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tigger89's review
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I've often said that speculative fiction is very much of the time it's written. Accordingly, this novel, begun in the mid-2010s and published in early 2022, is very much of our times. And yes, it is very political. How could it not be, with themes including eco crises, mass incarceration, white supremacy, class and racial privilege, healthcare inequality, police brutality, white flight, and gentrification? The job of good speculative fiction is to use a fictional narrative to illuminate something of our own time and place, and in that regard this book is stellar.
The book's biggest strength — its varied cast of characters, painting a picture of the future through several distinct narratives — unfortunately also contributes to its biggest weakness. This is due to the way the story is told, with the narratives fragmented and presented non-linearly. While I believe my sense of the whole is complete, or near enough, I'd honestly struggle to tell you, start to finish, what precisely befell each character in the story. There's nothing quite like seeing a character pop up in a scene and having to pause, confused, and think to yourself: "I thought he was dead by now!" I'm not sure that reading it again would help. I think I'd likely have to break out the index cards and start laying the plot out down the hallway to make complete sense of it. Honestly, some kind of dates on the sections would have helped, but that would have ruined the near-future feel of the disaster so I understand why the author left them out.
I also have to mention that this book frequently calls upon Christian themes, ones that go beyond the David and Goliath reference. It's not terribly surprising, given the historical role of spiritual leaders in community organizing, but based on what blurb you read it's easy to get caught off guard. I will say that the book was never preachy, so this is certainly the better kind of Christian-inspired fiction, but if you're someone who avoids such references for whatever reason you might want to give this title a pass.
On a similar note, there's something about the gay couple in this story that gave me pause. Specifically, it's that the only gay couples are among the colonizers. All of the people who'd been left behind on Earth were depicted, as far as I could tell, pursuing exclusively cis-het relationships. I know I'm prone to paranoid reading when Christianity and queerness meet, so I've spent a fair bit of time turning this over in my mind before I sat down to write this, to try to be as fair as possible about a book that, overall, I enjoyed. Ultimately, I don't see any evidence that the author was attempting to make a point by writing it this way. I'm not mad about it. But that doesn't mean that this doesn't have the potential to be disturbing to some readers, so I wanted to mention it.
Last, but not least...do the horses die? Mild spoilers ahead!A handful of wild horses are rescued and adopted as community livestock. These horses later die in a stable fire. Their demise is not narrated in detail, but it's made clear that they don't survive.
The book's biggest strength — its varied cast of characters, painting a picture of the future through several distinct narratives — unfortunately also contributes to its biggest weakness. This is due to the way the story is told, with the narratives fragmented and presented non-linearly. While I believe my sense of the whole is complete, or near enough, I'd honestly struggle to tell you, start to finish, what precisely befell each character in the story. There's nothing quite like seeing a character pop up in a scene and having to pause, confused, and think to yourself: "I thought he was dead by now!" I'm not sure that reading it again would help. I think I'd likely have to break out the index cards and start laying the plot out down the hallway to make complete sense of it. Honestly, some kind of dates on the sections would have helped, but that would have ruined the near-future feel of the disaster so I understand why the author left them out.
I also have to mention that this book frequently calls upon Christian themes, ones that go beyond the David and Goliath reference. It's not terribly surprising, given the historical role of spiritual leaders in community organizing, but based on what blurb you read it's easy to get caught off guard. I will say that the book was never preachy, so this is certainly the better kind of Christian-inspired fiction, but if you're someone who avoids such references for whatever reason you might want to give this title a pass.
On a similar note, there's something about the gay couple in this story that gave me pause. Specifically, it's that the only gay couples are among the colonizers. All of the people who'd been left behind on Earth were depicted, as far as I could tell, pursuing exclusively cis-het relationships. I know I'm prone to paranoid reading when Christianity and queerness meet, so I've spent a fair bit of time turning this over in my mind before I sat down to write this, to try to be as fair as possible about a book that, overall, I enjoyed. Ultimately, I don't see any evidence that the author was attempting to make a point by writing it this way. I'm not mad about it. But that doesn't mean that this doesn't have the potential to be disturbing to some readers, so I wanted to mention it.
