By Babette Gallard
“An incredibly good read … both deeply personal and political, it will become part of the canon of climate novels… Its tone is set somewhere between Kim Stanley Robinson’s Ministry for the Future and Barbara Kingsolver’s Unsheltered.” – Rehad Desai, director of Miners Shot Down, How to Steal a Country and Everything Must Fall
Publisher: Light Eye
ISBN: 978-2-917183-44-1
Format: Trade Paperback
Genre: Fiction
Book size: 228mm x 152mm
Page extent: 276pp
Publication Date: January 2024
Also available as an ebook.
The River Rhone has flooded the town of Arles in France. Helen and Isha leave to join their daughter and eleven-month-old granddaughter, Ayo, in England. In Calais, Isha, who has Ugandan-Asian ancestry, is told that new Government immigration rules mean she will be immediately deported if she crosses the Channel. Faced with a terrible dilemma, Helen chooses to stay with her.
Homeless and stateless, they seek refuge in a friend’s Swiss mountain chalet, but to get there, they must avoid main roads and immigration checkpoints. They decide to walk along the Via Francigena, an ancient pilgrimage route from Canterbury to Rome, now also the preferred escape corridor for climate refugees fleeing north.
Jana resolves to follow them, but this is not a simple decision. The family communicates whenever and however they can while battling exhaustion, terror and the virulent xenophobia of people struggling to protect their increasingly scarce resources.
Their journey does not end in Switzerland…
Critically Acclaimed Reviews
“Future Imperfect is a thought-provoking and timely book that explores a not-too-distant future where environmental changes and social divisions have reshaped society. The book raises important questions about vulnerability, scarcity of resources, social order and resistance. It offers a warning of what could happen if we continue on our current path but also presents alternative actions and lifestyles. The book skilfully weaves together themes of environmental change, the importance of trees, the consequences of greed and the power of indigenous wisdom. It is not a dystopian novel but rather a story of endeavour. Future Imperfect will make you reflect on the choices we make today and the impact they will have on our future.” – Kumi Naidoo, human rights and climate justice advocate
“This is one of those rare books that becomes a part of you. The stories and circumstances of the main characters draw you in quickly and resonate long after you’ve closed the covers. Future Imperfect shines a light into the corners of our everyday lives, and we recognise what we see as all too familiar. An engrossing read” – Terry Shakinovsky, author of The Knock on the Door
