Ecofiction Roundup no. 1: Flight

Hello, friends, it's been a while! While I was living in Peru for six months, I let this dear blog fall by the wayside. Again. I have since started up a new blog, Enough, and the following is cross-posted there. But never fear! I plan to continue publishing bookish things and poetry here.

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Recently, I discovered the genre of "ecofiction," and I've been wanting to shout the titles I've read from the rooftops, because they are simultaneously terrifying and inspiring. Ecofiction ranges from contemporary fiction to sci-fi but with environmental or nature-oriented themes. Although the name may sound new, the idea is not - if you've read anything by Barbara Kingsolver, you've read ecofiction.

As I began compiling titles for this Ecofiction Roundup, I began to notice a theme: flight. Whether they're attached to bees or dragons, these books all have wings.

Flight Behavior | Barbara Kingsolver

One of Kingsolver's many excellent novels, this book contains themes of relationships, conservation, nature, science, rural communities, and church. Nothing has an easy answer, and no one is perfect - life is complex and messy. Everyone has a story. Everything is connected.

The Crows of Beara | Julie Christine Johnson

This contemporary novel contains beautiful Irish landscapes, refreshingly believable characters, and a poetic story. It is a narrative of both people and place, and I love the relationships, the struggles, and the openness to the voice of the land.

The History of Bees | Maja Lunde

Three very different stories, ranging from historical fiction to dystopia, weave together beautifully by the end in barely more than subtle ways. The suggested possibilities are horrifyingly realistic, and yet hope has a place as well. This is a beautiful tale of bees, family, and humanity.

The Dragon Quartet | Marjorie B. Kellogg

This fantasy/sci-fi crossover is both entertaining and relevant. It has compelling characters, interesting cultures and landscapes, a brilliant weaving together of times and places, and settings eerily parallel to our own. And dragons, of course!

Where to Buy

Interested in reading any (or all!) of these wonderful books? Here are a few suggestions of where to find them:

1. The library

2. A local bookstore

3. A big box bookstore (think Barnes & Noble)

4. Better World Books

5. Alibris

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Read more about sustainable and ethical living on my new blog, Enough!