Rachel Kushner’s Creation Lake Shortlisted for the Booker Prize
Creation Lake
Rachel Kushner (Jonathan Cape (UK, September 5); Scribner (US, September 3))
Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner is a captivating blend of thriller, spy narrative, and comedy, reflecting on human history from the era when Homo sapiens coexisted with Neanderthals. The novel has rightly earned a spot on the Booker Prize longlist.
In the story, we follow Sadie Smith, an undercover US operative on a mission to infiltrate the eco-activist group known as Le Moulin. Her assignment is to dismantle this organization, whose members are referred to as Moulinards.
Sadie approaches her task with a questionable moral compass, beginning her deception by seducing Lucien, an individual connected to the activists. Over several months, she integrates herself into the Moulinard community while staying at Lucien’s family home in the scenic region of Guyenne, south-west France.
Despite its leaking roof, the house serves as an ideal vantage point for espionage, equipped with high-powered binoculars and advanced surveillance technology.
The narrative structure shines as we navigate Sadie’s complex infiltration of the security-conscious Moulinard enclave. The storyline alternates between her present actions and a retrospective look into her past operations and personal grievances. Readers are left questioningwhether Sadie is a skilled operative or a precariously vulnerable individual.
The dual timelines are gripping and intricately intertwined, with a third compelling storyline centered around the emails of an older mentor, Bruno Lacombe, emerging as a key element in the narrative.
Sadie’s hacking of the group email account reveals Bruno’s contemplations on Neanderthal superiority and his life in solitude within a cave. His insights captivate Sadie, creating an emotional core that deepens the plot.
These exchanges with Bruno engage the reader, revealing layers of Sadie’s character and her fixation on his ideas more than those shared by the Moulinards. Will their paths cross before her mission in France concludes?
Bruno’s reflections on Neanderthals, while subjective, provide gripping context, particularly in relation to recent on-site experiences with prehistoric art in northern Spain believed to be created by Neanderthals.
Delving into the high-stakes narrative without revealing more would spoil the suspense. As Sadie’s journey unfolds, readers will ponder her moral choices and the implications for her character development in the wake of her experiences.
Also Recommended: The Ministry for the Future
The Ministry for the Future
Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit)
Creation Lake navigates themes of climate fiction, but for an enhanced exploration of this genre, The Ministry for the Future presents a strikingly bold narrative grounded in our impending climate reality through compelling eyewitness accounts.
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