Book Summary and Reviews of The Great Transition by Nick Fuller Googins

Book Summary

This richly imaginative, immersive, and "electrifyingly relevant" (William Kent Krueger, New York Times bestselling author) debut novel follows a shocking disappearance amid the climate crisis of our near future—perfect for fans of Station Eleven and The Last Thing He Told Me.

Emi Vargas, whose parents helped save the world, is tired of being told how lucky she is to have been born after the climate crisis. But following the public assassination of a dozen climate criminals, Emi's mother, Kristina, disappears as a possible suspect, and Emi's illusions of utopia are shattered. A determined Emi and her father, Larch, journey from their home in Nuuk, Greenland to New York City, now a lightly populated storm-surge outpost built from the ruins of the former metropolis. But they aren't the only ones looking for Kristina.

Thirty years earlier, Larch first came to New York with a team of volunteers to save the city from rising waters and torrential storms. Kristina was on the frontlines of a different battle, fighting massive wildfires that ravaged the western United States. They became part of a movement that changed the world­—The Great Transition—forging a new society and finding each other in process.

Alternating between Emi's desperate search for her mother and a meticulously rendered, heart-stopping account of her parents' experiences during The Great Transition, this novel beautifully shows how our actions today determine our fate tomorrow. A triumphant debut, The Great Transition is "a book for the present and the future—read this and you will be changed" (Michelle Min Sterling, New York Times bestselling author).

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Compare and contrast Emi's parents, Kristina and Larch. How do they define the future? What are their different priorities for their daughter and themselves?
2. Emi often listens to music (specifically the "oldies") when she is worried about the planet and wondering what she can do now that the crisis is over. What does this tell us about humanity in the post-Transition future? Do you find yourself using music to cope with anxiety in your life? Do you ever turn to music to grapple with with the big problems facing society?
3. The field producer Joanna Lee reminds Larch that Corps Power was propaganda: "The good kind. Hearts and minds." Do you believe Culture Corps had good intentions in televising positive content about ...