The Electric State
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-09-23 08:53:23
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Simon Stålenhag
- ISBN：1471176088
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Stranger Things meets On the Road in this hypnotic， lavishly illustrated novel。 Set in a post-apocalyptic 1997， The Electric State is the story of Michelle who， accompanied by her toy robot Skip， sets out across the western United States in a stolen car to find her missing brother。 Told in achingly melancholy， spare prose and featuring almost a hundred gorgeous， full-colour illustrations， The Electric State is a novel like no other。 Rights in The Electric State have already sold in thirteen territories and Deadline reports that the film rights were snapped up by the Russo Brothers' production company （Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War） with Andy Muschietti （Mama， It） attached to direct。 Author BiographySimon Stalenhag （b。 1984） is the internationally acclaimed author， concept designer and artist behind Tales from the Loop and Things from the Flood。 His highly imaginative images and stories depicting illusive sci-fi phenomena in mundane， hyper-realistic Scandinavian and American landscapes have made Stalenhag one of the most sought-after visual storytellers in the world。 Tales from the Loop was ranked one of the 10 Best Dystopias by The Guardian， along with such works as Franz Kafka's The Trial and Andrew Niccol's Gattaca。 - The Electric State By Simon Stalenhag （Hardback）
Reviews
Midnight。reads
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Nemám slov。。。。 Toto bolo niečo dokonale 。
Aree
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This book was exactly what i was expecting from it。 Morbid and mildly disturbing。 The atmospheric world building is very immersive， especially because of the graphics with the text。 And It will absorbs you right into the world as if you're experiencing a fever dream。 It makes you think what would it feel like to exist in a dystopian future like that。 On top of that， the writing style matches the concept really really well。 I didn't really expect a deeper story。 I thought it'd just be a concept e This book was exactly what i was expecting from it。 Morbid and mildly disturbing。 The atmospheric world building is very immersive， especially because of the graphics with the text。 And It will absorbs you right into the world as if you're experiencing a fever dream。 It makes you think what would it feel like to exist in a dystopian future like that。 On top of that， the writing style matches the concept really really well。 I didn't really expect a deeper story。 I thought it'd just be a concept exploration。 But the story is well built and we experience the world through the main character。 I did notice that this book has very similar themes to the My Chemical Romance album+comic "Danger Days"。 While i was reading this book i was compelled to go and listen to the whole album again！ I wonder if Danger Days was a part of inspiration for it or if themes of such sort are very common in Western graphic novels？ 🤔I hope one day it can be made into a indie sci fi movie。 Would love to watch it。 。。。more
Perla Torkan
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Wau。 Ale že naozaj wau。RTC。。。
Klaus Varias
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Da sit tatsächlich eine Story drinn！ Und nicht nur großartige Bilder！
Katie Fitzgerald
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Oh my word。 This was truly an amazing read。 I have been wanting to read this for a couple of months， when I first seen Simon Stalenhag’s art floating around the internet， and was completely mesmerised and fascinated。 The world of The Electric State is eerie， creepy， fascinating， disgusting and unnerving。 I’ve never really been one for “a lot of the story is interpreted by the reader” type books， but this one was an exception。 Stalenhag leaves just enough to the imagination， and dangles just enou Oh my word。 This was truly an amazing read。 I have been wanting to read this for a couple of months， when I first seen Simon Stalenhag’s art floating around the internet， and was completely mesmerised and fascinated。 The world of The Electric State is eerie， creepy， fascinating， disgusting and unnerving。 I’ve never really been one for “a lot of the story is interpreted by the reader” type books， but this one was an exception。 Stalenhag leaves just enough to the imagination， and dangles just enough information in front of you， that you want to continue reading。 Kind of like dangling a ribbon in front of a cat。 He leaves a trail of breadcrumbs throughout the story， and it always felt amazing when you stumbled upon the next part and received more information about the lore of the world。 Although the ending is ambiguous， I think I prefer it that way， as it seems more in keeping with the theme of the book。 5/5 stars， and I will definitely be picking up his other two books。 I really look forward to delving into more of his world 。 。。。more
