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A review by zlibrarian
Smoketown by Tenea D. Johnson
5.0
I owe this strong novel a longer review, and hope to post one later. For now I will say this: fascinating world-building and inclusion of believable cultural and environmental elements. Likeable, imperfect, intelligent heroine. The complexity, humor, and pacing of this novel take it far beyond typical dystopian themes.
This is no simple dystopia: in this world artists earn money by capturing and altering reality for those able to purchase escapism, and the simple beauty of birdsong has become an unsettling rarity. Fear of disease and of other people restrict daily life. Creativity and magic become even more powerful when blended with technology in Johnson's vividly rendered, well paced, and compelling story.
This is no simple dystopia: in this world artists earn money by capturing and altering reality for those able to purchase escapism, and the simple beauty of birdsong has become an unsettling rarity. Fear of disease and of other people restrict daily life. Creativity and magic become even more powerful when blended with technology in Johnson's vividly rendered, well paced, and compelling story.