Cli-Fi Club: 'A Children's Bible' by Lydia Millet

The climate emergency will not be solved with facts alone. The transformation we need is too big to be measured only in tons of greenhouse gas emissions averted or solar panels installed, though those things are critical. It is also an emotional transition, a shift in the narratives we tell, a reconnection with old wisdom and so much more. In short, it is a process perfectly suited for fiction.

If you are seeking such guidance, and if you want to be part of a community, we would love to have you join the Cli-Fi Club this month.

We are reading A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet, who has won or been a finalist for a long list of awards, including the Pulitzer Prize. She also has a master's in environmental policy. The 224-page novel was a 2020 shortlist finalist for the National Book Award. The judges wrote that it is “a story imbued not only with the weight of folklore but also the thrill and urgency of the contemporary and the imminent. It’s simultaneously a condemnation and an exaltation of the human species, finding defiant, transcendent hope in the midst of utter despair.”

While it is lightly modeled on the Bible, I found it less a religious text than a moral one, a beautifully wrought parable about our modern lives. And I write that as someone with a skeptical outlook to religious appeals. I thought a New York Times review headline summarized the book well: "An epic storm turns a summer holiday into a potent allegory."

About the Cli-Fi Club
We read climate fiction — ie, cli-fi — of all types. Our focus is on works that grapple seriously and thoughtful with the emotions and meaning of this moment, what may lie ahead and what may already be lost. Our selections go well beyond the stereotypical conception of cli-fi — ie, science fiction and post-apocalyptic narratives — to include a range of works that engage creatively with humanity’s great challenge, and may even leave you inspired.

About this community
Are you new to the meetup group Let’s Talk About Climate Change or our WhatsApp group Mobilizing Hope? We work to bring together English-speaking people in Barcelona and beyond for climate education and action, and also community. We welcome speakers of Catalan, Castellano and other languages, but most of our events are in English because most of our organizers and attendees are more comfortable in English than other languages. We created this group because we could not find any community like it. We range from degrowthers to startup founders, from artists to data scientists. We may not agree on everything, but we all want to move in the same direction. If you do too, you’re welcome to make it your home.