The Dog Stars

Well, I don't recommend reading this book while the COVID-19 pandemic is raging, as it deals with a devastating flu pandemic that has very nearly wiped out the human race and, combined with advanced global warming, has made the earth a pretty tough place to live. Nonetheless, a guy, Hig, has found his place, sharing a territory with another guy, Bangley, and they have an odd co-existence. Aside from the premise that was just science fiction when it was written, which is just too horrible to contemplate right now, I found the book pretty melodramatic and overdone. A little too much crying, for example, given how much hardship Hig has endured over the 9 years since civilization went to hell. The voice is interesting, but annoying, with a steady stream of fragments and single words. I guess in the fictional world the disease spread too fast to develop a vaccine–I don't think the word was mentioned once in the book–but I'm grateful our world has one for COVID-19. Hope it works. (I listened to the audio version of the book but also had a print copy in which I could follow along.)