How High We Go in the Dark

3.75 ⭐️

First the pros: this is a book of artfully woven anthologies. Nagamatsu created a world that is endlessly imaginative. The lives of people separated by tragedy are still hopeful, and the connections they find are heartwarming and tender. I wished some of the vignettes were books of their own, and I only found a few to be bland.

The cons: this one was on me for not reading the blurb thoroughly, but I don't think I needed to read a pandemic book. A 2022 “what if” exploration into the death of millions of humans by plague felt gratuitous. Maybe I'm not finished grieving the past few years though?

The plague is also a metaphor and not just a plot device. I do like this about the book. It is mostly explored in the final chapter, but I'm not sure it works. The plague is the mutation of the genes of Earth's creator. It comes about when she imbeds herself into creation (i.e., having a child with a Neanderthal). As the creator, she represents the innate nature of humankind to dream and create. But, manifested in her dead daughter, this potential also wreaks havoc (it must be noted that the virus lays dormant in the Siberian tundra and only becomes an issue through global warming). To be honest, I'm not sure what the author is getting at with this one. Humans have the possibility to create and destroy? Yeah, I guess. That point just feels a little flat.

Some of the stories I found more interesting than others. One of my favorites was from the perspective of Cliff's wife, who goes on a 6000 year space exploration to find a new world to colonize. To go from that back to 2039 on earth felt disappointing. Again, maybe I was just wishing I was reading a different book?

Overall, my personal disappointment isn't enough to say that this is a bad book. It isn't. It's exceptionally beautiful, but it wasn't what I wanted it to be.