Overall a solid book, and a worthy follow up to Ishmael. The story occasionally felt awkward, and the book was a bit too preachy (as expected), but it was still wonderfully written at times (see below). My biggest issue with it was that I disagreed somewhat with the underlying assumptions of the arguments made (totalitarian agriculture is the hardest way to live?!), which made it hard to be blown away. Recommended to those who like Ishmael.

"Remember that your tracks are one strand of the web woven endlessly in the hand of god. They're tied to those of the mouse in the field, the eagle on the mountain, the crab in its hold, the lizard beneath its rock. The leaf that falls to the ground a thousand miles away touches your life. The impress of your food in the soil is felt through a thousand generations." - 186-187 ( )

I truly don't know why/how I didn't come across these books in high school--I wish I had. It's a series (so far) that I'd say deserves to have been widely read, and yet the folks I come across who've read these books seem to be few and far between. And even though those I speak to about them rave about them...the books simply aren't well-known.

I get it. They're not plot-heavy and full of blockbuster action. But the intelligent and careful presentation of character and ideas, the way they lay out what it seems clear we should have been taught in schools (but weren't) in a landscape of fiction...well, exciting or not, it feels rather they like they ought to be required reading, to be quite honest. I wish they were, and maybe we'd live in a better world.

This is the second book in the series, beginning with Ishmael, and I look forward to picking up the third.

If you've not yet read Ishmael, I hope you will. ( )

Was swept along and loved it. . .

. . .but maybe I had an abridged copy, something was wrong. ( )

The first sequel to Ishmael. Just as good. ( )

My mind had already exploded with "Ishmael," so this book wasn't quite as "earth-shattering," but it's still good, with lots of great moments of insight. The plot's a little dramatic, but the message is strong despite it. ( )