The Resisters - Gish Jen
The Resisters introduces us to AutoAmerica, a world in which the rise of AI and automation, and climate change have drastically changed the way humans live their lives. Due to rising sea levels, less land exists on which for them to live; on top of that, automation has rendered many people unemployable - their jobs completed by artificial intelligence or machines.
In AutoAmerica, society exists in two sections: the Netted, who live on land, and work in jobs which were not replaced by automation; the Surplus, who live on the water, are required to consume what is produced by the Netted. The Surplus is monitored closely by drones, and reminded by their AutoHouses - fully automated homes - to consume regularly. The Netted, however, live much the way we do now.
It is clear that Gwen, the hero of the story, has a penchant for pitching from an early age. She is encouraged by her parents, despite baseball being a discontinued sport - a distraction from the focus of consumption. Her parents, start a secret baseball league to enable her talent, and this becomes the beginning of resistance against the oppressive AuntNettie - the all-seeing eye of Jen’s novel.
Despite baseball being a narrative device which enables Gwen to begin her transformation, it’s clear that Jen is writing a novel about parenthood, which explains the choice to narrate from the voice of Gwen’s father. This choice works well in the sense that we understand the desperate need to encourage, and protect, but does become prohibitive when the action moves to places at which her parent isn’t present. On these occasions, the narrative relies on messages from Gwen, and letters, and even a hidden microphone - which in the context of the dystopia doesn’t feel too forced.
The Resisters is an enjoyable read - smart, and even funny in places. I was lucky enough to be able to catch a Q&A with Gish Jen at the Central Library in Downtown LA this week; her effervescent personality shines through in a novel that, thankfully, isn’t really about baseball much at all. It’s about a parent’s love for a child, and the need to protect them as they head out into the world. It's also about humanity and contains a message that, even if our world is consumed or drastically changed, it doesn't mean we have to lose the very essence of what makes us who we are, we always have the power to resist.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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