The Secret Library  »   THE WINDUP GIRL by Paolo Bacigalupi

We live in a world where massive agricultural supply companies sell seeds that are genetically engineered to resist pests or provide greater crop yields. At the same time, diseases of pandemic or near-pandemic capacity seem to crop up on a regular basis; in the past decade, we've seen worldwide scares due (rightfully or not) to SARS and influenza of the bird and swine variety, and let's not forget the ever-looming spectre of AIDS.

In THE WINDUP GIRL, Paolo Bacigalupi explores a Thailand of the not-too-distant future. The world's petroleum reserves are a distant memory, and energy is measured in terms of calories and joules. The Environment Ministry seeks to protect the country from threats of virulent plagues like "blister rust" and "cibiscosis" as well as ever more intrusive "Calorie Companies" that want to introduce their patented, genehacked seeds (and, very probably, wipe out Thailand's agricultural independence). Meanwhile, the Ministry of Trade is doing all it can to loosen border restrictions and open up trade with the rest of the world--in direct conflict with the goal of the Environment Ministry.

In the middle of the mess, and soon to become a far more important part of it than she would ever imagine, is Emiko, a windup girl (genetically engineered "New Person") whose very presence in Bangkok is illegal. Emiko works in a brothel, a toy for those with more exotic (and perverse) tastes than are easily satisfied by the real girls. She is a prisoner of fear, knowing that the Environment Ministry "White Shirts" are kept at bay only by the bribes her patron pays. Should the bribes stop, Emiko would surely be mulched, processed and turned into the methane that provides so much of Bangkok's energy.

This was, simply put, a fantastic book. The post-petroleum world Bacigalupi created is complex and compelling (a great exploration of what the world might look like after the "petroplague" in Kevin J. Anderson and Doug Beason's ILL WIND or simply the depletion of the world's oil reserves) and the idea of genehacked grain and a food supply that is largely controlled by companies in Des Moines is fascinating (especially after reading THE OMNIVORE'S DILEMMA by Michael Pollan). Then there are the characters: Emiko the windup girl; the White Shirts, Captain Jaidee "The Tiger" Rojjanasukchai and his Lieutenant, Kanya; Anderson Lake, the Calorie Man; and Hock Seng, the Yellow Card refugee from a China torn apart by religious conflict. Bacigalupi winds their separate stories together expertly, creating distinct voices for each and making them all sympathetic, even though their motivations often counter one another.

Highly Recommended: 5 stars (out of 5)