Hollow Kingdom
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4.0 • 3 Ratings
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- $15.99
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
A finalist for the 2020 Thurber Prize for American Humor!
"The Secret Life of Pets meets The Walking Dead" in this big-hearted, boundlessly beautiful romp through the Apocalypse, where a foul-mouthed crow is humanity's only chance to survive Seattle's zombie problem (Karen Joy Fowler, PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author).
S.T., a domesticated crow, is a bird of simple pleasures: hanging out with his owner Big Jim, trading insults with Seattle's wild crows (i.e. "those idiots"), and enjoying the finest food humankind has to offer: Cheetos ®.
But when Big Jim's eyeball falls out of his head, S.T. starts to think something's not quite right. His tried-and-true remedies—from beak-delivered beer to the slobbering affection of Big Jim's loyal but dim-witted dog, Dennis—fail to cure Big Jim's debilitating malady. S.T. is left with no choice but to abandon his old life and venture out into a wild and frightening new world with his trusty steed Dennis, where he suddenly discovers that the neighbors are devouring one other. Local wildlife is abuzz with rumors of Seattle's dangerous new predators.
Humanity's extinction has seemingly arrived, and the only one determined to save it is a cowardly crow whose only knowledge of the world comes from TV.
What could possibly go wrong?
Includes a Reading Group Guide.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Buxton spins a fresh, alarming apocalypse from the perspectives of intelligent, communicative animals in her hilarious debut. S.T., short for Shit Turd, is an irreverent domesticated crow in Seattle who loves human things he likes to watch TV and his favorite food is Cheetos. When S.T.'s owner, Big Jim, contracts the illness that's turning humans into unthinking zombies fixated on technological devices, S.T. lures bloodhound Dennis outside. He relies on the information network of birdsongs known as Aura to seek guidance from the oracular octopus Onida while dodging a murder of wild crows he detests. Onida tasks S.T. with rescuing other pets, but he knows he needs help opening windows and doors. A rumor about One Who Opens Doors takes S.T. to the zoo in search of what he assumes is a healthy human. As wildness takes over the world, S.T. relies on his creativity to navigate mounting dangers, displaced zoo creatures, and unimaginable new life caught in epic battles for dominance. Amid S.T.'s adventure, a variety of animals both tame and wild share moving ruminations on the end of humanity. S.T.'s complicated personality and the masterful blend of humorous and tragic make this novel an eloquent, emotional exploration of survival during an unthinkable cataclysm.
