Forty Signs of Rain: 1 (Science in the Capital) - Softcover

Robinson, Kim Stanley

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553585800 ISBN 13: 9780553585803

Publisher: Spectra Books, 2005

Synopsis

The bestselling author of the classic Mars trilogy and The Years of Rice and Salt presents a riveting new trilogy of cutting-edge science, international politics, and the real-life ramifications of global warming as they are played out in our nation's capital--and in the daily lives of those at the center of the action. Hauntingly yet humorously realistic, here is a novel of the near future that is inspired by scientific facts already making headlines.

When the Arctic ice pack was first measured in the 1950s, it averaged thirty feet thick in midwinter. By the end of the century it was down to fifteen. One August the ice broke.

The next year the breakup started in July. The third year it began in May.

That was last year.

It's a muggy summer in Washington, D.C., as Senate environmental staffer Charlie Quibler and his scientist wife, Anna, work to call attention to the growing crisis of global warming. But as these everyday heroes fight to align the awesome forces of nature with the extraordinary march of technology, fate puts an unusual twist on their efforts--one that will place them at the heart of an unavoidable storm.

About this title

Review:

‘The Brave New World of global warming ... A narrative that is rich in closely observed characters and a wonderfully vivid sense of place ... depicts a society sleep-walking towards the abyss ... His great achievement here is to bring the practice of science alive and to place this in an all-too familiar world of greedy capitalists and unprincipled politicians. Robinson's critique of science is heartfelt ... humans have gone from being the smartest animal on the savannah to being "experts at denial".’ P.D. Smith Guardian

'Kim Stanley Robinson is freed by his medium – fiction – to deliver [a] message with passion and restraint ... A great book' New Scientist

Praise for the Mars Trilogy:

'The excitement of the science is thrillingly rendered ... a very impressive work of the imagination ... The Mars trilogy is one of the landmarks of sf in the 1990s. The time may well come when it is regarded as one of the landmarks of American literature' TLS

On Years of Rice and Salt:

‘A tapestry of striving joy, unhapiness and ambiguity ... the marvellous book may be the most hopeful thing you read for a long time’ Francis Spufford, Evening Standard

‘Robinson’s supple, thoughtful prose is always up to the challenge, whether exciting us with ideas, thrilling us with spectacle or presenting us with moments of elegy or quiet passion’ Roz Kaveny, Independent

‘A huge, complex and highly enjoyable book: buy it’ New Scientist

More on the Mars books:

‘Humane, witty, earnest and intricate books: they mark their readers indelibly with Robinson's seductive sense of place.' Independent

'Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy combines Big Science and real people. Robinson is a master of characterisation.' New Scientist
'One of the most impressive pieces of science fiction of the past ten years' The Economist

'First of a mighty trilogy, it is the ultimate in future history ... Arthur C. Clarke hails Red Mars as "a staggering book", the best of its kind ever written ... I have never read a book quite like Red Mars. It is unusually well written ...three dimensional characters ... the scale is awesome.' Shaun Usher Daily Mail

'To make Mars real and make it interesting. That's the double challenge which Kim Robinson has here so squarely and successfully faced... scientific reality leads straight into a conflict plot... a running commentary on human desire, frustration and fulfilment.' Tom Shippey Guardian

'A beautiful book – to be lived in.' Ian Watson Daily Telegraph

'A complex combination of science fiction and fact, political and social commentary which, together with strong characterisation and a brilliantly conceived plot, blend into a book that reads like a heavily dramatised version of past events, flowing smoothly from start to finish and building up to a climactic conclusion. Probably the most outstanding aspect of Robinson's novel, however, is his stunning visualisation of the beauty of this hostile planet. By the end you can't help feeling you understand the place, that it has some meaning beyond that of just another location for a story ... I'm looking forward to reading the next two volumes almost as eagerly as I'm anticipating the reality of such an outrageous venture.' Alex Hardy Time Out

On Antarctica
'A tour de force of adventure writing, memorably told ... He describes Antarctica like a great travel writer, but he does so in the aid of the story ... It is hard to put the book down. It is important, it is relevant, it gives us a huge new continent to imagine; and it is fun.' Mail on Sunday

'The most momentous science fiction novel of the year... Robinson has turned his gaze on a landscape almost as hostile and unspoiled as Mars and describes it gloriously well.' Daily Telegraph

'A fascinating richness ... with the unobtrusive lightness that allowed him to finesse so many of the difficult grandeurs of epic in the Mars books, he steals in Antarctica towards the tricky inward experiences of those archaic Brits, "conquering the world with bad boy scout equipment".' Independent

From the Back Cover:

The world's climates are changing: catastrophe beckons.

It's hot in Washington. No sign of rain. While he cares for a boisterous toddler, Charlie Quibler works from home as environmental policy advisor to Senator Phil Chase, the author of a climate bill currently being debated. It’s a tough sell. According to the President and his science advisor Dr S, the weather isn’t important!

In her air-conditioned office at the National Science Foundation, Anna Quibler also has other things on her mind, such as the imminent departure of Frank Vanderwal, her best programme officer. What she doesn’t know is that Frank is scheming to hold back one very special grant application for his own private gain. Mostly she feels sorry for Frank. His private life consists of trying to crack the code of human behaviour.

Then Anna befriends the staff at a new embassy for the tiny island state of Khembalung, just arrived in Washington to lobby the Senate for help with their rising sea-level. The weather is very important to them. The Khembalung ambassador has a profound effect on both Charlie and Frank, which could not have been predicted. Unlike abrupt, catastrophic climate change, which could have been ...

And now there are signs of rain.

Tom Wolfe meets Michael Crichton in this highly topical, taut, witty and swift-paced science thriller.

About this edition

• Publisher: Spectra Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0553585800
• ISBN 13: 9780553585803
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 432