Generation Dread

March 21, 2022
Journalist Wray (Rise of the Necrofauna) offers advice on balancing personal and planetary wellness in this compassionate guide. Her focus is on managing the “tidal waves of grief, anxiety, pessimism, and existential dread” that come as a result of acknowledging climate change, and on seeing activism as an “internal” process, too. The counsel comes in three parts: first is “feel it all,” in which Wray defines such terms as “ecological grief” (sadness tied to ecological losses), “Anthropocene horror” (terror about an ominous sense of threat), and “global dread” (the anticipation of an apocalyptic state). Part two, “connect inward to transform oneself,” teaches ways to reframe grief as a “natural consequence of love”; and the final section, “connect outward to transform the world,” advises on confronting the emotions—one’s own and others’—that come as a result of talking about the climate crisis. Along the way, Wray recalls struggles with her “own eco-emotions,” as when she and her husband thought about having a kid, but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to raise a child among so much doom. Throughout, Wray proves to be consistently empathetic. Climate activists feeling near the end of their rope will find this full of wisdom. Agent: Martha Webb, CookeMcDermid.