Invisible Things
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- Create Date：2022-07-01 18:21:36
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Mat Johnson
- ISBN：0593229258
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Summary
A sharp allegorical novel about a hidden human civilization， a crucial election， and a mysterious invisible force that must not be named， by one of our most imaginative comic novelists
When sociologist Nalini Jackson joins the SS Delany for the first manned mission to Jupiter， all she wants is a career opportunity: the chance to conduct the first field study of group dynamics on long-haul cryoships。 But what she discovers instead is an entire city encased in a bubble on Europa， Jupiter's largest moon。
Even more unexpected， Nalini and the rest of the crew soon find themselves abducted and joining its captive population， forced to start new lives in a place called New Roanoke。
New Roanoke is a city riven by wealth inequality and governed by a feckless， predatory elite， its economy run on heedless consumption and income inequality。 But in other ways it's different from the cities we already know: it's covered by an enormous dome， it's populated by alien abductees， and it happens to be terrorized by an invisible entity so disturbing that no one even dares acknowledge its existence。
Albuquerque chauffeur Chase Eubanks is pretty darn sure aliens stole his wife。 People mock him for saying that， but he doesn't care who knows it。 So when his philanthropist boss funds a top-secret rescue mission to save New Roanoke's abductees， Chase jumps at the chance to find her。 The plan: Get the astronauts out and provide the population with the tech they need to escape this alien world。 The reality: Nothing is ever simple when dealing with the complex， contradictory， and contrarian impulses of everyday earthlings。
This is a madcap， surreal adventure into a Jovian mirror world， one grappling with the same polarized politics， existential crises， and mass denialism that obsess and divide our own。 Will New Roanoke survive？ Will we？
When sociologist Nalini Jackson joins the SS Delany for the first manned mission to Jupiter， all she wants is a career opportunity: the chance to conduct the first field study of group dynamics on long-haul cryoships。 But what she discovers instead is an entire city encased in a bubble on Europa， Jupiter's largest moon。
Even more unexpected， Nalini and the rest of the crew soon find themselves abducted and joining its captive population， forced to start new lives in a place called New Roanoke。
New Roanoke is a city riven by wealth inequality and governed by a feckless， predatory elite， its economy run on heedless consumption and income inequality。 But in other ways it's different from the cities we already know: it's covered by an enormous dome， it's populated by alien abductees， and it happens to be terrorized by an invisible entity so disturbing that no one even dares acknowledge its existence。
Albuquerque chauffeur Chase Eubanks is pretty darn sure aliens stole his wife。 People mock him for saying that， but he doesn't care who knows it。 So when his philanthropist boss funds a top-secret rescue mission to save New Roanoke's abductees， Chase jumps at the chance to find her。 The plan: Get the astronauts out and provide the population with the tech they need to escape this alien world。 The reality: Nothing is ever simple when dealing with the complex， contradictory， and contrarian impulses of everyday earthlings。
This is a madcap， surreal adventure into a Jovian mirror world， one grappling with the same polarized politics， existential crises， and mass denialism that obsess and divide our own。 Will New Roanoke survive？ Will we？
Reviews
Gary Mercado
，
This book was brilliant。 As a regular sci-fi story it’s amazing and entertaining， but the way the author talks about the current political climate in the US in a very entertaining and digestible way is perfect。 I would gladly read this book again。
Shannon （It Starts At Midnight）
，
Invisible Things was certainly an interesting concept: some astronauts on a trip to Jupiter find themselves kidnapped， then trapped on what can be described as a microcosm of human society （but think human society à la Pleasantville） in Europa， Jupiter's moon。 And then， some other folks decide to try to rescue the first bunch， but they too find themselves stuck。This book showcases some great commentary on our current society， wrapped up as an adventure story about our main characters trying to f Invisible Things was certainly an interesting concept: some astronauts on a trip to Jupiter find themselves kidnapped， then trapped on what can be described as a microcosm of human society （but think human society à la Pleasantville） in Europa， Jupiter's moon。 And then， some other folks decide to try to rescue the first bunch， but they too find themselves stuck。