Goliath A Novel

4.5* This is a hard book to review, sincce while I personally enjoyed it there are several things a reader should know going into it. Just to be prepared. 1. This book is told in a non-linear timeline and it doesn't point out when a certain scene takes place within it (no dates or even years marked). I was aware of this going into the book and the first two plus the last part of the book I had little to no struggle placing the scenes. Many scenes are in fact in a chronological order in the timeline of given POV. The third part is split between two completely new POVs, one of which can be easily placed years ahead of the beginning of the book, the other one I can't place even now. 2. This is not your typical fun Sci-Fi book. It's a litreray Science Fiction novel about the consequences of climate change, segragation and gentrification. About hope, pain and privilege. Oftentimes, it's just slice of life in a post-cataclysmic world. I found it deeply moving, shocking and thought-provocing. But it's also an ambious and dense read, that'll take all your concentraition but is truly worth it. 3. There are almost no info-dumps. This a fully crafted world, that you open your eyes to on a day like any other. You learn about the world by paying attention to conversations, side-notes and the personal stories of each character. Only in part three do you learn how the United States of America became the place they are at the beginning of the book. Correspondingly, is this book focused on the USA. We get a few little mentions of what the rest of the world thinks about the States, but never learn how the last 30 years played out for them. I assume, Onyebuchi wanted to ratehr focused on the things he knew about in detail instead of playing a guessing game for other countries. The events in other countries aren't important for the characters in the book to whom it pays very close attention. 4. This book is deeply founded in American (especially Black American) history and events of today. There are things the book just assumes you know about and doesn't care to explain. While I was at times able to fill these gaps, but by far not all. I'm an international read who's never been to the U.S. and despite having a basic grasp of societal issues and American history, it wasn't a main part of my own education. I cared too much about the characters and was able to ignore my gaps of knowledge, but I would recommend an international reader to have a map of America and an internet connection nearby while reading. 5. There are no clear answers in this book. There's no solution for apparent problems. There is closure to be felt at the end of the book , but the world simply moves on. It's moment in time that Tochi Onyebuchi captured here. A moment that hasn't happend yeat but might, if things don't change. It's a warning and a prophecy. It's a cry into the void to finally change things. It's frightening and it's beautiful. And deeply fascinating.