Station Eleven
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| Author | Emily St. John Mandel |
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| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Science fiction, Post-apocalyptic |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| ISBN | |
Station Eleven is a 2014 science fiction novel by Emily St. John Mandel. It is Mandel's fourth novel. The novel takes place in the Great Lakes region after a fictional swine flu pandemic, known as the "Georgia Flu", has devastated the world, killing most of the population. It won the Arthur C. Clarke Award in 2015.
The novel was well received by critics, with praise emphasizing the understated nature of Mandel's writing. It appeared on several end of year lists as one of the best novels of 2014.
While watching a production of King Lear at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto Jeevan watches as the actor playing Lear, Arthur Leander, has a heart attack. Because he has some medical training Jeevan tries to resuscitate Arthur but is unsuccessful, instead he comforts one of the child actors in the production, Kirsten. After leaving the play Jeevan goes for a walk in the snow and receives a call from one of his friends who works as a doctor who warns him to get out of the city as a mysterious Georgia flu is spreading rapidly and will soon become a full out epidemic. Jeevan loads up on supplies and goes to stay with his brother.
Twenty years later Kirsten Raymonde is part of a nomadic group of actors and musicians known as the Travelling Symphony. Kirsten, who was eight at the time of the plague, can remember little of her life before Year Zero but clings to a two volume set of graphic novels given to her by Arthur before his death called Dr. Eleven. The troupe operates on a two-year cycle orbiting around the Great Lakes region and during this time Kirsten scavenges abandoned homes looking for old tabloid magazines for traces of Arthur. After returning to a small town where they left their pregnant friend, Charlie, and her husband, Jeremy, the troupe is disturbed to find that not only are their friends missing but the town is under the control of the mysterious Prophet, who rapes young girls that he claims as his "wives". The troupe quickly leave and determine to go off route to the Museum of Civilization, which is actually a former airport, where they believe they might find their missing friends. However, on route they discover a young stowaway who left the town as she was promised to the Prophet as his bride. Shortly after members of the troupe begin to disappear until finally the entire troupe is gone leaving only Kirsten and her friend August. Frightened they continue on to the Museum hoping to be reunited with others.
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