Fire & Water

Before becoming a published writer, I was a lawyer litigating primarily large, multi-district environmental insurance coverage cases. I became familiar with the many ways by which we damage our precious natural resources, be it groundwater or soil or the air we breathe. Beginning with Rachel Carson, we have rich literature that speaks to the degradation of the planet, including the devastating changes wrought by global warming. The stories in this anthology speak to the physical and emotional topography of our current climate crisis, from a Sami woman who studies fish populations to a Wisconsin man contemplating the animals who make… show more.

Fire & Water does not make a spectacle of climate change. While global warming and environmental damage may be the catalyst for many of the stories, the weight of the stories is in the way the characters encounter new challenges, reconsider their relationships to each other and to their environment, and discover the wonder in the world around them, even as it changes. These stories fly us like a kite in hurricane-force winds through the gamut of emotions brought into specific relief by the devastating realities of climate change. As the climate crisis becomes more real, these stories steeped in… show more.

Not all fiction comes in the form of a novel. The most innovative writing is often found in short fiction, so I’m also going to recommend Fire & Water, an anthology of climate fiction. There are 17 stories from around the world (disclosure: including one of my own) - from a Sámi woman who studies Alaska fish populations to a teenager living through a permanent drought in Australia - all wrestling with what humans have done to the planet and what it means for the survival of our species. These stories do what literature does best, helping us grasp… show more.