Johanna
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I LOVE I LOVE THIS BOOK
Poetniknowit
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Wowee this book is gorgeous。 I wish more authors were also artists and included beautiful prints of creepy realistic paintings in their works lol。 Imagine the impact on a thriller or slasher with paintings of this caliber。。。I knew I had to check out this book as soon as I heard about it， but then I was surprised to discover I had heard of the first novel， Takes From the Loop， because I had watched a little bit of the series on Prime。 I was completely unaware that it is they third in a Trilogy or Wowee this book is gorgeous。 I wish more authors were also artists and included beautiful prints of creepy realistic paintings in their works lol。 Imagine the impact on a thriller or slasher with paintings of this caliber。。。I knew I had to check out this book as soon as I heard about it， but then I was surprised to discover I had heard of the first novel， Takes From the Loop， because I had watched a little bit of the series on Prime。 I was completely unaware that it is they third in a Trilogy or series and I'm really excited to check out the first two books and rewatch the show lol。The book centers around a young adult or late teenage girl Chris traveling the country in a car with a robot named skip。 The paintings that are Illustrated throughout the book to text a world that is pretty much deserted and apocalyptic with huge behemoth robots and crazy Electronics scattered about the country。 They are a part of the landscape in most parts and in the more scarier parts are still alive and running。With the development of something called neurocasters which is a way for people to completely disconnect from reality and the world， homes， towns， entire cities are abandoned while the owners of these abandoned lives float about in a daze connected to these huge Neurocasters。The tales is really beautiful and haunting， even moreso when highlighting how our own society is pretty disconnected from reality and is only a few steps away from ending up just like this world。 。。。more
Wendelle
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grim， grotesque， frightening， foreboding depiction of a future of collapse of the human state。 Very unique conceptions。。。 （view spoiler）[Virtual reality was invented to mitigate human casualties in the drone war， but the soldiers involved become sterile。。 Humans now withdraw and shrivel physically to a virtual reality fugue， even as their collective wired state to the virtual casters gestates a superintelligent non-human mind seeking to reproduce with a human and propagate a new species （hide sp grim， grotesque， frightening， foreboding depiction of a future of collapse of the human state。 Very unique conceptions。。。 （view spoiler）[Virtual reality was invented to mitigate human casualties in the drone war， but the soldiers involved become sterile。。 Humans now withdraw and shrivel physically to a virtual reality fugue， even as their collective wired state to the virtual casters gestates a superintelligent non-human mind seeking to reproduce with a human and propagate a new species （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Hamse
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I DO NOT NOW WHAT TO FELL ABOUT THIS STORY。，SOW I AM GOWING WHIT 3 STARS。 BUT THE ART IS PEHNOMENAL。
Veruca
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It's so beautiful！ It's so beautiful！ 。。。more
Anna （Bananas）
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There’s just something about this art - the futuristic yet simultaneously abandoned and decaying landscapes， the technology gone wrong， the creepy robots， the sprawling scenes that make your imagination ignite。 It reminds me of Alien and Blade Runner， dirty and gritty but also unique。The story is set in the 90s but one that we never knew， and it feels like the future at the same time。 Maybe it’s unsettling in that way？ There’s something sad to it and even nostalgic at times。 I knew I loved the a There’s just something about this art - the futuristic yet simultaneously abandoned and decaying landscapes， the technology gone wrong， the creepy robots， the sprawling scenes that make your imagination ignite。 It reminds me of Alien and Blade Runner， dirty and gritty but also unique。The story is set in the 90s but one that we never knew， and it feels like the future at the same time。 Maybe it’s unsettling in that way？ There’s something sad to it and even nostalgic at times。 I knew I loved the art immediately but the story also won me over。 It slowly opened up， and I enjoyed how startling little pieces of the puzzle were dealt out。 I never lost interest in seeing where this was all going。 The story was satisfying， although I’m a little puzzled at the end but not even in a bad way。So， to summarize， check it out。 It’s pretty amazing。 🤟🏼Oh some other odds and ends。 This is an art book with a story， not exactly a graphic novel。 Also， the author’s work has been turned into a show on Amazon based on his other books， including Tales From the Loop。Oh！ Also there is an lgbtq element to this， which surprised and of course pleased me to read。 。。。more
