Over the past 20 years, the phrase “world-building” has gone from being an obscure term for certain forms of science fiction to super-stardom. But as envisioned by Annalee Newitz in her far-future epic The Terraformers, it’s very early days. Her novel explores everything the phrase implies, as some 59,000 years in the future, humanity, in all its infinite, imagined variety seeks to transform a bare rock the right distance from its star into a verdant paradisiacal Pleistocene era replica of Earth. The tone is raucous, joyous, wild and highly imperfect. It’s rip-roaring fun to read even as it makes you think about the present.
Importantly, Newitz plays with literary forms to pack grandeur and epic storytelling into a much more compact format. The Terraformers gives readers the story we might expect in a trilogy, with each entry growing successively longer, in less than 350 pages. Like a trilogy, it’s divided into three sections. The first and longest, “Settlers,” starts in 59,006 and introduces, Destry, an ERT (Environmental Rescue Team) Ranger on Sasky-A. With her flying, intelligent moose “mount” Whistle, she’s makes sure the environment is working as planned. She discovers a city which proves to be problematic for her corporate superiors. Part 2 jumps 700 years forward, to find her descendents dealing with the impact of her discoveries and actions. Part 3 pops forward another 903 years and offers a smart and satisfying to solution to a variety of problems.
The Terraformers finds Newitz at an astonishing peak. Character arcs, technological arcs, and plot-threading are handled with a joyous mastery. The writer is having so much fun in her creation, it’s impossible to resist plunging in to the deep end. And there’s a very impressive depth of thought on display, especially since it’s so damn enjoyable. Newitz is a master of payoff. Whether you come for the impressive world-building about world-building, a great science-fiction adventure, externalizing social commentary about our unusual lives, or for the finely-realized unusual cast, you will find yourself mightily pleased. The Terraformers is a triumph, hyper-smart and really, really fun.
Speaking of fun, here’s a link to my interview with the amazing Annalee Newitz. You can download the file or find your favorite libation and listen below. This book is a cause for celebration.
Narrative Species 