I chose this book for a frivolous reason—a main character named Wanda. Usually fictional Wandas are not nice women. They live on the edge of the law or they leave others to burn to death or something equally unpleasant. So what a treat to find a smart, resilient girl named Wanda after the hurricane of the same name.
In some ways the tale has a dreamlike quality, with nightmarish interludes. It's in some ways a vision of what may come to pass. Or a parable about human behaviour. Wanda's father, Kirby, is of the older time, when people thought they could solve any problem with sufficient technology. Wanda is the wild, untamed version of humanity, adapting to nature instead of fighting it. She has the perfect tutor in this in their next door neighbour, Phyllis. Phyllis is just what every child needs: an adult with skills that she passes along just by taking the child along and teaching by example, including Wanda in her activities. It doesn't hurt that Phyllis is a prepper and a survivalist.
It took a while for the story to gather speed. Rather like a weather system gathering its strength before attaining enough structure to be a proper storm. Wanda is unborn as things begin and tragedies happen before her birth that will shape her life. We are introduced to a number of other people, many of whom will be interwoven in Wanda's later life. Don't give up to soon. I almost threw in the towel before I got to the good stuff.
As I was finishing the book, I realized that I'm used to reading about ancient peoples who are developing civilization. They are becoming domesticated. This book is the reverse of that—these people are going feral. I may have lingering misgivings about the conclusion, but people have survived other disasters, so I am coming to terms with it. Happiness is a definite possibility, despite my inherent doubt.
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