Mika
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4 stars。A fractured narrative where the tone is set by captivating images of an alternative United States on the verge of a collapse。 Destroyed battle drones and people fully absorbed by entertainment devices haunt the towns and wastelands。 The story about loneliness and alienation is not watered down with action and violence。
Matt Schlicksup
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I liked this a lot。 I've never read anything like it。 The way the art and the writing are used together to reveal the story is beautiful。 I liked this a lot。 I've never read anything like it。 The way the art and the writing are used together to reveal the story is beautiful。 。。。more
Mima
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Michelle etsii kadonnutta Christopher-veljeään dystooppisessa Kaliforniassa jossa droonisodat ovat tuhonneet elinolosuhteita ja ihmiset elävät pitkälti virtuaalitodellisuudessa。 Hänellä on seuranaan pieni robotti nimeltään Skip。 Michellen historiaa kerrotaan takaumin ja muistoissaan hän avaa miten tähän päädyttiin。 Kaikkea ei kuitenkaan kerrota ja lukija jää ihastelemaan upeaa kuvitusta samalla kun perehtyy Michellen tarinaan。 Kirjan maailmassa koneet ovat korvanneet ihmiset sodankäynnissä， mitä Michelle etsii kadonnutta Christopher-veljeään dystooppisessa Kaliforniassa jossa droonisodat ovat tuhonneet elinolosuhteita ja ihmiset elävät pitkälti virtuaalitodellisuudessa。 Hänellä on seuranaan pieni robotti nimeltään Skip。 Michellen historiaa kerrotaan takaumin ja muistoissaan hän avaa miten tähän päädyttiin。 Kaikkea ei kuitenkaan kerrota ja lukija jää ihastelemaan upeaa kuvitusta samalla kun perehtyy Michellen tarinaan。 Kirjan maailmassa koneet ovat korvanneet ihmiset sodankäynnissä， mitä vastaan sodittiin ja miten se loppui ei lukijalle selviä。 Maisemaa tahraa hajonneet sotakoneet ja droonit sekä korkeat voimalat jotka syöttävät virtaa ja dataa virtumaailmaan。 Kuvissa nähdään ihmisiä virtukypärissä， osa heistä on kuollut kypärä päässään ja osa kulkee sunnattomien robottien vanavedessä matkalla tuntemattomaan määränpäähän。 Michellen etsintämatka vie halki Kalifornian aina rannikolle saakka。 Lopussa selviää löytääkö hän lopulta etsimänsä ja tarina päättyy avoimesti。 Tämä oli huikea kirja！ 。。。more
Justin Ryan
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While short， and more graphic novel than book， it gets deep in a strange and metaphorical depiction of a dystopian future that could easily be ours。
Reese
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With breathtaking art and time defiant story telling， the Electric State was a book I equally longed to devour quickly and savour slowly。 Two figures traveling across a bleak landscape as mysteries are revealed。 All I can say is that it was beautiful。
Hakan Baha
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nice post-apocalyptic world design（ for the sketches） and also well thought story but world introduction and sub story elements need to be better explained 。
Hisham
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The art in this made my primitive monkey brain go "pretty！"。 And the art is held together by a surprisingly heartfelt story。 So it's really got it all。 The art in this made my primitive monkey brain go "pretty！"。 And the art is held together by a surprisingly heartfelt story。 So it's really got it all。 。。。more
Stephen Newell
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"Walter， you once asked me what they need him for。 The boy， that is。 If I should say it out loud， I fear it will sound like madness。 How can I explain this？ Simon Stålenhag， The Electric State。First off， a little backstory on how I found this book。 For years I have seen Stålenhag's impressive 3D artwork frequenting social media platforms， and even without knowing his name， I always could recognize his style。 Then one day， I was scrolling through YouTube looking for movie trailers， and stumbled a "Walter， you once asked me what they need him for。 The boy， that is。 If I should say it out loud， I fear it will sound like madness。 How can I explain this？ Simon Stålenhag， The Electric State。First off， a little backstory on how I found this book。 For years I have seen Stålenhag's impressive 3D artwork frequenting social media platforms， and even without knowing his name， I always could recognize his style。 Then one day， I was scrolling through YouTube looking for movie trailers， and stumbled across one of those "10 Upcoming Sci-Fi Movie" compilations with the clickbait-y thumbnails that aren't even in any of the movies。 Upon closer examination of the comment section （after of course not finding any worthwhile movies）， I discovered the thumbnail was from a book called "The Electric State" by none other than the artist I had seen so much of: Simon Stålenhag。 