The Lightest Object In The Universe: A Novel by Kimi Eisele

(Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book: (from Goodreads)

If the grid went down, how would you find someone on the other side of the country? How would you find hope?

After a global economic collapse and failure of the electrical grid, amid escalating chaos, Carson, a high school teacher of history who sees history bearing out its lessons all around him, heads west on foot toward Beatrix, a woman he met and fell hard for during a chance visit to his school. Working his way along a cross-country railroad line, he encounters lost souls, clever opportunists, and those who believe they’ll be delivered from hardship if they can find their way to the evangelical preacher Jonathan Blue, who is broadcasting on all the airwaves countrywide. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, Beatrix and her neighbors turn to one another for food, water, and solace, and begin to construct the kind of cooperative community that suggests the end could, in fact, be a promising beginning.

But between Beatrix and Carson lie 3,000 miles. With no internet or phone or postal service, can they find their way back to each other, and what will be left of their world when they do? The answers may lie with fifteen-year-old Rosie Santos, who travels reluctantly with her grandmother to Jonathan Blue, finding her voice and making choices that could ultimately decide the fate of the cross-country lovers.

The Lightest Object in the Universe is a story about reliance and adaptation, a testament to the power of community and a chronicle of moving on after catastrophic loss, illustrating that even in the worst of times, our best traits, borne of necessity, can begin to emerge.

my thoughts:

A love story beats at the heart of this dystopian tale of rebuilding and moving forward. 

The world has collapsed thanks in large part to the flu and a government that decided to just quit.  And now, the electrical grid has stopped working. What to do? Well, in Carson's case, he decides to head West.  His heart lies with Beatrix, a woman he met by chance and who lives on the opposite side of the country.  So he sets out to make his trek on foot.  On the way, he encounters plenty of folks who either want to con him, hurt him, join him, convince him to join them, etc..  Yep, people are making moves.  And some are heading to a voice they hear on the air waves - a preacher named Jonathan Blue. As for Beatrix, she's banded together with her neighbors to create a new community, a cooperative.  They help one another with food, water, and by being there for each other. Miles between them, Carson and Beatrix are doing the best they can with what they have.  Will they reunite? Will the world right itself? What will happen to the folks heading to Jonathan Blue? So many questions and so many adventures in this tale of hope, rebuilding, and love.

Eisele has written an engaging and entertaining story that will keep you turning pages late into the night. I absolutely LOVED this story to bits!

I would happily recommend The Lightest Object In The Universe to anyone and everyone looking for their next great read - you will LOVE this book!!





Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!