This book showcases some great commentary on our current society， wrapped up as an adventure story about our main characters trying to find their way back to Earth。 It's not even subtle commentary， it's full stop showing the characteristics of this society that will doom it， and ours which will doom us。 There's definitely an element of humor laced throughout the story too， which is great because it made it much easier to consume。The characters， while I certainly sympathized with their plight， and obviously cheered them on， I didn't feel particularly connected to them。 I suspect that wasn't really the point anyway， it was more about what the characters discover on New Roanoke， and whether they will stand up to fight against the current system。 The current system， of course， forbids them to take their spaceship to return home。 Because frankly， gotta keep the oppressed as oppressed as possible， yeah？ New Roanoke runs on a smaller version of the US: looks peachy to those in power， those who live in the nice towns。 But look deeper， and you'll find all the people they've used and stepped on to get to where they are。 Obviously， the higher ups don't want their cushy lifestyle to change， no matter who it hurts。Sound familiar？ The Jerks In Charge™ are also willing to cheat， lie， steal elections， and flat out kill people who get in their way。 Like I said， not subtle， but it's a great way to illustrate how absurd our society currently is， when you look at it from the lens of a smaller one like New Roanoke。Bottom Line: Fabulous commentary and humor， and a delightfully quirky story to boot。You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight 。。。more
Mocha Girl
，
Mat Johnson’s Invisible Things is a timely novel that looks at human nature， American politics and greed， all the “isms” （racism， classism， colorism， etc）， and ugliness that accompanies these social ills， through the lens of an African American research scientist， Dr。 Nalini Jackson， aboard an interstellar cryoship heading toward Europa， one of Jupiter’s moons， for scientific study。 Initially， her job is to monitor and note the group dynamics among her shipmates; however， after the crew is abduc Mat Johnson’s Invisible Things is a timely novel that looks at human nature， American politics and greed， all the “isms” （racism， classism， colorism， etc）， and ugliness that accompanies these social ills， through the lens of an African American research scientist， Dr。 Nalini Jackson， aboard an interstellar cryoship heading toward Europa， one of Jupiter’s moons， for scientific study。 Initially， her job is to monitor and note the group dynamics among her shipmates; however， after the crew is abducted by unknown alien forces and placed in an isolated replica of Earth along with other randomly abducted humans - her focus shifts from study to survival。 Johnson explores the power of myth， theories of assimilation - the “go along to get along” mentality， the blind eye， brainwashing， the effects it has in communities。 The story centers on the expression， “wherever you go， you take yourself” - in these case， displaced humans/Earthlings despite having an opportunity to apply the lessons and avoid the known wrongs and mistakes， essentially recreate a society that mimics the one left behind， complete with all the inequality， ignorance， apathy， greed， manipulation， and self-destructive behaviors learned on Earth。Johnson stays true to his brand delivering wit， uncanny insight， and social commentary via quirky characters and humorous scenarios。 Fans of the author will not be disappointed。 Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an opportunity to review！ 。。。more
Billie
，
Invisible Thingsby Mat JohnsonSpace Science FictionNetGalley ARCThe ship SS Delany is orbiting Jupiter so its crew can study the planet and its moon Europa。 But when scans come back from the moon's surface， it shows an American-type city inside a bubble。 They send drones down to investigate further and suddenly the crew finds themselves inside the city。Back on Earth， while the powers that be know the truth， they tell the world the crew died， then privately go to Europa to rescue them。And here st Invisible Thingsby Mat JohnsonSpace Science FictionNetGalley ARCThe ship SS Delany is orbiting Jupiter so its crew can study the planet and its moon Europa。 But when scans come back from the moon's surface， it shows an American-type city inside a bubble。 They send drones down to investigate further and suddenly the crew finds themselves inside the city。Back on Earth， while the powers that be know the truth， they tell the world the crew died， then privately go to Europa to rescue them。And here starts the politics。 Those who were born in the city are the powerful and those collected （abducted from Earth and the SS Delany） are not， unless they kiss the right a**。。。 The basic rich vs poor。 I can turn on the TV and subtitles and read the same story on the news channels。At 65% I was so bored， but in so deep， I started to skim， hoping for something to catch my eye。 There was no action， just pages of narration and lame dialogue。 The 'invisible things' ehh， not much there。 The characters， while at first Nalini and Chase， I liked， but towards the middle， they， like all of the characters， became flat and lifeless。 There was no madcap， or adventure in the book as the blurb claimed。1 Star 。。。more
