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nathanshuherk's review
4.0
Really diverse set of authors. Great way to introduce yourself to some new voices you might want to read more from
sskatierickard's review
It feels a bit wild to check in with essays from 2018 so much of it is so specific to that time while also showing parts of the political and cultural realities (and reckonings) of 2020.
margedalloway's review
3.0
A big step up from last year's edition. It is worth reading for Solnit's introduction alone, although I think reading it after reading the essays themselves is a good idea, it helped me tie up the book in my mind. The main subject-matter, if such a thing exists in such a disparate collection, is both the potential and limitations of imaginative responses to the current global situation. As Solnit emphasises in the introduction, the essay is a particularly suitable form in which to do this as it allows for the most cohesive blend of intellectual and emotional energy – combining the personal, the academic, and the political. Unlike last year's edition (which, possibly due to the freshness of the source material – the essay on the women's march was particularly dire – was inflexible and doggerel in its approach), these essays invested significantly more energy in the underlying concerns that have lead us to this point, once again underscoring the true value of the essay form, lending a discursive element to the book. I was a bit unsure if I would buy this year's edition after last year's disappointment, but I'm so happy that rather than the shut box full of pretty but arid essays of last year, I've bought a book of considerable worth and discovered a string of writers I hope to read more of soon.
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