An Absolutely Remarkable Thing // a truly remarkable tale

WOAH. If I could give this book a one-word review that would be it. Unfortunately for you, I have A LOT more to say, because An Absolutely Remarkable Thing put my brain through the wringer and I'm not quite sure how to recover.

This is a story about April May, a young woman who discovers a metallic statue in the middle of New York at 3AM. Fascinated by the strange figure, she names it Carl, and she and her friend make a video with it. The next day, she learns that New York Carl is one of 64 Carls that appeared in different cities all across the world, and she was the first to discover them. Caught up in the media's attention, April wants to do something with her platform. However, when the Carls begin sending people mysterious dreams, she gets wrapped in an intense debate about the nature and true intentions of the Carls, and by extension, the nature of humanity. April's desire to control the media narrative leads her to lose any threads of normalcy, causing her relationships and personal identity to crumble in place of the identity she has constructed for herself.

"You can only do so much pretending before you become the thing you're pretending to be."

I've heard writers say that you should write the story that only you can tell, and Hank Green does just that. This is a science-fiction novel with a dash of mystery and brilliantly constructed puzzles to decode, but it also has frank discussions about the human species and our relationship with the media. It has been a long time since a book has seriously made me question myself, and I found myself taking a step back from the story at several points just to think and consider my own relationship with the internet and how we place people on pedestals.

An aspect that particularly fascinated me was how individuals cultivate atmospheres of fear and outrage for their personal gain. Even though as the reader we are meant to be on April's side, we see her use these tactics too to get people to listen to her perspective. She allows her life to become so consumed by the attention and support that she is ignorant of the rise of those against her. She discards the views of the "internet trolls" who harass her until their presence in the political landscape is undeniable - an unsettling reminder of the discourse prior to the US 2016 Election. The novel serves as a reminder that just because we surround ourselves with people who agree with our ideals, does not mean other perspectives are non-existent or without impact.

"I inserted myself into this conversation when I didn't really belong there. I was pitching a particular ideology that fit for some people but didn't fit for others. It made perfect sense that a different perspective was going to feel more legitimate to people who were more afraid of otherness."

As a protagonist, April May is not easy to like. She makes mistakes that are inconsiderate, selfish, and downright cruel at times, but that is what makes her feel genuine. By having the events of the story told after the fact, Green shows how April's emotional state led her to make those decisions. She looks back on her past actions and acknowledges that they were "gross" and how they completely disregarded the people in her life who cared about her. She is so desperate to be the sole hero that she utterly destroys her life over it, only to find that isolation is what is preventing her from making real change - a message deeply embedded within the core of the novel. The biggest changes are often ones made when people work together.

I admit that my biggest struggle with this novel was the writing style. It is not quite stream-of-consciousness, but it does move quickly from idea to idea which made me struggle to become invested in the opening chapters. The story also contains a lot of big ideas, but I would have liked those ideas to flow a little better with the narrative. The plot often takes a break to say something important and quote-worthy, which although often meaningful to the story, makes the narrative feel a little bit choppy.

The mystery behind the Carls is by far the most compelling aspect of the novel. Throughout the story, they serve to mirror humanity at it's best and at it's worst. Although An Absolutely Remarkable Thing has a satisfying conclusion regarding hope for the future of the species, it ends on a chilling note that promises much more for the characters. I am already itching for the sequel, and am excited to see how Green continues to use the genre to comment on what it is to be human.


Edit: I'm bumping up my review from 4 to 5 stars. I read this book 2 months ago and haven't stopped thinking about it. It addresses so many topics about social discourse in the internet era and I've found myself bringing it up in my conversations constantly. No book has ever made me think about the world the way that An Absolutely Remarkable Thing has. It's thoughtful and hopeful, and all in all a bloody good read.


Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All quotes are taken from the final print copy of the novel.

 ★★★★★

 Adult Science Fiction

 An Absolutely Remarkable Thing #1

 Bisexual protagonist

 gore, violence, murder, death

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