"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested." (Francis Bacon)

Friday, September 17, 2021

City We Became

TITLE:  The City We Became
AUTHOR: N.K. Jemisin

This is a lovely homage to New York City. The opening volume of a planned trilogy introduces the concept that cities can come alive with the assistance of a human avatar/soul. Typically, there is one such person per city being birthed, but New York City has six (primary plus one for each borough), each of whom is brought to life by Jemisin's lyrical prose. They're ethnically and sexually diverse, each with an attitude that is the embodiment of the overall image fitting their home borough. And each of them is unaware of their destiny until the moment New York City comes to life. But a creature from another universe, an old enemy of living cities, is working hard to destroy the city before it can finish the process. 

There are a couple of details that seemed off to me re: New York City, but mostly, Jemisin captured the city, with all its faults and wonderfulness. I like quirky books, the ones that straddle genres and/or explore new concept, or simply ones that defy description and confound expectations. I don't read much fantasy, but I'm looking forward to the rest of this trilogy.

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