This takes “food for thought” to another level.

You might associate apples with Fall but this is the perfect winter read due to the cli-fy/end-of-the world/earth is a snowball vibe.

In a sense, this vibe reminded me of The Fifth Season, but sans magic (okay, 2/3’s less magic) and less emotional. But this has three unexpected plots interweaving apples, fates/furies, and poor career decisions. Let me back up a little.

What would happen if all the bees died? (And how could science technology/ bio-engineering fix this?)
What if all the money in the world couldn’t fix social issues?
Could Earth’s environmental issues have one massive reset (and be reprinted/regrown when it's time?) Bell takes us down this rabbit hole and hits some uncomfortable notes of truth that don’t feel as absurd as they should.

In retrospect, this wasn’t the most optimistic TBR pick to start off 2022, but it was still an interesting read/listen.