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The Ministry for the Future: A Novel door…
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The Ministry for the Future: A Novel (editie 2020)

door Kim Stanley Robinson (Auteur)

LedenBesprekingenPopulariteitGemiddelde beoordelingAanhalingen
1,5206711,787 (3.8)70
"From legendary science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson comes a vision of climate change unlike any ever imagined. Kim Stanley Robinson is one of contemporary science fiction's most acclaimed writers, and with this new novel, he once again turns his eye to themes of climate change, technology, politics, and the human behaviors that drive these forces. But his setting is not a desolate, post-apocalyptic world--rather, he imagines a more hopeful future, one where humanity has managed to overcome our challenges and thrive. It is a novel both immediate and impactful, perfect for his many fans and for readers who crave powerful and thought-provoking sci-fi stories"--… (meer)
Lid:m.j.brown
Titel:The Ministry for the Future: A Novel
Auteurs:Kim Stanley Robinson (Auteur)
Info:Orbit (2020), Edition: 1st, 576 pages
Verzamelingen:Jouw bibliotheek
Waardering:****
Trefwoorden:Geen

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The Ministry for the Future door Kim Stanley Robinson

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Engels (64)  Nederlands (2)  Alle talen (66)
Toon 2 van 2
I know there are some snags to this book (see below) but I can already say that I found it quite impressive. I didn't know Kim Robinson (my bad?): he is known as a creditable science fiction author, but apparently, he is at home in many more fields, as he proves here. Climate change is at the heart of this book and Robinson's great achievement, in my view, is that he gives a sense of the breadth of the challenge it poses to us and our planet.
It starts dramatically, with the evocation of an extreme heat wave in 2025 (so, again this is science fiction) in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh that killed millions of people. This sets in motion a train of radical measures and the creation of a Ministry for the Future that will put pressure on nation states and the international system on behalf of future generations. Robinson mainly follows the leadership of that institute, based in Zurich, and in this way we get a picture of very diverse problems facing the world: not only the technological issue of reducing the CO2 level in the atmosphere and prevent the further melting of glaciers and Arctic ice, but also fiscal and monetary measures to encourage more environmentally conscious behavior, strategies to promote small-scale ecological approaches, and so on and so forth. The number of angles that Robinson provides is really impressive. And in particular he points to the pernicious influence of existing ideologies and religions, the opposition by nation states and vested interests, and the legacy of capitalism and post-colonialism. A truly kaleidoscopic approach.
Formally, Robinson has spread this over more than 100 relatively short chapter, sometimes following certain protagonists, other times presenting passionate pamphlets, and even boring conference reports or didactic expositions. That demands quite something from the reader, especially because Robinson is clearly not a real literary writer. But he offers a lot of variety, and also interweaves enough fictional elements to make it completely digestible, especially through the story of the Irish Mary, the chairwoman of the Ministry for the Future, and Frank, an American who was traumatized by the heat wave in India and emerges as an eco-terrorist; the friendship between the two is one of the nicer aspects of this novel. The evolution over time, from approximately 2025 to approximately 2050, also supports the narrative element.
The main issue is that it requires some suspension of disbelief, frankly quite a lot. I especially had a hard time with the aspect that the Ministry for the Future has a secret department that uses eco-terrorists to kill hundreds of top bankers, oil company and aircraft magnates. And the biggest problem is that in this novel a significant drop in the CO2 content in the atmosphere already was noted after just over 20 years, as a result of the many measures. Scientifically, this is downright nonsense (and there are other, smaller scientific errors in this book). This immediately brings us to the most crucial issue in the debate on the fight against global warming: can it be won with technology and technical interventions? This book contains an essay that asks the question “is technology driving world history?”, and at first glance Robinson seems quite naïve to support that statement. But it is precisely through his very kaleidoscopic approach to the climate issue that he shows that only a very broad mix of measures and approaches in very different domains can provide relief. If this novel contributes anything to this extremely important debate, it is this very valuable message. ( )
  bookomaniac | Sep 28, 2023 |
This book left me slightly disappointed. The subject is clearly super well-researched and it is great that the urgent problem of our time is treated like this. I learned a lot and got exposed to some new ideas for (partial) solutions and possible threats.

However, as a novel, I found it lacking. I never got really involved with the main characters. The story line remained a bit secondary. Too many loose ends.

Back to the subject matter: I truly hope that we can get our act together without the resort to force and terrorism that is presented as the only way our here. ( )
  teunduynstee | Feb 18, 2023 |
Toon 2 van 2
Robinson is a writer who believes fiction can make a difference to the world. His latest is a bold docu-fictional extrapolation of how humanity might tackle the climate crisis, blending practical ideas and information with vivid prose – the astonishing opening chapter, in which a heatwave kills millions, will stay with me for a very long time. Robinson knows we can’t be saved by a single heroic flourish but by difficult, drawn-out and, above all, collective labour. A crucial book for our time.
toegevoegd door Cynfelyn | bewerkThe Guardian, Adam Roberts (Nov 28, 2020)
 
Robinson shows that an ambitious systems novel about global heating must in fact be an ambitious systems novel about modern civilisation too, because everything is so interdependent. Luckily, when he opens one of his discursive interludes with the claim “Taxes are interesting”, he makes good on it within two pages. There is no shortage of sardonic humour here, a cosmopolitan range of sympathies, and a steely, visionary optimism.
toegevoegd door melmore | bewerkThe Guardian (UK), Steven Poole (Nov 20, 2020)
 
This detail-heavy near-future novel offers a window onto the apocalypse looming just behind our present dystopia [...] High-minded, well-intentioned, and in love with what Earth’s future could be but somewhat lacking in narrative drive
toegevoegd door melmore | bewerkKirkus Reviews (Oct 6, 2020)
 
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"From legendary science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson comes a vision of climate change unlike any ever imagined. Kim Stanley Robinson is one of contemporary science fiction's most acclaimed writers, and with this new novel, he once again turns his eye to themes of climate change, technology, politics, and the human behaviors that drive these forces. But his setting is not a desolate, post-apocalyptic world--rather, he imagines a more hopeful future, one where humanity has managed to overcome our challenges and thrive. It is a novel both immediate and impactful, perfect for his many fans and for readers who crave powerful and thought-provoking sci-fi stories"--

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