YA Buddy Readers' Corner ♥ discussion

What will become of our self-destructed planet? The answer shatters all expectations in this subversive speculation from the Hugo Award–winning author of the Broken Earth trilogy.

An explorer returns to gather information from a climate-ravaged Earth that his ancestors, and others among the planet’s finest, fled centuries ago. The mission comes with a warning: a graveyard world awaits him. But so do those left behind—hopeless and unbeautiful wastes of humanity who should have died out eons ago. After all this time, there’s no telling how they’ve devolved. Steel yourself, soldier. Get in. Get out. And try not to stare.

N. K. Jemisin’s Emergency Skin is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

23% (view spoiler)[Wowww the narrator from this other planet is a jerk. Old people, fat people, people of other colors... They all seem to disgust it. (hide spoiler)]

46%(view spoiler)[This would be a great YA novel. I'm loving how the host doesn't seem to care that earth actually survived and is doing well. The fact they have made the mission many times is interesting as well. (hide spoiler)]

Ending. So far, this one is my favorite. I loved how it ended.

44%
(view spoiler)[ This ones weird.. I like the audio narration, and the perspective. The story's narrator is a bit of a prick - there was a very clear disgust for humans who were less than 'perfect' by his standards. It's taken a weird turn to talking about sex just now? Seemed not really natural for the story but whatever... anxious to see how this one ends since it was your favorite at the time you read it! (hide spoiler)]

odd.. I think overall that I liked this one. The weird focus on sex messed it up for me but otherwise it was an interesting concept. The ending was great. I think I'll look into this author a bit more..

15% (view spoiler)[ I'm curious about this world. Sounds like everything had been so bad everyone had to leave and now they are back looking at it and the world has healed and was far better than when they left. (hide spoiler)]

Krystal wrote: "23% [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ Yeah that was umm... that shook me. Everything has to be perfect and if it isn't the narrators version of perfect it's awful and shouldn't be alive. Like... that was messed up. (hide spoiler)]

45% (view spoiler)[ This narrator is horrible. Like... women are just for sex and isn't using proper pronouns. Ugh. So gross. (hide spoiler)]

Finished (view spoiler)[ Okay that one was weird. The narrator was an interesting choice as it was kinda two people. The guy who was exploring the world and then the one who was consistently lying to him. The ending was good as he meet up with someone who also realized the truth and left, but man... I don't know what to think. Haha. (hide spoiler)]

1/4 (view spoiler)[ What an interesting way of telling the story, with just the communication from his species in his head. A sad look at humanity too, that the environmental issues could become so bad. (hide spoiler)]

2/4 (view spoiler)[ I'm glad our narrator decided to stay. It's clear his home people have got things all wrong, and they're racist/sexist/ableist/all the other bad -ists to boot! (hide spoiler)]

3/4 (view spoiler)[ So I assume he's planning on exposing the reality of Tellus to his home people then? It's a very sciencey soundingplan that I dont understand well. (hide spoiler)]

4/4 (view spoiler)[ I liked this one in the end. Very thought provoking and very original way of telling the story. (hide spoiler)]