Armed with a title and an artist， I quickly requested the book from my library。 Now， onto the actual review。 To summarize the plot in a sentence or two， our MC Michelle and her robot buddy Skip are on a road trip to the West Coast in a nearly-post-apocalyptic， 1997， American Southwest （now called Pacifica following the drone war）。 After that， the few characters and elements of story are often left up to the reader's interpretation。 What we do know about the world is that the drone technology used in the war has been marketed to the wider public with the unintended cost of widespread infertility by users。 We also have the occasional insight via letters through Walter/The Policeman （again， open to interpretation）， chasing down Michelle and Skip before they reach their goal。 Stålenhag is clearly not a storyteller when he is writing Michelle's mental dialogue， and his choppy writing did frustrate me at times， but he does do a brilliant job at world-building upon his art。 Thankfully though， that's probably not why you are reading a Stålenhag book。 If you really wanted to， you could buy this book for your coffee table and simply enjoy it for the mind-blowing artwork。 It's really hard to describe honestly。。。it's just equal parts cyberpunk， atmospheric， and futuristic， and the living neurotechnology is truly disturbing when you read the story while simultaneously seeing what's described。 Sometimes its creepy， sometimes it's haunting， and sometimes it's just thought-provoking （like the huge neurotransmitters that are still plastered with neon-infused mass-market advertising from companies such as Pepsi）。 That will always be the unique benefit of world-building a Sci-Fi novel in the graphic format。 Altogether， this book will sit with me for a long while， and I can't wait to read his other works。 My favorite part is hands down how he ends the book， leaving the conclusion totally up to the reader's interpretation。 Me？ I'm an optimist。。。so that affects how I see things。 No matter how you understand the conclusion， I can guarantee you'll be hopping on Reddit as I did， looking for answers to your pressing questions。 Will you find them？ Maybe。 Or maybe being able to build a bit of the world yourself is just one way of seeing the beauty of "The Electric State"。 。。。more
Özer Avcu
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Hem Simon Stålenhag'ı hem de bu türde bir eseri Döngüden Hikayeler ile tanıdığım için， Sanal ülkeyi de bu ilk kitap ile karşılaştırmaktayım ister istemez。 Bu kitapların türü art book mu， graphic novel mı tam kestiremiyorum ama beyefendiyi başarılı bulduğum kesin。 Döngüden hikayelerde işin hikaye kısmı çok kopuk kopuktu， önce çizimler yapılmış sonra her çizim için yan sayfasına bir hikaye karalanmış gibiydi。 Sanal Ülke'de ise çizimlerle tam bir bütünlüğün yanında hikaye de tek bir akışkanlıkta ve Hem Simon Stålenhag'ı hem de bu türde bir eseri Döngüden Hikayeler ile tanıdığım için， Sanal ülkeyi de bu ilk kitap ile karşılaştırmaktayım ister istemez。 Bu kitapların türü art book mu， graphic novel mı tam kestiremiyorum ama beyefendiyi başarılı bulduğum kesin。 Döngüden hikayelerde işin hikaye kısmı çok kopuk kopuktu， önce çizimler yapılmış sonra her çizim için yan sayfasına bir hikaye karalanmış gibiydi。 Sanal Ülke'de ise çizimlerle tam bir bütünlüğün yanında hikaye de tek bir akışkanlıkta ve çizimlerle beraber çok hoş bir birleşim oluşturmuşlar。 İşin hikaye boyutu yine az karakterli， topladığımızda bir öyküden hallice ya da bir novella seviyesinde。 Çizimler ise asıl etmen， mükemmeller。 Kitabın çoğunluk kısmını da bu görsellik oluşturduğundan， kısa okuma süresi ile başına oturulduğunda 1-2 günlük bir keyifle yaşanacak bir macera olmuş。 Simon Stålenhag'ın basılan bu iki kitap arasında bir de Things from the Flood diye kitabı varmış， neden onu atlayıp Sanal ülkeyi basmışlar diye biraz bakındım。 Sanırım en meşhur ve beğenilen işi buymuş。 Yakın zamanda Things from the Flood da gelirse onu da alır okurum diye düşünüyorum。 。。。more
Mara
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This book lived up to every expectation I had of it （if not more）。
Madeline
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Fuck。 Excuse me while I go on a Stalenhag binge。 To be clear - the story is short and crisp， decisive and flavourful。 The characters feel full of life and fear， though they are not the point of the story。 This is a book to show you a whole new world。 The art is impeccable。 It’ll roundhouse you in the mouth， then delicately feed you some grapes。 The lighting， the scale and momentousness of the landscapes make your stomach drop like you’re on a rollercoaster。
Randal Schmidt
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If you like science fiction， cyberpunk， or just landscape art， you should pick this up if only for the paintings！ The story left a lot to be desired， especially the ending， but it was definitely worth the read。
Awais Ahmed
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4。5/5。 Stunning visuals。 Beautiful story。 It’s an experience。
