Hum: A Novel

ISBN: 166800884X

Author: Phillips, Helen

Condition: New

A Most Anticipated Book for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, Goodreads, LitHub, and Book RiotA Best Book of the Summer for Esquire, Electric Lit, and Town & CountryA People Book of the WeekFrom one of our most profound writers of speculative fiction (The New York Times),this tense dystopian thriller (Time) and tender portrait of love and care in an uncertain world (Esquire) is an urgent and unflinching portrayal of a womans fight for her familys security in a world shaped by global warming and rapid technological progress.In a near-future world addled by climate change and inhabited by intelligent robots called hums, May loses her job to artificial intelligence. Desperate to resolve her familys debt and secure their future for another few months, she becomes a guinea pig in an experiment that alters her face so it cannot be recognized by surveillance.Seeking reprieve from her recent hardships and her familys addiction to their devices, May splurges on passes for her family to spend three nights respite in the Botanical Garden: a rare green refuge where forests, streams, and animals still thrive. But when her children come under threat, May is forced to put her trust in a hum of uncertain motives to save her family.Written with precision, insight, sensitivity, and compassion (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Hum is a striking new work of dystopian fiction (Vogue) that delves into the complexities of marriage, motherhood, and selfhood in a world compromised by global warming and dizzying technological advancement, a world of both dystopian and utopian possibilities.