Clade

By: James Bradley

Narrated by: Ian Bliss

A provocative, urgent audiobook about time, family and how a changing planet might change our lives, from James Bradley, acclaimed author of The Resurrectionist and editor of The Penguin Book of the Ocean.

Compelling, challenging and resilient, over ten beautifully contained chapters, Clade canvasses three generations from the very near future to late this century. Central to the novel is the family of Adam, a scientist, and his wife Ellie, an artist.

Clade opens with them wanting a child and Adam in a quandary about the wisdom of this. Their daughter proves to be an elusive little girl and then a troubled teenager, and by now cracks have appeared in her parents' marriage. Their grandson is in turn a troubled boy, but when his character reappears as an adult he's an astronomer, one set to discover something astounding in the universe.

With great skill James Bradley shifts us subtly forward through the decades, through disasters and plagues, miraculous small moments and acts of great courage. Elegant, evocative, understated and thought-provoking, it is the work of a writer in command of the major themes of our time.

©2015 James Bradley (P)2016 Audible, Ltd

Critic reviews

"Clade opens up to become that rarest of novels: one that stares down its harrowing beginning to find a sense of peace and even of wonder, while being true to itself. All the way through, the prose is achingly beautiful. Bradley's a magnificent writer and it's all on display here: sentences and images float, poetic and sharp as crystal." (The Saturday Paper)
"James Bradley's lithe and inventive novels defiantly resist the present...Clade triumphs because Bradley renders his characters graspable...prioritises the human touch...It is impossible not to be swept along by the sheer pace of the narrative...[There is] a palpable sense of urgency and consequence that is conveyed subtly, without any heavy-handed didacticism or sententiousness." (Malcolm Forbes, The Australian)

Speculative Fiction with Heart

I really enjoyed Clade in a way that I didn't expect. I thought the speculative, environmental science fiction would be fun and thought provoking, which it was. But I was really blown away by the emotionality and the depth of the characters. This is exactly what people want when they say they want sci-fi to be more like traditional and classic fiction works.

climate realities to come

such an excellent job forecasting the challenges already occurring via characters you feel and know

Good Book

I enjoyed what was ultimately a very optimistic read. The author jumps around to different times, places and groups of people, which can make it a bit hard to follow sometimes. Still, I appreciated the attempt to span such a long period, which I believe is necessary if you are going to tell a meaningful story about climate change. Overall, I think the book was well done.