by c.l’hirondelle

It would be a difficult feat to write a cheerful climate disaster end-of-the-world story, but Hamish MacDonald does just that in his off-beat semi sci-fi near-future book called Finitude. There are three main characters, although one of them plays a key role at the beginning, disappears, then reappears again at the end. The pivotal character is Jeremy, the slightly morose, damaged insurance salesman ‘plagued by luck’, who others think as being a ‘little bit of a jerk’.

The three characters are unconventional accidental anti-heroes who have many narrow escapes and moments of love and reflection between navigating their rapidly changing catastrophic world. What holds the fast moving story together is their core of willingness to feel love, hope and determination to keep going no matter how bad things look.

By the end of the book I was reluctant to say good-bye to the characters (I wished the book was longer) and now wish for both a prequel focused on one minor character, the elderly woman who was a favorite client of Jeremy, and a sequel from the point of view of the militarily trained little girl, Lina, whose father was the intimidating leader of the ‘terraist’ Mondolans.

One reason I hope for a sequel is that the beginning of the book was full of quirky details of how this near future society worked before all hell breaks loose and they go on the run to find Jeremy’s parents. Details such as ad-blocking pins (via subscription to Tinfoil Hat), a park full of carbon-scrubbing ‘trees’, designer rhinestone-studded gasmasks, and the new favorite food of the masses – ‘Mete’ (which turns up again in more detail in an amusing later chapter).

I also would have liked to learn a bit more about the lives of the characters before their cross-country, cross-ocean adventure begins – especially more about Jeremy’s father and mother since it is the quest to find them that drives the plot of the book, and yet, they don’t seem to be quite as fully drawn as the other characters. As I read the story, they eluded my ability to imagine them as full people; they hovered as outlined sketches waiting to get filled in with more shadow, light and depth.

The novel moved very quickly, prompting me to think it would work well in a visual media  like a movie or TV show. It thankfully didn’t have the exaggerated heroics of Doctor Who or Torchwood, but visually it would be a treat to see it on a screen… especially the scene that takes place on the grand plastic gyre in the middle of the ocean.

We get to know the main character Jeremy in the most detail: his background, his personal flaws and his philosophical struggles. He is very likable in spite of his slight cynicism and apathy — a personality type reminiscent of Arthur Dent, although Jeremy does not dress in a bathrobe and towel but, before the world goes to hell he would wear “a designer suit as sharply as a lobster wears a shell, and was just as shapeless without it” (later he dons more practical garb). His personality seems has been permanently altered by years of being a top salesman and he occasionally lapses into his charming contrived selling mode without realizing it. Victor (an ‘ethical travel consultant’ and another main character) is more environmentally conscientious and worries about being carbon-neutral.

Underlying the lightness of the story is obviously much research. MacDonald lists a short but carefully selected bibliography at the end and he also gives thanks SciTalk.net which “connects authors with scientists so their profession and work can be more accurately represented in the arts.”

I’m familiar with many of the books in the bibliography, especially Field Notes from a Catastrophe (a book I’d like to buy in bulk and give to people). And this little story – Finitude – makes a strangely happy companion to Field Notes as it allows us to play with our worst fears about our environmental future, but without a sense of complete hopelessness.

I read this book right after reading Distraction by Bruce Sterling (another near future dystopian novel but one that is serious and makes astute political as well as environmental observations) and before reading Ubik by Philip K. Dick (a book funny, menacing, brilliant and ingenious).

It is nice to find a new author who has a lot of promise — confronting the frightening reality of our current state of the world with humble humour takes a particular type of skill. And it takes a certain kind of nerve to stare into the maw of doom and not be overwhelmed. I look forward to reading more from this transplanted Canadian in Scotland writer and DIY book-making enthusiast. Be sure to check his blog and twitterfeed. http://www.hamishmacdonald.com/