N. K. Jemisin

What will become of our self-destructed planet? The answer shatters all expectations in this subversive speculation from the Hugo Award–winning author of the Broken Earth trilogy.

An explorer returns to gather information from a climate-ravaged Earth that his ancestors, and others among the planet’s finest, fled centuries ago. The mission comes with a warning: a graveyard world awaits him. But so do those left behind—hopeless and unbeautiful wastes of humanity who should have died out ages ago. After all this time, there’s no telling how they’ve devolved. Steel yourself, soldier. Get in. Get out. And try not to stare.

N. K. Jemisin’s “Emergency Skin” is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

Emergency Skin

N.K. Jemisin

Not my favourite from Jemisin but I really love her creativity in exploring concepts like racism and white supremacy through the genre of sci-fi. I think she really manages to reshape both fantasy and sci-fi, which are generally seen as predominantly white genres, into what they are meant to be - an extreme playground for authors to explore the issues of modern times.

However, I found this a little heavyhanded - not as elegant as previous work I have read from her. But I guess sometimes you have to come in with the big hammer over their (the readers') heads.

Not my favourite from Jemisin but I really love her creativity in exploring concepts like racism and white supremacy through the genre of sci-fi. I think she really manages to reshape both fantasy and sci-fi, which are generally seen as predominantly white genres, into what they are meant to be - an extreme playground for authors to explore the issues of modern times.

However, I found this a little heavyhanded - not as elegant as previous work I have read from her. But I guess sometimes you have to come in with the big hammer over their (the readers') heads.

2,5 stars - mind-bending concept, didn’t like the writing style although it’s cool to read something new

Joy KBA

C. J. Daley 

This is part of the Amazon Original ‘Forward Collection’ curated by Blake Crouch. This is my first experience with the author outside of The Broken Earth trilogy, and honestly it read kind of the same. These are available through prime for free on kindle or audible! 

When earth is finally damaged beyond repair, a group of the best human specimen head off in search of a new home, but in time it leaves them in need of materials to survive, which they get by sending people back. They never planned on those sent back having a reason to think for themselves, to want to stay. 

As this author tends to do, this story heavily played into the idea of race. Not only as a whole, but the idea that even in a future where things are falling apart, those in charge will still feel like they’re better. The new world is scientifically generated down to skin and build. There are no women with them, as they were part of the problem. It was in a sense, harsh, but this author tends to offer you the truth with no amount of sugar coating. 

Personally a 4/5*. I enjoyed reading this one. The general idea that if the favored few didn’t hoard, we’d be far better off sang true. Also, really loved the description of the birthing/body bags, gave me very Blade Runner feels.

Generations ago, the wealthy and powerful escaped a dying Earth to find new homes and continue human society on other planets. Leaving the rest of the people behind. Now they are sending someone back to the dead planet to retreive something that they need. It is a difficult and dangerous mission. This is a very on-the-nose political and social critique. This works well because it is so short. There is some humor in the tone. I liked the story and what she was saying.

Cheryl Hedlund

Beatriz Aguiar

** spoiler alert **
           the concepts were amazing. though it could've been a predictable story it definitely wasn't. I would recommend. commentary on society, racism...

Midori Kobayashi

4.5/5stars 

For a book this short, this does leave a lasting impact on the reader, makes them question a lot of things, ponder over their everyday choices and reminds us to do better everyday. 
I'm gonna admit, it started off very different very not what I thought it would be, but like in the best way possible. I loved the turn it took, loved how it ended and def loved how it left me so satisfied, with the end. Loved it, most definitely gonna be fav from the Forward Collection even tho I have one more story to read yet. 



We realized it was impossible to protect any one place if the place next door was drowning or on fire. We realized the old boundaries weren’t meant to keep the undesirable out, but to hoard resources within. And the hoarders were the core of the problem.



This was my first Jemisin book and I love the writing style. Oh yes, this book is also written in second person which I feel makes us feel everything more and experience it better? I cannot wait to dive into the chunkier works of this author now!! DEF RECOMMNED THIS ONE. ALOT. READ IT. JUST READ IT.

Juliana Matias

This post-apocalyptical story was such a delight. And it is told in 2nd person narration, which is definitely something new to me. I did not think I would enjoy it, but I’ve been thoroughly proven wrong.

An explorer from a colonized planet is being sent back to the ruins of Earth to gather information centuries after they have abandoned the ravaged planet which was self-destructing. Along with him comes the AI voice in his head, a collective of the best minds, which will help clarify things and guide him in his mission.

This story took me completely by surprise. It is smart and wonderful, and maybe even a little political and I am here for it. I might have to find out what else this author has actually written.

Cindy Lieberman

The 1% of the 1% leave Earth on the eve of what appears to be its inevitable destruction. Now, a select novice is being sent to the original, assumed-deserted Earth to collect cells so the 0.0001 can continue to function. But what the novice finds on Earth makes him question everything.

Montgomery Pierce

Anna Troughton 

This short story had me hooked on it from the first 2 pages. I absolutely want more of this book and wish it was longer than a short story but I guess that is what makes it so good. I am surprised that it have me so invested and intrigued with the story in its 38 pages entirely. I was funny and also thought provoking in its concept as it dabbled in a lot of topics! could not recommended this enough

Jessica

I highly recommend consuming this via audiobook. Jason Isaacs does an amazing job of embodying the "nagging" narrator and it adds so much shape and life to the brilliant narrative choice of this story. It was smart, clever and wildly entertaining.