Last, but not least...do the horses die? Mild spoilers ahead!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Terminal illness, Colonisation, and Violence
Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Police brutality, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Gun violence, and Grief
Minor: Slavery, Pandemic/Epidemic, and War
lj_sophia's review
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Overall, this book was an emotionally heavy, desperate message for things to change as soon as possible especially since it's set in the very near future. I only dock points from this book because of the structural issues I had with the story. At times I think the pacing took away from the important themes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Police brutality, Colonisation, and Racial slurs
Minor: Sexual assault
rorikae's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
'Goliath' by Tochi Onyebuchi is an insightful and lyrical novel that looks at the inequalities of space travel through the eyes of those who are left behind.
The story weaves between different characters who live on or are visiting Earth. Those with money have left earth for the Colony, leaving behind a world that is plagued by poor air quality, housing inequality, and police violence. Through snippets of these characters' lives paired with occasional articles and recordings, Oneyebuchi demonstrates how venturing into the stars is for those who are wealthy and white while those who have historically been abused by systems continue to be hurt on what remains of Earth.
Oneybuchi paints a future that is keenly connected to our present and feels that way. By focusing on the characters and their lived experiences, he distills systemic horrors down to the people that it directly affects, making those horrors even more apparent. Despite this story being informed by space travel, we very rarely see any of the characters in the colonies. This story is about those that the world has left behind and failed to care for. The characters and their lives are painted in stark but human strokes using Onyebuchi's evocative prose. It feels as if one has been plopped down in this world and is walking around in it, especially as he showcases the small human moments that make up lived experiences.
I believe this is a book that should be read by a book club that can reflect on and dissect all that Onyebuchi is doing. This should definitely be taught in schools as it discusses a lot about our current lives while exploring how these problems could only grow worse in this possible future.
The story weaves between different characters who live on or are visiting Earth. Those with money have left earth for the Colony, leaving behind a world that is plagued by poor air quality, housing inequality, and police violence. Through snippets of these characters' lives paired with occasional articles and recordings, Oneyebuchi demonstrates how venturing into the stars is for those who are wealthy and white while those who have historically been abused by systems continue to be hurt on what remains of Earth.
Oneybuchi paints a future that is keenly connected to our present and feels that way. By focusing on the characters and their lived experiences, he distills systemic horrors down to the people that it directly affects, making those horrors even more apparent. Despite this story being informed by space travel, we very rarely see any of the characters in the colonies. This story is about those that the world has left behind and failed to care for. The characters and their lives are painted in stark but human strokes using Onyebuchi's evocative prose. It feels as if one has been plopped down in this world and is walking around in it, especially as he showcases the small human moments that make up lived experiences.
I believe this is a book that should be read by a book club that can reflect on and dissect all that Onyebuchi is doing. This should definitely be taught in schools as it discusses a lot about our current lives while exploring how these problems could only grow worse in this possible future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Classism, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Racism, Drug use, Grief, Police brutality, and Violence
albernikolauras's review
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
In this book, we are following a city on an Earth that the rich and able escaped from to avoid the poisoning left behind by nuclear waste, climate change, and chemical destruction. Now, some of those in space are returning to "live the rough life" and are coming in contact with those left behind.
This is a book to sit and chew on and reread and sit and chew on some more. There are so many tightly packed themes and moments and reveals in this fairly short novel. Onyebuchi's character-building and emphasis on physical constructs of themes are the star of this book. The world-building was a little weaker and there were definitely some holes that can be found in what caused the mass exodus. There's not enough space to describe the themes in detail, but there is so much depth in his main themes - environmental racism, incarceration, gentrification & colonization of space, white "saviors," and the construction and destruction of community.
In short, read this book. Give it time to meld and grow with you. It is a book that might require a lot of research, but it is a work of art. The acknowledgements also provide many excellent resources to read nonfiction about some of the themes this book was based on.
