I'm With the Bears: Short Stories from a Damaged Planet
Description
A collection of 10 “striking” short stories on the dangers of climate change—featuring works by Margaret Atwood, David Mitchell, Kim Stanley Robinson, and an introduction by Bill McKibben (The Boston Globe).
The size and severity of the global climate crisis is such that even the most committed environmentalists are liable to live in a state of denial. The award-winning writers collected here have made it their task to shake off this nagging disbelief, bringing the incomprehensible within our grasp and shaping an emotional response to the deterioration of our global habitat.
From T. C. Boyle’s account of early eco-activists, to Nathaniel Rich’s vision of a near future where oil sells for $800 a barrel—these ten provocative, occasionally chilling, sometimes satirical stories bring a human reality to disasters of inhuman proportions.
Royalties from I’m With the Bears will go to 350.org, an international grassroots movement working to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Praise for I'm With the Bears: Short Stories from a Damaged Planet
“These are the jolts we dearly need; this is a serious business we’re involved in.”
—Bill McKibben, from the introduction
“10 authors at the top of their game, tackling the most pressing issue of our generation.”
—New Internationalist
“The stories dazzle the reader with their imaginative range and depth.”
—Independent
“The line-up of mostly British and North American talent is impressive—TC Boyle, Toby Litt, David Mitchell—and while they sometimes bash you around the head with a blunt instrument (Nathaniel Rich), the best are fierce and fearless, including Helen Simpson’s acerbic, apocalyptic Diary Of An Interesting Year.”
—Metro
“All the writing in this volume is excellent”
—Kate Saunders, The Times (Saturday Review)
“The high point for me was Paolo Bacigalupi’s The Tamarisk Hunter ... More than any other story in the collection, it makes climate change feel real.”
—Michael Marshall, New Scientist
“A wonderful idea.”
—John Harding, Daily Mail
“About what might happen if our worst nightmares come true.”
—William Leith, Evening Standard
“Compelling ... these stories inspire both fear and hope. The other reason this little volume is so terrific is that the stories are written with verve and style.”
—Elizabeth Taylor, Literary Editor, Chicago Tribune
“These ten stories avoid the sort of didactic, righteous preaching that elsewhere grates ... any reader with an interest in environmental issues will appreciate these different angles on the most pressing of our many current crises.”
—Ben Kupstas, The L Magazine
“It’s not what you think—some sort of enviro agitprop. These are literary artists responding to our situation head-on, as artists, and with striking results.”
—Wen Stephenson, The Boston Globe