Constantine
，
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐Genre: Science FictionInvisible Things is novel with a fascinating premise。 It is a mixture of science fiction， fantasy， politics， and survival。 Nalini Jackson and her crew are on a mission to Jupiter。 There they discover a hidden human civilization in a city that is completely encased in a bubble。 Soon the crew will be abducted and join the captive population of this strange city （New Roanoke）。 They find themselves like hostages in a city that claims to be run by democracy but it is Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐Genre: Science FictionInvisible Things is novel with a fascinating premise。 It is a mixture of science fiction， fantasy， politics， and survival。 Nalini Jackson and her crew are on a mission to Jupiter。 There they discover a hidden human civilization in a city that is completely encased in a bubble。 Soon the crew will be abducted and join the captive population of this strange city （New Roanoke）。 They find themselves like hostages in a city that claims to be run by democracy but it is actually run and depends on the wealth inequality and dirty politics。I enjoyed reading this book。 The whole idea behind it is applicable to our world but is happening on a different planet and under mysterious circumstances which makes it more terrifying。 This is not a horror or a spooky book but the vibes that an unknown future gives are always scary。 On the contrary， the book has some light and fun moments that are well balanced with the serious themes of the story。 I think the author has done a commendable job keeping that kind of balance。 The characters are quite diverse and add more to the ambiguous atmosphere of this science fiction tale。 Can’t say I was a big fan of the ending。 However， I think it suited the story and kept things vague。 You are free to draw your own conclusions， this is a technique many authors use and it is quite effective。 I think Invisible Things would make a great TV show if it gets adapted。 Many thanks to the publisher Random House Publishing Group - Random House， One World， and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book。 。。。more
Mark
，
"Don't Look Up" novelized， with more to say。Mat Johnson sets his allegory in the bizarre space colony New Roanoke to discuss the plights of modern society （racism， classism， bureaucracy， and other relevant -isms）。 Lurking beneath this seemingly-plentiful society is a threat of the "invisible things" - things that must remain unspoken if you know what's good for you。 This metaphor hits in broad strokes as societal expectations & roles are abstracted into real， imposing， yet amorphous threats。 As "Don't Look Up" novelized， with more to say。Mat Johnson sets his allegory in the bizarre space colony New Roanoke to discuss the plights of modern society （racism， classism， bureaucracy， and other relevant -isms）。 Lurking beneath this seemingly-plentiful society is a threat of the "invisible things" - things that must remain unspoken if you know what's good for you。 This metaphor hits in broad strokes as societal expectations & roles are abstracted into real， imposing， yet amorphous threats。 As it turns out， if you tug one thread， a whole lot comes with it。Johnson investigates the characters' conflicting prerogatives in New Roanoke， but provides a clear answer to the overarching question: "Do I dare disturb the universe？" 。。。more
Jessica Woodbury
，
There are going to be people who do not like this book because the central metaphor is too general。 I can see where they're coming from。 And yet， the looseness of the metaphor worked really well for me because I just kept thinking of one thing after another after another that it could apply to。 It started to feel like it applied to everything。 And really， how can you satirize just one thing in our present climate when one thing inevitably ties in to another and then another？ In a way， this kind There are going to be people who do not like this book because the central metaphor is too general。 I can see where they're coming from。 And yet， the looseness of the metaphor worked really well for me because I just kept thinking of one thing after another after another that it could apply to。 It started to feel like it applied to everything。 And really， how can you satirize just one thing in our present climate when one thing inevitably ties in to another and then another？ In a way， this kind of broad satire hits so strongly because Johnson has managed to encapsulate so many things at once。Johnson has a great balance between serious and fun， having a variety of characters who are more extreme and more sensible。 The first third of the book is just weird， it's unclear exactly what is going on， and that is right up my alley。 I was so happy to go along for the ride。 And then once it was clear what was going on， there were a mountain of other questions unanswered。 I will spoil none of these。 But I have to say that an element of absurdity in political satire is important and Johnson gets that just right， I think。 This is more accessible than Loving Day， though also not quite as sharp。 As I said， it takes a very broad aim， but it also has a lot of fun with its sci-fi elements。 。。。more
Gina Malanga
，
I love an allegorical novel， one that has levels， the things on the page which in this book are funny and unique， and the things unsaid， the “other” story。 I will admit that aliens and other planets aren’t my usual read but this book was different。 As settlers land in New Roanoke they find this new world corrupt in the same and different ways from the one they left。 Power， greed and the continued classism and racism make this book timely and at the same time a whole lot of fun。 There is somethin I love an allegorical novel， one that has levels， the things on the page which in this book are funny and unique， and the things unsaid， the “other” story。 I will admit that aliens and other planets aren’t my usual read but this book was different。 As settlers land in New Roanoke they find this new world corrupt in the same and different ways from the one they left。 Power， greed and the continued classism and racism make this book timely and at the same time a whole lot of fun。 There is something to be said for the “invisible things” in our world that need to be addressed。 。。。more
Valentina
，
I was lucky enough to get an advance copy of Invisible Things through my work as a bookseller。 I'm a big fan of really good sci-fi that says something about the world， and this one has it all。 It will appeal to fans of the greats， like Kurt Vonnegut and Octavia Butler because Mat Johnson does a stellar job illustrating the human condition in an allegory the way that they did， only his take is from the 21st century。 The science fiction mechanics are mysterious， contemporary， and spooky in a way t I was lucky enough to get an advance copy of Invisible Things through my work as a bookseller。 I'm a big fan of really good sci-fi that says something about the world， and this one has it all。 It will appeal to fans of the greats， like Kurt Vonnegut and Octavia Butler because Mat Johnson does a stellar job illustrating the human condition in an allegory the way that they did， only his take is from the 21st century。 The science fiction mechanics are mysterious， contemporary， and spooky in a way that made me not want to put the book down。 The pacing was masterful。 The characters are complex and feel real。 Most of all， the way he captures and reflects back the existential dread we feel as humans， and how different people react to that is incredibly profound。 I can't stop thinking about it。 。。。more
Miesha Wilson Headen
，
Follow Mat Johnson on Twitter to regularly enjoy his humor and political insight。 He brings his hilarity to Invisible Things， a play on Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand controlling the society and economy of a colony of people kidnapped from Earth and secreted to a space bubble on Jupiter’s moon， Europa。 Except the hand is an actual alien creature who can smash your head。 What happened to Virginia Dare？ Well， she landed on his moon and wrote a seminal text about home。 Johnson refuses to simplify soci Follow Mat Johnson on Twitter to regularly enjoy his humor and political insight。 He brings his hilarity to Invisible Things， a play on Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand controlling the society and economy of a colony of people kidnapped from Earth and secreted to a space bubble on Jupiter’s moon， Europa。 Except the hand is an actual alien creature who can smash your head。 What happened to Virginia Dare？ Well， she landed on his moon and wrote a seminal text about home。 Johnson refuses to simplify social dynamics between those abductees who chose to collaborate and those who rebel。 The novel is both funny and thought provoking。 I highly recommend Invisible Things to readers who enjoyed Paul Beatty’s Sellout and Perceval Everett’s The Trees。 。。。more
jo
，
