Multispecies Cities: Solarpunk Urban Futures
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- Create Date：2021-08-22 09:51:59
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Christoph Rupprecht
- ISBN：1734054522
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Summary
Cities are alive， shared by humans and animals， insects and plants， landforms and machines。 What might city ecosystems look like in the future if we strive for multispecies justice in our urban settings？ In these more-than-human stories， twenty-four authors investigate humanity's relationship with the rest of the natural world， placing characters in situations where humans have to look beyond their own needs and interests。 A quirky eco-businessman sees broader applications for a high school science fair project。 A bad date in Hawaii takes an unexpected turn when the couple stumbles upon some confused sea turtle hatchlings。 A genetically-enhanced supersoldier struggles to find new purpose in a peaceful Tokyo。 A community service punishment in Singapore leads to unexpected friendships across age and species。 A boy and a mammoth trek across Asia in search of kin。 A Tamil child learns the language of the stars。 Set primarily in the Asia-Pacific， these stories engage with the serious issues of justice， inclusion， and sustainability that affect the region， while offering optimistic visions of tomorrow's urban spaces。
Reviews
Sherron
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As often happens with anthologies， some stories connect， but others not so much。 I loved some stories， didn’t like others， and some I didn’t get a chance to read because of too many competing projects， my window of opportunity closed too soon！ As an “ecology now” kid from the 70s， and an “apocalypse now” adult today， I want to read the rest of this book。 I love the idea of solar punk。
Adam
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Very strong theme for a solarpunk collection， with some great stories。 Some personal highlights were Deer， Tiger and Witch by Kate Bui， set in a Vietnamese town; The Mammoth Steps by Andrew Dana Hudson， about a smart mammoth on holiday; Untamed by Timothy Yam， about a bratty Singaporean teenager and a roof garden mickey bird; and A Rabbit Egg For Flora by Caroline M Yoachim， about platform ecosystem repair。
Matthew
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As the possibility of an actual climate-change apocalypse grows more and more real， I have become less able to stomach dystopias and post-apocalyptic stories。 None the less， I can't help but devour cli-fi as I come across it， especially if it has the more positive （or at least， adaptive） markers of solar punk。 Before picking up Multispecies Cities， I had not noticed that while many of these stories dealt with conservation of animal life， most did not bring up the idea of cohabitation， and shared As the possibility of an actual climate-change apocalypse grows more and more real， I have become less able to stomach dystopias and post-apocalyptic stories。 None the less， I can't help but devour cli-fi as I come across it， especially if it has the more positive （or at least， adaptive） markers of solar punk。 Before picking up Multispecies Cities， I had not noticed that while many of these stories dealt with conservation of animal life， most did not bring up the idea of cohabitation， and shared civilization with other living beings on the planet。This selection of short stories from a diverse range of authors， including a strong contingent from south eastern and Pacific Asia， is set up in the form of an experiment: what would the future be like if other forms of life were acknowledged and made part of our society as fellow organisms， and can stories of such futures affect the reader's opinions on the subject。 The twenty-six stories all imagine a different future。 Some aren't so far off - Timothy Yam's "Untamed" sends a teen on community service up to care for a rooftop gardens that now dominate the skyline of their city， and form an important social as well as climatic role。On the other hand， E。-H。 Nießler's excellent "Crew" posits a not unimaginable world where a human， an octopus， and an ex-military sperm whale may make a great marine salvage team。 The most important aspect of each of these stories is that they for the most part focus not on how humans can "conserve" nature and animals， but how we could live if we acknowledged that other organisms are just as valid as us， with rights to exist， have culture， and share space with us in our cities。 Perhaps there could be a time when we don't think of them as "our" cities at all。A few of these tales fell flat， either due to characters I didn't quite believe or narratives that did not flow as well as their neighbors。 A handful I might even call little speculative fables。 However， even the rough ones really inspired thought。 The editors ask the readers to fill out a survey on-line before and after they begin reading， to hopefully document if and how people's thinking might have been changed。 I whole-heatedly approve of this experiment， and while I won't tell you how my answers might have changed， I can tell you that they did shift。 We live in a time that requires radical， revolutionary change， and Multispecies Cities is an engrossing， palatable，and necessary call to arms/fins/paws/psudopods。 。。。more
Samantha Strong
