How High We Go in the Dark
A Novel
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How High We Go in the Dark
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Written by:
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Sequoia Nagamatsu
About this listen
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS' CHOICE • ROXANE GAY'S AUDACIOUS BOOK CLUB PICK • FINALIST FOR THE URSULA K. LE GUIN PRIZE
"Moving and thought-provoking . . . offering psychological insights in lyrical prose while seriously exploring speculative conceits." — New York Times Book Review
"Haunting and luminous . . . Beautiful and lucid science fiction. An astonishing debut." — Alan Moore, creator of Watchmen and V for Vendetta
Recommended by New York Times Book Review • Los Angeles Times • NPR • Washington Post • Wall Street Journal • Entertainment Weekly • Esquire • Good Housekeeping • NBC News • Buzzfeed • Goodreads • The Millions • The Philadelphia Inquirer • Minneapolis Star-Tribune • San Francisco Chronicle • The Guardian • and many more!
For fans of Cloud Atlas and Station Eleven, a spellbinding and profoundly prescient debut that follows a cast of intricately linked characters over hundreds of years as humanity struggles to rebuild itself in the aftermath of a climate plague—a daring and deeply heartfelt work of mind-bending imagination from a singular new voice.
In 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work of his recently deceased daughter at the Batagaika Crater, where researchers are studying long-buried secrets now revealed in melting permafrost, including the perfectly preserved remains of a girl who appears to have died of an ancient virus.
Once unleashed, the Arctic plague will reshape life on Earth for generations to come, quickly traversing the globe, forcing humanity to devise a myriad of moving and inventive ways to embrace possibility in the face of tragedy. In a theme park designed for terminally ill children, a cynical employee falls in love with a mother desperate to hold on to her infected son. A heartbroken scientist searching for a cure finds a second chance at fatherhood when one of his test subjects—a pig—develops the capacity for human speech. A widowed painter and her teenaged granddaughter embark on a cosmic quest to locate a new home planet.
From funerary skyscrapers to hotels for the dead to interstellar starships, Sequoia Nagamatsu takes listeners on a wildly original and compassionate journey, spanning continents, centuries, and even celestial bodies to tell a story about the resilience of the human spirit, our infinite capacity to dream, and the connective threads that tie us all together in the universe.
"Wondrous, and not just in the feats of imagination, which are so numerous it makes me dizzy to recall them, but also in the humanity and tenderness with which Sequoia Nagamatsu helps us navigate this landscape. . . . This is a truly amazing book, one to keep close as we imagine the uncertain future." — Kevin Wilson, New York Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here
©2022 Sequoia Nagamatsu (P)2022 HarperCollins PublishersFeatured Article: The Best Audiobooks of 2022 for All Your Listening Needs
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What listeners say about How High We Go in the Dark
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jamie Charles
- 2022-01-22
How Humans Cope
January 2022 | 4/5
In the near future, an archaeologist takes up his recently deceased daughters job in an Arctic dig. They have uncovered the thawing remains of an ancient homo sapiens like, female in the permafrost, that unleashes a plague that sweeps the globe.
The novel then looks at individual stories from a cast of characters, spanning centuries, that show how humanity has suffered, with a pinch of hope.
A first person narrative is used giving each story a unique voice, though the stories do bleed into each other, and we have a few repeat characters.
As I was reading, I couldn't help but feel these were once short stories (they were), knitted together for a novel length book. It works and it doesn't. The connections are loose at times, and the stories can feel - distant. But overall well done.
It was an interesting read, dark, with a glimmer of light. If you're worried about climate change, pandemics, and mutants, Nagamatsu has it covered.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Benjamin MacLeod
- 2023-10-07
Amazing
Get ready to feel all the feels as you explore from so many different perspectives.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- paul rochford
- 2023-01-08
Incredible
This was one of the best audio books I’ve ever listened to. The story itself, an incredible science fiction tale, was so good. I love the different stories that span time, how there are little seeds planted to tie certain stories to the narrative. So well done. Highly recommend.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Lorette George
- 2022-04-30
Unexpectedly good listen.
I found this story that I often couldn't wait to take the time to listen to.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- CKH
- 2022-08-30
Epic and Remarkable
A series of interconnected stories (some of the connections were tenuous and I wished I had a paper copy so I could check if the link was a child or sibling of someone from a previous chapter - the chapter titles were ingenious/clever/poignant) It was interesting to read about the effects of a plague when we are (hopefully) coming through Covid, and the effects of climate change on a world already fragile from loss.
Beautifully, remarkably written, some of the chapters made me emotional (I was able to get through the chapter about Finch but feel myself tearing up over a pig...)
This is a story about grief, and loss, and how people struggle to go on after the death of loved ones. Some of the stories are small and everyday, and some are cosmically huge. The ending is optimistic - mostly.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- DB@Canada
- 2022-09-24
A series of short stories linked by doom
Yet another layered series of stories (c.f. Bone Circles) with a central theme of flawed antiheroes who somehow achieve redemption in a world like ours where existential threats seem to crush hope. At the end, the tale is circular, explaining the arc of its and our existence. I’ve read better apocalyptic Sci Fi and better Japanese Sci Fi.
However, it is well constructed, acted and written and I still rate it as good literate fiction.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Brandon
- 2023-01-16
Amazing character story
This is a deep dive into the lives of several individuals that is beautifully written with fantastical situations. One of my favourites.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- sonia
- 2023-07-03
To me, it was great
I felt the ending was satisfying. I’m usually reluctant to read about pandemics but I enjoyed this.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 2023-07-12
Not my cup of tea
This book is a collection of stories. They span many years, and are very loosely tied together. Yes, you can piece an overarching story together, but I just found it very depressing overall. there was no science no problem solving. Its just how people coupe in a very difficult time.
The writing is beautiful. You really do feel for the characters in their moments. The performance was really well done. But, like i said not my cup of tea.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nicole
- 2023-07-13
Incredible
I loved how all the very different stories were linked together throughout - giving so many perspectives and details surrounding this pandemic. That would have been enough for me to give this 5 stars. But the ending! The way the entire thing is gathered together at the end was very unexpected and I'm going to be thinking about this book for a long time. I might even buy a physical copy for a re-read.
Cannot recommend enough!!
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