FACE: a novel of the anthropocene

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“A mesmerizing novel about science and climate research that develops into a breathtaking thriller. ” 

-Helmut Weissert, earth scientist, ETH Zürich

"Face sweeps us up in a science journalist’s struggle to forge meaning from her own, and the earth’s, fractured memories. Murder mystery, ghost story, science novel? Singh gives us an unsettling novel of ideas that questions the power of the stories we tell—about science, history, and our own lives—even as it employs that power to probe climate guilt and anxiety."

-Susan M. Gaines, author of Carbon Dreams

"Thought-provoking... Written in succinct, lucid prose. "

-Bev Sandell Greenberg, Prairie Books NOW

“Dense with observation, this scalpel-sharp narrative flinches from nothing.”   

-Premee Mohamed, author of The Annual Migration of Clouds

"Face is riotous with erudition – a heady mix of global climate warnings, earth sciences, fossil discoveries and hoaxes, and speculative fiction (Liu Cixin and Octavia Butler get nods), all amalgamated into gorgeous prose. Lucky readers who choose this one can expect temporal shifts, compounding mysteries and irresistibly unreliable—and even otherworldly—narration."

-Terry Hong, Shelf Awareness

“Face is an intelligent body of work... It is a most fascinating undertaking… It is not apocalyptic, though the suggestion of such cannot be ignored in the narrative. You can feel the sense of urgency. And yet to read this novel, and to separate yourself from the consequences of your own existence, allows you to defer the despair, and perhaps the remedy, to Lila, the voice and narrative fuse of Face. We join her as she negotiates the scientific landscapes of her world.”

-Danial Neil, The British Columbia Review 

"[A] briskly-paced blend of storytelling styles… When the conversation in the novel turns to one particular star academic’s controversial idea about seeding the skies in order to mitigate the impact of global warming, Face: A Novel of the Anthropocene feels urgent and necessary. Rather than being the excuse for a thriller subplot, what to do with our warming planet feels like the heart of it and Singh’s prose provides a reliable and frequently provocative guiding hand."

-Stephen Hunt, CTV Calgary

LISTS

2022    CBC BOOKS Summer Reading List

PUBLISHER

Brindle & Glass

BRIEF EXCERPT

“Story is our only boat for sailing on the river of time,” says Ursula Le Guin. “No boat is safe.” 

Story is our only boat for sailing on the river of time. No boat is safe, but our boats change the river. 

Our boats have been changing the river for a while now. The scientists just conveyed to us. Story is a geological agent.