Suhasa SJ

"Earth could sustain billions, if we simply shared resources and responsibilities in a sensible way. What it couldn’t sustain was a handful of hateful, self-important parasites, preying upon and paralyzing everyone else. As soon as those people left, the paralysis ended"

Behind this nifty little sci-fi short story, there's a deep philosophical message, after all.

Fraser Simons

Hah, what a clever story. I wasn’t wild about 2nd person but understand it’s purpose. Luckily, the premise and theme were strong enough that I got enough satisfaction to distance the annoyance of the POV. It also helped that the narration is phenomenal.

Shafel McDowall

Very original short story

My only complaint is that it became a little hard to differentiate the voices. I became confused sometimes. Still a really good story.

priya

I enjoyed it. Emergency Skin is surprisingly easy to follow for such an unusual perspective and world. The “message” of this short story might come across as too strong or heavy-handed for some readers, but, I felt uplifted by the quite plausible portrayal of Earth as an utopia. I haven’t read sci-fi or short stories in a while so this was a nice change for me. However, Emergency Skin isn’t too original to be honest. 

“They seem tolerant of multiple facial configurations, but you don’t have a face at all.”

“We know what a museum is, you burned-up waste of skin.”

“But the reason they were able to make such leaps is because they made sure everyone had food, everyone had a place to live if they wanted it, everyone could read and write and pursue a fulfilling life, whatever that meant. Is it really so puzzling that this was all it took? Six billion people working toward a goal together is much more effective than a few dozen scrabbling for themselves.”

“People here don’t agree with your primitive practices, but they won’t interfere with your right to practice them.”

Naty Corbett

Great read. A short story that uses its few pages extremely well building the universe and the politics quickly and believably.

Sahi K

This is one of six short stories published by Amazon and all of them deal with some sort of technological advancements which is not my usual kind of genre, so I don’t think these would have even been on my radar if not for this short story by N. K. Jemisin. And she never disappoints.

I’ve actually come to associate second person POV with the author, so I wasn’t at all surprised when this story began the same way. As per the premise, I was expecting the space explorer to find a much destroyed Earth but what he encounters is something completely unexpected. The author tells most of the story through the AI which lives inside his head (if we could even call it that), giving instructions to him about what to do on Earth and what rewards await. In just this short story, we get a great glimpse of the kind of new society these so-called Founders have built in a far away galaxy - a white homogeneous male world in which only the rich and privileged have access to skin and all other pleasures, whereas the majority live in composite suits. 

The major theme of the story is the belief in a socialist utopian society, the idea that all the earth’s problems would be solved if all human beings worked towards the betterment of everybody and not just themselves. In a story that’s just about 33 pages, we get excellent commentary on misogyny, fat shaming, racism, classism, ableism and capitalist greed and while the author’s solution to save the world might not feel realistic, the underlying problems she talks about are nevertheless completely true. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong in envisioning a world that’s better for every one of its inhabitants.

In the end, all I can say is that Jemisin packs a powerful punch in just a few words, and it’s overall hopeful message is brilliantly done. It’s a very short, enjoyable and thought provoking read and I think everyone should give it a try. You’ll of course enjoy it more if you are familiar with the author’s writing style (and like it) or lean more left liberal in your politics. I haven’t still decided if I should try the remaining five stories in this collection, but maybe I should.

Nat Welch

A fun short story. I enjoyed the way it was written, although the story was a bit preachy.

Jennifer

I find N.K. Jemisin's speculative fiction quite interesting. She explores big issues such as prejudice through very creative Sci-Fi work. Emergency is no exception to her signature style. This novella is told from the perspective of an explorer visiting the devastated Earth. Told in 2nd person narrative, thie explorer's voice creates a sense of intimacy on the different aspects of destruction humanity has put to the planet. The messaging resonates eerily parallels to the situation we're facing in humanity e.g. climate change.

On the flipside, because this is a novella I didn't get the chance to completely connect to the characterisation. So this is merely a quick read: I don't think I'm particularly attached to the characters / the plot, but the messaging still left me an impression.

Nevertheless, N.K. Jemisin offered a pretty fascinating vantage point on the effects of climate change on both the planet as well as humanity.

Olivera Mitić

Malo preoptimističan pogled na to šta bi se svetu desilo da svi alavci na vlasti zapravo naprave koloniju van Zemlje i ostave nas na miru, ali cenim entuzijazam.

Michelle Xu

The Forward Collection Overall: 3.5 stars.

It's hard to give the overall collection a rating because some stories were hits and others were misses.

Emergency Skin -4 stars
This was my first time reading NK Jemisin but I have her Broken Earth trilogy in my TBR and will definitely be bumping that up now. This was also maybe the first time I ever read something in second person (or at least it's been a very long time). It was just such a unique read, especially since I listened on audio, it felt like the computer system was actually talking to me. I also really liked the subtle representation in the story with LGBTQ rep in the characters that help "us". I just knocked it down a star because of how predictable it was and the fact that the lessons learned were very obvious. It wasn't super nuanced, but I enjoyed this nonetheless and appreciated the lesson that it taught.

Cat H

4.5 stars! I can’t imagine a better time to read a short story like this. It comments on superficial tendencies in humans and how that affects the way we structure our societies. What makes humans beautiful? How might our society change or remain the same with technological advances and altered environments? I only wish there was more to the unnamed character who takes advantage of the “emergency skin”.

Emergency Skin

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