This is a book to sit and chew on and reread and sit and chew on some more. There are so many tightly packed themes and moments and reveals in this fairly short novel. Onyebuchi's character-building and emphasis on physical constructs of themes are the star of this book. The world-building was a little weaker and there were definitely some holes that can be found in what caused the mass exodus. There's not enough space to describe the themes in detail, but there is so much depth in his main themes - environmental racism, incarceration, gentrification & colonization of space, white "saviors," and the construction and destruction of community.
In short, read this book. Give it time to meld and grow with you. It is a book that might require a lot of research, but it is a work of art. The acknowledgements also provide many excellent resources to read nonfiction about some of the themes this book was based on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Racism, and Grief
Moderate: Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Deportation, and Classism
jo_lzr's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death of parent, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Police brutality, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Alcohol, Colonisation, Drug use, Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Classism, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Child abuse, Addiction, and Infidelity
Minor: Rape
littlehibou7's review
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Cursing, Colonisation, Racism, Xenophobia, Violence, Slavery, Racial slurs, and Gun violence
Moderate: Kidnapping, Police brutality, Sexual content, Child death, Classism, and Drug use
foreverinastory's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Y'all this book fucked me up!
Hoping to reread this later this month when my audio hold comes in because I need another read to process everything this book did.
Goliath is a post-climate apocalypse story that studies several characters: the ones left behind on Earth, and the ones privileged enough to escape to the space Colonies and are now migrating back.
This book is something else y’all. And I mean this in the best way. My brain is sometimes able to sit for like 30 mins and read, but this book had me captivated. I spent around 2 hours sitting on my couch (a miracle in itself) finishing the second half of this book.
Goliath will be a challenging book for many to read, especially white readers. This book offers a hard look at the future. One that doesn’t pull any punches from the racism and anti-Blackness that is rampant in the world. I don’t say this to dissuade anyone from reading, but to be aware of what you’re getting into. This is a book that needs an open mind and one that’s willing to juxtapose the truth with what society wants us to believe.
Rep: Mainly cishet Black and Brown cast, white gay MC, achillean MC with two moms, sapphic elderly female side character.
CWs: Death, drug use/abuse, addiction, violence, murder, colonisation/re-gentrification, child death, cursing, genocide, blood, gore, gun violence, racial slurs, racism, mentions of climate disaster and mass radiation exposure. Moderate: police brutality, rape, sexual violence, suicide attempt, imprisonment, prison riot, hostage situation, kidnapping, child abuse.
Hoping to reread this later this month when my audio hold comes in because I need another read to process everything this book did.
Goliath is a post-climate apocalypse story that studies several characters: the ones left behind on Earth, and the ones privileged enough to escape to the space Colonies and are now migrating back.
This book is something else y’all. And I mean this in the best way. My brain is sometimes able to sit for like 30 mins and read, but this book had me captivated. I spent around 2 hours sitting on my couch (a miracle in itself) finishing the second half of this book.
Goliath will be a challenging book for many to read, especially white readers. This book offers a hard look at the future. One that doesn’t pull any punches from the racism and anti-Blackness that is rampant in the world. I don’t say this to dissuade anyone from reading, but to be aware of what you’re getting into. This is a book that needs an open mind and one that’s willing to juxtapose the truth with what society wants us to believe.
Rep: Mainly cishet Black and Brown cast, white gay MC, achillean MC with two moms, sapphic elderly female side character.
CWs: Death, drug use/abuse, addiction, violence, murder, colonisation/re-gentrification, child death, cursing, genocide, blood, gore, gun violence, racial slurs, racism, mentions of climate disaster and mass radiation exposure. Moderate: police brutality, rape, sexual violence, suicide attempt, imprisonment, prison riot, hostage situation, kidnapping, child abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Gore, Murder, Racism, Blood, Child death, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Racial slurs, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Rape, and Sexual violence
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