its effects on the environment and those of us living under these conditions. Suzy's book Faultland from Portland's Ooligan Press, and Cai's book Sinking Islands from Red Hen Press, while not sparing us the devastation caused by climate change, have a common theme of resilience in the face of disaster, and our need for human connection no matter the circumstances.
Both novels, however dystopic, offer us a vision of hope, of a collective response and a shared responsibility to survive and endure. We truly are all in this together.
Please join us for another beautiful, if unseasonably hot day in the neighborhood!
- KBOO