Jannik Fogt
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Fantastisk stemningsfuld artbook med en fin lille historie der akkompagnere billedsiden。
Lacee
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I have no idea how to rate this。
Benjamin
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The Electric State offers a fascinating portal into a strange retro-futurist apocalypse -- one that feels equally familiar and alien。 The artwork is stunning， haunting， and will be forever etched into my brain。 The narrative is compelling -- especially with Michelle's terrifying memories and the dark twist in the third act。 It leaves the reader simultaneously satisfied with ambiguity and yearning for more。 Stålenhag presents a fascinating discussion on the nature of the soul， the mind， and the e The Electric State offers a fascinating portal into a strange retro-futurist apocalypse -- one that feels equally familiar and alien。 The artwork is stunning， haunting， and will be forever etched into my brain。 The narrative is compelling -- especially with Michelle's terrifying memories and the dark twist in the third act。 It leaves the reader simultaneously satisfied with ambiguity and yearning for more。 Stålenhag presents a fascinating discussion on the nature of the soul， the mind， and the existential horror of human consciousness as filtered through the lens of post-war consumerist-imperialism。 。。。more
Chris Marcatili
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Five bloody stars。 This is a faultless book， really。 Putting aside the artwork， which is gorgeous， the story itself does what the best science fiction does。 It explores social ideas but it grounds them in deeply personal stories。 It's the story of Michelle as she travels with her small robot， Skip， across states in an alternate 1997。 The pockmarks of war ruin the landscape， and great hulks of industrial military hardware rot in open fields。 Towns are abandoned， or peopled by the half-living remn Five bloody stars。 This is a faultless book， really。 Putting aside the artwork， which is gorgeous， the story itself does what the best science fiction does。 It explores social ideas but it grounds them in deeply personal stories。 It's the story of Michelle as she travels with her small robot， Skip， across states in an alternate 1997。 The pockmarks of war ruin the landscape， and great hulks of industrial military hardware rot in open fields。 Towns are abandoned， or peopled by the half-living remnants of those wearing their neurocasters， lost in the ecstasies of alternate realities。 Consumerism taken to a tragic extreme。 As Michelle travels she reflects on her life， her past， and it's left to the reader to reflect on what the world has become。It's a short piece， probably more of a short story than a novella， but you could add plenty of reading time just marvelling at the artwork。 。。。more
Ross
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Fantastic story and beautiful illustrations， per usual。 I was a little hesitant about diving into a new world that didn't involve The Loop， but I got over that after the first chapter。 Michelle's journal entries drew me in and painted a picture of the world crumbling around her as she & Skip make their away across the Southwest。 Fantastic story and beautiful illustrations， per usual。 I was a little hesitant about diving into a new world that didn't involve The Loop， but I got over that after the first chapter。 Michelle's journal entries drew me in and painted a picture of the world crumbling around her as she & Skip make their away across the Southwest。 。。。more
Jonathan Natusch
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As with the author's previous two books - Tales from the Loop， and Things from the Flood - the art is amazing， a compelling mix of the everyday， subverted by strange artifacts and architecture。 The setting is America this time， rather than his native Sweden， and he plays up the gaudy advertising and consumerism。There's more of a story this time round， though it mostly plays out as a travelogue， with occasional flashbacks as to the narrator's life and how the world has become the way it has。 That As with the author's previous two books - Tales from the Loop， and Things from the Flood - the art is amazing， a compelling mix of the everyday， subverted by strange artifacts and architecture。 The setting is America this time， rather than his native Sweden， and he plays up the gaudy advertising and consumerism。There's more of a story this time round， though it mostly plays out as a travelogue， with occasional flashbacks as to the narrator's life and how the world has become the way it has。 That is， until the final pages， at which point the reason for the journey becomes poignantly clear。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Electric State
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Electric State&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Electric State&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0