ONWARD

A gathering of 16 short stories exploring climate change through a broad variety of perspectives.

This climate fiction anthology addresses the “severe anxiety over ecological devastation and disasters” experienced by “Gen Dread,” a term coined by Dr. Britt Wray, a researcher in climate change and mental health. The diverse contributors address readers through entries that include realistic, historical, and speculative fiction as well as a personal essay and explore water, trash, ecology, land use, climate disasters, flora and fauna, and more. Together, they convey both a slice-of-life quality and a feeling of urgency. Optimism blossoms in Erin Entrada Kelly’s “The Care and Feeding of Mother,” which is set in a futuristic, over-farmed, storm-battered world. Extinction takes center stage in the midst of student government elections in “The Manatee Is Not a Meme” by Gloria Muñoz. Jeff Zentner’s “Tellico Lake,” written in verse, is a powerful retelling of history reshaped by a dam. Many of the pieces will linger with readers. In Karina Iceberg’s “Worldfall,” the prose crackles as wildfires blaze. In “The Divining,” by Kim Johnson, water diviners find hope in both stories and water. And “Critobis,” by Aya de Leon, is a searing story of remembrance and survival set in a landscape reshaped by rising oceans. A QR code takes readers to general resources that help with action, inspiration, and mental health support, as well as materials connected to each story.

A powerful look at a shifting world.