i loved johnson's Pym， didn't quite like Loving Day， appreciated the heck out of this book。 i cannot say i loved it because it's a very intellectual book （not difficult， not challenging， just full of ideas baked quite seamlessly inside a funny story） and the thinker in me found itself engaged more than the lover of literature in me。 i cannot tell the ideas without spoiling the book but i'll just say that this book， while being fun， engaging， and fast， with a riveting and often hilarious plot， is i loved johnson's Pym， didn't quite like Loving Day， appreciated the heck out of this book。 i cannot say i loved it because it's a very intellectual book （not difficult， not challenging， just full of ideas baked quite seamlessly inside a funny story） and the thinker in me found itself engaged more than the lover of literature in me。 i cannot tell the ideas without spoiling the book but i'll just say that this book， while being fun， engaging， and fast， with a riveting and often hilarious plot， is also a clarion call for political revolution in the age of fascism。 mat johnson never mentions fascism in the book （i may be wrong） but what he is describing is the particular brand of fascism that is sadly and tragically thriving in the united states， a fascism dictated by greed， the war on truth， racism and classism， and the cultist seduction of the masses。 he describes all of this so lucidly and cleverly， the lover of ideas in me had to stop and think many， many times。it is particularly clever that the book should be called Invisible Things。 there are 'invisible things' in the book， but they are there almost stealthily， as behooves invisible things。 johnson does not make a huge big deal about them， at least not until the end。 yet they are central。 fascism thrives on invisibility and the collective agreement to not see， not notice， not do anything about。 so what i'm gonna say， if somebody asked me What is a good novel about what is happening in the united states now and what to do about it， i'd say， Read this book。 。。。more
lark benobi
，
I’ve read every novel Mat Johnson has written and he is one of the most consistently funny， relevant， and insightful authors I’m aware of—and that’s an extremely rare mix of things for an author to simultaneously be！ So。 This book entertained me， the premise was delightful， and the story zipped along， but compared with previous novels， it didn’t convince me of its relevance。 That’s ok。 Books are allowed to be just great reads。
Jonathan Hayes
，
dystopian/sci-fi/political/mystery- Great story， I finished it in two days。 I like how it relates to real world problems of democracy。 It also keeps you guessing on what the hell is going on。 Is it aliens？ Is it god？ Is it the Illuminati？ The down sides are the characters are a little inconsistent and there were a few fallacies in the story。 One character uses super “sciencie” language for a while， then starts talking like a college kid， then randomly cuts back into big words… another guy acts b dystopian/sci-fi/political/mystery- Great story， I finished it in two days。 I like how it relates to real world problems of democracy。 It also keeps you guessing on what the hell is going on。 Is it aliens？ Is it god？ Is it the Illuminati？ The down sides are the characters are a little inconsistent and there were a few fallacies in the story。 One character uses super “sciencie” language for a while， then starts talking like a college kid， then randomly cuts back into big words… another guy acts big brotherish， then like he doesn’t know her， then again goes back to his original set。 It almost felt like the book was written by multiple people who didn’t communicate on the personalities too well。 And I just found a few spots where the book said one thing early on， like a characters rank early on， but then they get a promotion to the rank they already had and stuff similar to that。 I did read an ARC version though， so the book might not be fully edited。 。。。more
Michelle
，
This was a very interesting read that definitely held my attention。 When a mission to study Jupiter's moons discovers a dome on one of the moons with an American City on it。。。things get a bit crazy and also pretty familiar。 So much of this was great from Nalini and the other characters （even the Bobs were entertaining）， to the society of the moon mimicking our issues on earth。I have to admit， I was a bit let down by the ending， but， it's still definitely worth a read！ Thanks to NetGalley for the This was a very interesting read that definitely held my attention。 When a mission to study Jupiter's moons discovers a dome on one of the moons with an American City on it。。。things get a bit crazy and also pretty familiar。 So much of this was great from Nalini and the other characters （even the Bobs were entertaining）， to the society of the moon mimicking our issues on earth。I have to admit， I was a bit let down by the ending， but， it's still definitely worth a read！ Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC！ 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Invisible Things
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Invisible Things&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Invisible Things&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0