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29% DNF'ed the book after DNF'ing 3 stories。 I did like a couple of the ones I finished， but these are "explain the idea in excruciating detail" rather than character- or plot-driven stories。 Maybe it's for some people， but not for me。 29% DNF'ed the book after DNF'ing 3 stories。 I did like a couple of the ones I finished， but these are "explain the idea in excruciating detail" rather than character- or plot-driven stories。 Maybe it's for some people， but not for me。 。。。more
Ryan
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A great foray into sci-fi with many stories from non-western voices。 It's always refreshing to gain new perspectives from authors of different backgrounds。This book is an anthology and contains many enjoyable reads。My favorite is "Mariposa Awakening" by Joseph Nacino。The story is an exploration into the flooding earth and the ingenious way its inhabitants combat the rising sea levels。While unfortunately a short story and doesn't have much in the way of character development， it does bring to min A great foray into sci-fi with many stories from non-western voices。 It's always refreshing to gain new perspectives from authors of different backgrounds。This book is an anthology and contains many enjoyable reads。My favorite is "Mariposa Awakening" by Joseph Nacino。The story is an exploration into the flooding earth and the ingenious way its inhabitants combat the rising sea levels。While unfortunately a short story and doesn't have much in the way of character development， it does bring to mind echoes of reading Frank Herbert's Dune。 In this case， it's not a desert landscape providing fertile ground for the imagination （hello stilt suits） instead we get。。。 mangrove flood control AI 。。。more
Maki
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An incredible anthology with really fascinating themes and questions。 All stories were great but my personal favourites were 'Old Man's Sea' by Meyari McFarland， Kate V。 Bui's 'Deer， Tiger， Witch，' 'A Life With Cibi' by Natsumi Tanaka， 'The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps' by Octavia Cade，' 'The Songs that Humanity Lost Reluctantly to Dolphins' by Shweta Taneja， and 'The Birdsong Fossil' by DK Mok。 Cannot recommend enough！ An incredible anthology with really fascinating themes and questions。 All stories were great but my personal favourites were 'Old Man's Sea' by Meyari McFarland， Kate V。 Bui's 'Deer， Tiger， Witch，' 'A Life With Cibi' by Natsumi Tanaka， 'The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps' by Octavia Cade，' 'The Songs that Humanity Lost Reluctantly to Dolphins' by Shweta Taneja， and 'The Birdsong Fossil' by DK Mok。 Cannot recommend enough！ 。。。more
Jon
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Received a copy of this through LibraryThing's advance reading program， in exchange for an honest review。 Honesty！ Try it today！It's an interesting collection， as they all are。 They're all written the viewpoint of showing a particular type of future。 Some of them are more successful， by which I mean as stories。 Some seem more interested in showing off the future they built。 However， what did or didn't work for me may have different results for you。 I particularly liked "The Songs That Humanity L Received a copy of this through LibraryThing's advance reading program， in exchange for an honest review。 Honesty！ Try it today！It's an interesting collection， as they all are。 They're all written the viewpoint of showing a particular type of future。 Some of them are more successful， by which I mean as stories。 Some seem more interested in showing off the future they built。 However， what did or didn't work for me may have different results for you。 I particularly liked "The Songs That Humanity Lost Reluctantly to Dolphins，" by Shweta Taneja。 YMMV。 。。。more
Judy & Marianne from Long and Short Reviews
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Who says that cities can’t teem with biodiversity？Efe had spent her entire life on a small boat in the ocean in “Old Man’s Sea。” While diving for food and supplies， she was surprised by one of the many dangers that awaited anyone who wandered into the wrong territory。 I was mesmerized by her resourcefulness and smiled at each plot twist。 While I learned enough about her life to put all of the pieces together， this was definitely a world I’d love to revisit in a sequel someday。 There were so many Who says that cities can’t teem with biodiversity？Efe had spent her entire life on a small boat in the ocean in “Old Man’s Sea。” While diving for food and supplies， she was surprised by one of the many dangers that awaited anyone who wandered into the wrong territory。 I was mesmerized by her resourcefulness and smiled at each plot twist。 While I learned enough about her life to put all of the pieces together， this was definitely a world I’d love to revisit in a sequel someday。 There were so many layers to life in this version of the future that could be explored in much greater detail， especially when it came to the identity of the old man referenced in the title。Some of the stories in this anthology would have benefitted from more development in my opinion， and “The Exuberant Vitality of Hatchling Habitats”was one of them。 It followed Xueli and Camila as they worked on a biodegradable sculpture for a school project。 I was intrigued by their reasons for creating it but wished the narrator had gone into more detail about how it worked and why this art display attracted so much attention from outsiders。 