Dystopian themed books have gone on to be some of the best literature ever published, with George Orwell as the most regarded contributor with his classic 1984, and Josh Weil is about to add to the potential with the hardback release of The Great Glass Sea. Set in an alternate present day Russia it has been written to evoke all of the history of Russia’s communist past as well as it’s oligarch-led present day wealth and power.
Scheduled for release on the 19th June 2014, the hardback book feels like it’s going to be an incredibly relevant and timely publication with all of the muscle flexing that has happened in recent months with the Ukraine crisis and the ongoing financial might of a select pocket of Russian businessmen and their all powerful leader. However, it seems to centre itself on the concept of opposing ideals in general and how they play out in the microcosm that Weil has created, so it goes beyond just being just a critique of Russian society and history.
The story revolves around farmer twin brothers, Yarik and Dima, who grew up together on their uncle’s farm in central Russia after their father died. Helping out in the fields sees them continue on as farmers, but their adult life sees them working for a billionaire oligarch on his massive crop land, spread out beneath the never-ending sea of glass encasing the Oranzheria to create the perfect conditions for growth.
If the uniformity of the glass work encasing the crops and the workers at Petroplavilsk isn’t enough to symbolise the oppressive spirit of their dystopian surrounding, the fact that the mega-farm is bathed in perpetual light thanks to giant orbital mirrors in space, shining down rays from the sun at all hours of the day takes it to the next level. Added to that is the all seeing eye if the owner of the farm putting The Great Glass Sea not too far away from being a classic totalitarian vision.
Following a chance meeting with the billionaire, the brothers find themselves pitted against each other along ideological battle lines. Tarik’s young family keeps him in a state of faithful servitude, while Dima’s dreamer mentality and wish to return them both to their carefree past sends him off down a more rebellious path and the two become locked on opposing concepts.
With shades of The Grapes Of Wrath, it’s an alternative modern-day re-imagining of the influence of the rich over all of our lives and the difference that circumstance can have on our outlook.
Josh Weil’s The Great Glass Sea is wrapped up in the magic of Russian folklore, telling the story in the traditional style. It’s got some very cool artwork and from the sound of things the book itself should be just as imagery rich as it all comes together under the glare of the never-ending sun of the billionaire’s farm.
