Set in the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska, The Antidote begins on Black Sunday, when one of the most catastrophic dust storms in American history descends upon the Great Plains. But the real storm, Russell suggests, has been gathering for generations. The town is already sinking under the weight of drought, economic despair, and the darker inheritance of its own violent past.
The book follows five unforgettable characters:
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A Prairie Witch whose body serves as a vault for other people’s memories,
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A Polish wheat farmer whose good fortune sours into something sinister,
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His orphaned niece, a basketball prodigy and apprentice witch who is running from her grief,
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A talkative scarecrow with unsettling wisdom, and
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A New Deal photographer whose mysterious, time-bending camera threatens to expose the town’s secrets.
As their stories intertwine, Russell explores what it means for a nation to forget - its history, its sins, and its connections to the land and what it might take to remember. It’s also a novel that feels fiercely relevant, confronting the legacies of environmental collapse and collective denial. In an interview with BookPage, Karen Russell said she wanted to write a story where an apocalyptic future for us isn’t a foregone conclusion. “You can’t imagine a viable future, a world that’s kinder and more just than what we’ve got going today, without returning to the past,” Russell says. This sounds like a book for me.
Kym, Carole,
and I will be talking about the book, giving additional information,
and doing promotional posts throughout November. Discussion day for The Antidote is scheduled for Tuesday, January 6, 2026 at 7:00 pm Eastern time, so mark your calendars. We'll ask questions on our blogs that day and then host the always fun, educational, and entertaining Zoom discussion.
Whether you're new to Karen Russell or already a fan, we hope you'll Read With Us and discover (or revisit since I know some of you have already read it) this amazingly creative novel.
I am on the waitlist! (and astoundingly moving up rather quickly!!)
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to discuss this book. I imagine I'll have to reread before then, but I loved it when I read it earlier this summer -- truly one of the most original books I've ever read.
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