The entire concept never quite gelled together for me。In “A Life with Cibi，” the narrator described what it was like when humanity invented a new mobile food source that was mobile and could speak but had more in common with plants than animals。 I was fascinated by the idea off walking up to a Cibus and asking to slice off a part of its body for my lunch。 These creatures were engineered in such a way that they were healthier if humans pruned them regularly。 The narrator gave a tantalizing glimpse of how human culture changed as a result of this invention。 It was a great deal of fun to follow those thought processes to their logical conclusions and wonder what else this society might come up with next。Multispecies Cities – Solarpunk Urban Futures was an eclectic and creative anthology that I’d recommend to anyone who loves the science fiction genre in general。 。。。more
Leanne
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Please see my review of this wonderful book at Books on Asia！In these “more-than-human stories，” twenty-four authors， mainly of Asian-Pacific descent， investigate humanity’s relationship with the rest of the natural world， placing characters in situations where humans have to look beyond their own needs and interests。 In such an interconnected world， we find: dolphins and humans learning each other’s languages in a story by Shweta Taneja; a multiplicity of voices， including stars and rivers， in Please see my review of this wonderful book at Books on Asia！In these “more-than-human stories，” twenty-four authors， mainly of Asian-Pacific descent， investigate humanity’s relationship with the rest of the natural world， placing characters in situations where humans have to look beyond their own needs and interests。 In such an interconnected world， we find: dolphins and humans learning each other’s languages in a story by Shweta Taneja; a multiplicity of voices， including stars and rivers， in stories by Priya Sarukkai Chabria and Eliza Victoria; or where a bad date in Hawai‘i takes an unexpected turn in a story by N。 R。 M。 Roshak， the couple stumbles upon some confused sea turtle hatchlings and take the time to figure out how to help。Rest of Review here 。。。more
Shona
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Thank you to NetGalley and to World Weaver Press for this DRC。This book is solarpunk; definition， from the introduction:"[Stories about] refusing to surrender to the temptation of violent， dystopian post-apocalypse imaginaries。 Seeking ways of practicing solidarity， embracing human ingenuity from traditional ecological knowledge to scientific research， celebrating diverse forms of being in the world， from personal expression to relationships。"Very cool， right？ The focus was on authors from the A Thank you to NetGalley and to World Weaver Press for this DRC。This book is solarpunk; definition， from the introduction:"[Stories about] refusing to surrender to the temptation of violent， dystopian post-apocalypse imaginaries。 Seeking ways of practicing solidarity， embracing human ingenuity from traditional ecological knowledge to scientific research， celebrating diverse forms of being in the world， from personal expression to relationships。"Very cool， right？ The focus was on authors from the Asia-Pacific region。 My favourite stories: By the Light of the Stars， By N。 R。 M。 Roshak， set in （future？） Hawaii， about the effects of light pollution;Old Man's Sea， by Meyari McFarland， about an orca with military spec mods in a flooded world;Deer， Tiger and Witch， by Kate Bui， set in Vietnam （very fave）;Untamed， by Timothy Yam， about roof gardening （and a young protagonist in trouble with the police）;It is the Year 2115， by Joyce Chng， about a domed city;A Rabbit Egg for Flora， by Caroline M。 Yoachim， which is perfectly charming （won't spoil it）;A Life with Cibi， by Natsumi Tanaka， translated by Toshiya Kamei -- not a fave so much as utterly disturbing， about living food 😳;Children of Asphalt， by Phoebe Wagner， one of a couple of stories in the anthology about the wisdom of small kids 🥺;Becoming Martians， by Taiyo Fujii， translated by Toshiya Kamei， about what Mars may be like eventually， because humans;Abso， by Sarah E。 Stevens， which is lovely about a robotic dog;The Mammoth Steps， by Andrew Dana Hudson， because who doesn't want to read about living mammoths？;Crew， by E。-H。 Nießler， another one about modified marine creatures;The Birdsong Fossil， by D。 K。 Mok， which I wish I could read again for the first time。 Breathtaking。Lots to read， savour， think about， learn from。 A fantastic anthology。 。。。more
Lexi Denee
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**Thank you to Netgalley and World Weaver Press for the eARC of this collection of stories in exchange for honest feedback！**I absolutely adored this collection and will be purchasing a copy to have on my shelf once it is published （April 13th， 2021。）The intro to this book alone was beautiful and really spoke to me。 I have never read anything of the "Solarpunk" variety， and found a lot of parallels to what I consider "Cli-Fi" or Climate Fiction。 As humans we are not the best at being receptive o **Thank you to Netgalley and World Weaver Press for the eARC of this collection of stories in exchange for honest feedback！**I absolutely adored this collection and will be purchasing a copy to have on my shelf once it is published （April 13th， 2021。）The intro to this book alone was beautiful and really spoke to me。 