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An intimate look at the potential future of life in the midst of climate change, and the enduring importance of community even when all seems lost.

The lynchpin of The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton, a novel split into four parts, is the main character Wanda, whose determination to remain in her Florida hometown is tested to extremes by the worsening impact of climate change. In the first section, set in the near future, we follow Wanda's parents and two older brothers as they anxiously await her birth and the imminent arrival of the storm after which she will be named. Spread throughout the town when the storm finally hits, the family must race to reunite before tragedy strikes. In the second section, we follow Wanda into adolescence, as her hometown sinks deeper into floodwaters and further heartbreak occurs. In the third, we see her blossom into a young woman perfectly conditioned to survive in this harsh new world yet hardened by her many losses:

"After all this time, the aches have grown softer but also deeper ... the looping shape of pain ... changes and quiets but never ends. There is a strange comfort in its constancy. Memories of what was lost are also reminders of what was held."

In the final section, we see a glimmer of hope in the form of embracing community, sharing memories of the past and working together to forge a closer relationship with nature.

Though climate change is a very real problem, its scope can often feel overwhelming. As is stated in Brooks-Dalton's novel, "There is a necessary tension between knowing how nature works in theory and witnessing it." Wanda's community alone is hit regularly by deadly storms, power outages, supply shortages, extreme flooding and stifling heat. By keeping the narrative set in this single location and focusing on the perspective of one family across the years, Brooks-Dalton makes their struggle to quite literally weather the storm more acutely felt. This in turn makes the potential future laid out in the novel feel all the more plausible – and the book itself all the more impactful.

The structure and pacing of The Light Pirate are carefully considered, enhancing the overall reading experience by working in cohesion with its themes. The opening section reads more like a typical climax. Tension then mounts across short, punchy chapters before a burst of breathless action that culminates in tragedy and an eerie sense of calm. Not only does this rhythm chime with that of many actual storms, it sets up the following sections (which are generally slower and more melancholic) to explore the reality of trying to carry on in the wake of disaster, be it personal or ecological.

Somewhat less assured is a subplot later in the novel that sees Wanda develop a strange affinity with the water overtaking her hometown, mysterious bioluminescent organisms within it lighting at her touch alone. There are interesting points to be made here about the persistence of evolution and a need to embrace change if we are to live in harmony with the natural world, but a lack of expansion leaves these happenings feeling oddly close to the supernatural in an otherwise starkly realistic story. There is also a romance subplot that, though pleasing enough for those who wish to see Wanda find happiness, feels too rushed to be as satisfying as it could otherwise have been.

These blips do little to hamper the overall success of the novel, however. On the whole, The Light Pirate is a well-written, emotionally charged look at the impact we're having on the world around us, the endurance of those who refuse to flee from it, and the peace that could yet come from learning to work together — both with each other and with Mother Nature.

This review was originally published in The BookBrowse Review in February 2023, and has been updated for the May 2024 edition. Click here to go to this issue.

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