Hopeful Climate Books

Octavia Butler’s stunning duology depicts some of the earliest climate fiction, written in the 1990s, and set in California. While bleak and dystopic, the two novels are ultimately hopeful thanks to the continual struggle of the characters to build a better, brighter future from the ashes of the old.

A truly global story, in which dozens of narrators from all corners of the planet (the Arizona border to Antarctica to Switzerland to India and more) tell the story of humanity rallying to save the planet from the climate crisis.

Welcome to a moon named Panga, where technology long ago achieved sentience and decided to leave humanity for the wilderness. This slim novel is a delightful rolling conversation on the philosophy, theology, and ecology of a happy, nurturing post-climate crisis world.

Eleutheria is the story of Willa Marks, who elbows her way into a Caribbean-based commune in her desperate attempt to save the world from the climate crisis. A fantastic climate novel that paints a dire, realistic portrait of the near future and then combats that dystopia with bright-eyed hope.

What would the world look like if Al Gore had won the 2000 election and declared war on the climate crisis? This novel follows that “what if” into a powerful community mobilization in Houston, with echoes of Occupy, the Black Lives Matter, and the growing movement against the Israeli bombardment of Gaza.