California

California
By Edan Lepucki

Post-apocalyptic homesteading is never easy, and it’s even more challenging with a baby due. This is the situation Cal and Frida find themselves in after the multiple whammies of environmental catastrophe, terrorism, economic chaos, and total political breakdown have left them roughing it in the wild California bush.

Salvation in the form of a commune known at the Land turns out to be a mixed blessing, and before long Cal and Frida have some hard choices to make. While much of the territory Edan Lepucki covers may seem familiar ground for fans of after-the-crash survivalist lit, California still provides a piercing original take on twenty-first century notions of class and community, as well as the enduring importance of family ties.