Graham Sleight (2015) by Francesca Myman
Publishing lead-times being what they are, the extraordinary events of 2020 largely weren’t reflected in the books that came out in the year – or at least, not intentionally. I managed to read a good deal of thought-provoking SF and fantasy this year, but some books seemed even more relevant than expected because of the pandemic-shuttered world they emerged into. How posterity will view them – let alone how it’ll view the books that’ll doubtless follow about COVID itself – is a question for another day.
Samit Basu’s
Chosen Spirits (Simon & Schuster India) offered a picture of India that was, its author insisted, both a dystopia and less bad than some alternatives. It certainly dug into the country’s culture and how it might change under the pressures bearing down on it.