2084

It is the year 2084. In the kingdom of Abistan citizens submit to a single god, demonstrating their devotion by kneeling in prayer nine times a day. Autonomous thought has been banned, remembering is forbidden, and an omnipresent surveillance system instantly informs the authorities of every deviant act, thought or idea. The kingdom is blessed and its citizens are happy. Those who are not are put to death, stoned in the public squares. But Ati has met people who think differently; under their influence, he must defend his thoughts with his life.

It is the year 2084. In the kingdom of Abistan citizens submit to a single god, demonstrating their devotion by kneeling in prayer nine times a day. Autonomous thought has been banned, remembering is forbidden, and an omnipresent surveillance system instantly informs the authorities of every deviant act, thought or idea. The kingdom is blessed and its citizens are happy. Those who are not are put to death, stoned in the public squares. But Ati has met people who think differently; under their influence, he must defend his thoughts with his life.

I en fremtidig verden vender Ati tilbage til Qodsabad,hovedstaden i den altomsluttende by Abistan, fra et sanatorium, hvor han hartilbragt et helt år på grund af tuberkulose. Ati genoptager sit arbejde iministeriet for fortidige artefakter og skrifter, der hører under Apparatet;den altoverskyggende magtinstans i Abistan, der er bygget på den guddommeligeYölahs anvisninger og på hans efterfølger Abis hellige skrifter. Religionen er gennemgribende i alle facetter af livet iAbistan. Man er konstant overvåget, månedlige forhør skal afsløre fritænkereeller folk, der tvivler på Yölahs guddommelighed, og kolossalestadionhenrettelser finder sted, hvor blasfemister halshugges eller spiddes påen pæl. Ati har altid været en loyal religionssoldat, der personligthar angivet hundredevis af forrædere, men det år han har tilbragt væk fraQodsabad har givet ham tid til at tænke over tingenes tilstand, og da hanseneste ven Koa bliver udvalgt til at dømme og halshugge en ung mor til fembørn, drager de to ud for at finde en mand, der måske kan hjælpe Koa med atslippe fra sin uvelkomne tjans. Men i stedet for en enkelt mand, finder Ati ogKoa et helt lille samfund af fritænkere, der drømmer sig tilbage til det 20. århundredeog planlægger at omstyrte religionen. Man indånder Yölah, man spiser Yölah, mandrømmer og tænker Yölah, men da Ati og Koa pludselig får indblik i en andenverden, der er mulig, kan de ikke længere vende tilbage til deres gamle liv. 2084 er bygget op med George Orwells roman 1984 som model,men i stedet for en fascistisk/stalinistisk leder ved navn Big Brother, såhænger Yölah og Abis religiøse skygge tungt over Abistan. Hos Boualem Sansal erdet ikke længere et billede på Hitlers og Stalins rædselsregimer, der skabes enfortælling om som hos Orwell, men i stedet islamismens fremmarch og detskræmmende perspektiv i en verden, der styres af en fiktiv religion. Boualem Sansal er fransk/algerisk forfatter, bosat iAlgeriet. Efter i mange år at have virket som højtstående embedsmand trakSansal sig tilbage for at skrive om sit land, og hvad han betragtede som eneskalerende islamisme i Algeriet. Han stiller sig kritisk i forhold til dearabiske regeringer i landene omkring ham, og han har flere gange udtalt, at sålænge regeringer forfølger intellektuelle og fritænkere, så bør deres folk gøreoprør i mod dem. Boualem Sansal vandt i 2015 Grand Prix du roman du l’Académiefran c aise.

"Gripping...Ackerman and Stavridis stage a harrowing global conflict that pits military might against an appetite for justice... equal parts haunting and entertaining." -- Publishers Weekly , starred review A gripping drama and chilling prophecy about the possible path to war for a planet devastated by climate change In their novel 2034 , decorated military officers and award-winning authors Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis imagined a war between the US and China. In their follow-up novel, 2054 , they envisioned a breakdown in American politics fueled by a radical advance in AI. Now they make their boldest, most astonishing, and arguably most necessary leap--imagining the consequences of a climate war. By the year 2084, the world is divided into the equatorial countries that bear the brunt of the climate crisis--led by Nigeria, Brazil, and Indonesia--and wealthier countries like China and the US, beset by their own problems after a series of civil wars. Tensions between the two sets of countries have reached a breaking point, until finally the so-called Reparationist nations of the equator decide that only military force can bring them justice. A fascinating and disturbingly plausible extrapolation from current realities, 2084 , like other classics of the genre such as Kim Stanley Robinson's The Ministry for the Future and Neal Stephenson's Termination Shock , deploys a global cast of characters, all protecting their interests as the fate of human civilization hangs in the balance. Individuals often seem small in the face of the forces that drive global change, but in the end human agency proves surprisingly decisive. Big doors can swing on small hinges. We have it within ourselves to write a different destiny, if only we can imagine it.

"Gripping...Ackerman and Stavridis stage a harrowing global conflict that pits military might against an appetite for justice... equal parts haunting and entertaining." -- Publishers Weekly , starred review A gripping drama and chilling prophecy about the possible path to war for a planet devastated by climate change In their novel 2034 , decorated military officers and award-winning authors Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis imagined a war between the US and China. In their follow-up novel, 2054 , they envisioned a breakdown in American politics fueled by a radical advance in AI. Now they make their boldest, most astonishing, and arguably most necessary leap--imagining the consequences of a climate war. By the year 2084, the world is divided into the equatorial countries that bear the brunt of the climate crisis--led by Nigeria, Brazil, and Indonesia--and wealthier countries like China and the US, beset by their own problems after a series of civil wars. Tensions between the two sets of countries have reached a breaking point, until finally the so-called Reparationist nations of the equator decide that only military force can bring them justice. A fascinating and disturbingly plausible extrapolation from current realities, 2084 , like other classics of the genre such as Kim Stanley Robinson's The Ministry for the Future and Neal Stephenson's Termination Shock , deploys a global cast of characters, all protecting their interests as the fate of human civilization hangs in the balance. Individuals often seem small in the face of the forces that drive global change, but in the end human agency proves surprisingly decisive. Big doors can swing on small hinges. We have it within ourselves to write a different destiny, if only we can imagine it.