I have never read anything of the "Solarpunk" variety， and found a lot of parallels to what I consider "Cli-Fi" or Climate Fiction。 As humans we are not the best at being receptive of our environment and this collection really highlights where we go wrong as a population and how we could be better as a whole。The stories in this collection worked to examine how we can be better advocates for the planet and the plants/animals that are just trying to survive alongside us。 I loved the stories that involved a symbiotic relationship between humans and animals， and the stories that emphasized how we can be better "listeners" when it comes to the environment around us。Out of the 23 stories in this collection my two favorites are Children of Asphalt by Phoebe Wagner and The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps my Octavia Cade。 There was a wide range of writing styles in this collection， and with some of the stories being translated from different languages I could see how some people could find the lack of cohesion a little jarring。 I recommend reading this in short clips， I would pick it up and read a story at a time rather than trying to read it as a whole。 A couple of the stories missed the mark for me， but I would say at least 90% of them left me with a lot to reflect on。I would recommend this book if you care about the environment， enjoy sci/fi and cli/fi stories， or stories involving animals。 I know some of the stories in this collection will be sticking with me for a long time。 。。。more
Kendra
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While the editors' introduction is an eloquent and inspirational piece on climate change and fiction， the stories in this anthology are very uneven， ranging from poorly written to just passable。 None lived up to the introduction， which is a shame， because the genre is an interesting one that deserves good representation。 While the editors' introduction is an eloquent and inspirational piece on climate change and fiction， the stories in this anthology are very uneven， ranging from poorly written to just passable。 None lived up to the introduction， which is a shame， because the genre is an interesting one that deserves good representation。 。。。more
Laura
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The short fiction anthology Multispecies Cities begins with a question: “What if stories could plant the seeds of hopeful futures？” This solarpunk collection is a series of affirmative answers: stories that provide some sense of hopefulness amidst ecological devastation and extinction。In the introduction co-written by editors Christoph Rupprecht， Deborah Cleland， Norie Tamura， and Rajat Chaudhuri， the collection is presented as focusing， in particular， on interspecies relationships and the possi The short fiction anthology Multispecies Cities begins with a question: “What if stories could plant the seeds of hopeful futures？” This solarpunk collection is a series of affirmative answers: stories that provide some sense of hopefulness amidst ecological devastation and extinction。In the introduction co-written by editors Christoph Rupprecht， Deborah Cleland， Norie Tamura， and Rajat Chaudhuri， the collection is presented as focusing， in particular， on interspecies relationships and the possibilities of relating to one another in better ways， forming allegiances。 They note that “the multispecies concept argues that we can only truly understand the world if we look at the many ways humans and other life forms are entangled， in a way that cannot be easily separated。”This collection feels really inclusive， which I appreciate。 The book centers contributions by authors from the Asia-Pacific region and features stories set there; the editors note that they “would love to see more alliances” – including works in more languages than English and which foster collaboration across professions – but that in this collection， which they see as “a first step in a rich journey of discovery and imagination，” they have aimed to disrupt exclusions in publishing by commissioning diverse writers。 A number of stories are inclusive of LGBTQ+ representation。 The anthologists have also helpfully included their pronouns with their bio statements at the back of the book。There are 24 stories included here。 I will admit I did not finish two of them – they just didn’t work for me style-wise; they may be favourites for a different reader。 Of the 22 I did read， I gave each a rating of 1-5 （with half-points allowed） and I ended up with an average of 3。7。 I’ve happily rounded up to 4 because I did rate quite a few stories 4 or 5 stars。 “Iron Fox in the Marble City” by Vlad-Andrei Cucu， “The Streams are Paved with Fish Traps” by Octavia Cade （the only author in the whole collection I’d read before）， “Untamed” by Timothy Yam， and “The Birdsong Fossil” by D。K。 Mok were all stand-outs for me。 Each story includes a brief author biography at the end， which I really appreciate as it is easier than having to flip back and forth between a bios section at the back of the book and the stories themselves; I’ve discovered a number of authors I’d love to read more from。 I will also say that overall， while a few stories weren’t my cup of tea， that I think this is a strong collection， well edited， and reasonably cohesive given that it’s an anthology。Thank you very much to World Weaver Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review。 。。。more
Poptart19 （ren）
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