Weather couldn’t have been published at a better time. It’s a book that tackles the controversial issues of climate change, politics, and domestic life through different characters who are either contributing to the climate change topic or taking away from it. The book has a few plot narratives that hold the book as a novel, but what shapes it is the countless impending moments of destruction. The idea behind it is how humanity is never prepared for the worst until it finally comes. Even then, humans tend to get caught up in the storm, unable to process the extent of damage that they’ve caused, leaving it all to crumble. Despite humanity’s greatest efforts of globalization and technological advances, the deepest flaw comes from the fact that all the progress can be taken down easily with the swiftest touch of a crisis like climate change.
In the book, Lizzie is a young woman who has to juggle being a wife, taking care of her parents, and a drug-addicted brother. Beneath all that, she is constantly haunted by the potential repercussions of climate change that is putting everything around her at a near standstill. Through a podcast run by her close acquaintance, she keeps up with predictions that claim that doomsday is upon us all. Jenny does an excellent job of expressing the thoughts of these characters as real as possible. The thoughts are often scattered which portrays how people don’t often think things through as thoughts are mostly one-offs that never truly stick.
Going further into the book, you begin to realize that events are unfolding quickly and the characters are unable to keep up with everything. As the book is set in a world similar to our current world, events like the coming into power of President Donald Trump shake Lizzie’s life to the core. The likelihood of a doomsday now feels more real than ever. Things are unfolding all over the world and the news is constantly reporting the negative impacts of President Trump’s presidency. To top all of this, Lizzie has to deal with her demanding family. These characters are caught up in a chaotic situation where they are incapable of deciding what they should solely focus on.
Despite the dark themes showcased in Weather, the author finds time to indulge some humor and fact-checking some crucial information. The book comes off as snippets of other books with the same themes brought together under one book, but this type of writing works in its favor. Sometimes the reader might get exhausted reading about something, but before that happens the narrative gets cut off and something else is offered. It’s a refreshing read for those readers who are used to a book with a single plot point. The book relates well with people living in America today who have major concerns about climate change and politics. It offers a sort of insight into what these tough times call for in our uncertain daily lives.
