333 pages
English language
Published Nov. 11, 2014
Station Eleven is a novel by the Canadian writer Emily St. John Mandel. It takes place in the Great Lakes region before and after a fictional swine flu pandemic, known as the "Georgia Flu", has devastated the world, killing most of the population. The book was published in 2014, and won the Arthur C. Clarke Award the following year.The novel was well received by critics, with the understated nature of Mandel's writing receiving particular praise. It appeared on several best-of-year lists. As of 2020, it had sold 1.5 million copies.A ten-part television adaptation of the same name premiered on HBO Max in December 2021.
excellent prediction of a pandemic (a little overkill)
good story with a great time arc and an excellent web of characters
a little too bougie
Content warning minor detail, might not spoil anything
I liked this book. It's kind of low key or modest, but it's also kind of haunting; and it just covers so much life. I think the web of relationships is clearly entertaining.
Beautiful. Usually I dislike narratives that jump perspectives and time frames, but Mandel does it in a way that feels meaningful rather than a gimmick or ploy to keep the reader's attention. Her parallelism and observations in both character dialogue and narrative feel like poetry.
This book is a meditation on isolation, endings, and human nature.
I feel like this book happened in the same universe as Lily Brooks-Dalton's "Good Morning, Midnight," where a man waiting to die in the arctic outlives the rest of humanity (save the returning crew of the first manned ship to Jupiter.)
Excellent piece of dystopian fiction. Unnerving. Insightful. Entertaining. Enjoyed it throughly. I would not hesitate to recommend this book.
