Official Review: Ecotopian World by Zachia Middlechild

[NetMassimo]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Ecotopian World" by Zachia Middlechild.]

---

3 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Ecotopian World by Zachia Middlechild is set in 2065, after the USA broke up because the Western states seceded. Those states founded Ecotopia, a nation based on environmental awareness and the use of magic. What remains of the old USA got increasingly polluted, and the situation got much worse in 2045, after an incident at a nuclear power plant caused a radioactive leak that spread throughout the nation. The drop in the population's fertility convinced the Congress to vote a law that forced all girls' fertility to be checked when they're 13. All fertile girls have to become breeders, forced to give birth to 20 children, 2 from a husband they can select and the others from men selected by the authorities. An alternative is to steal the fertility vaccine they believe the Ecotopians have, but within the government someone decides to abduct fertile young people.

Zachia Middlechild has been an artist for all her life, but generally she works as a painter and a sculptor. This is her first novel, openly inspired to Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach, a novel with a strong environmental theme. The premises are the same, with the Western states that secede from the USA to build an ecological utopia. In Ecotopian World there's a fantasy flavor because magic is widely used in Ecotopia. The rediscovery of magic abilities went alongside the healing of their land. That included their reconnection with Leer, magic animals that can bond with humans. With magic came a rediscovered spirituality strongly connected to the land. Religious fundamentalism and bigotry are considered enemies of that type of spirituality, and among the causes of humanity's dark times.

There's a remarkable contrast between living in Ecotopia or in the USA. In Ecotopia, people are well because they live in a healthy environment where they can eat good food. In the USA, the environment is polluted, so people tend to be sick, with a fertility problem that's threatening the country's future. The response is very different as well: the Ecotopians decide to invite children from the USA to Summer Camps while many among the American authorities think that the Ecotopians have a vaccine against infertility and want to steal it.

Zachia Middlechild uses that contrast to build a story focused in particular on Christina Braggio and her brother George, two of the kids invited to one of Ecotopia's Summer Camps. Christina has just been registered as a breeder in the USA, and she's worried about her future. The story of these two kids is in my opinion one of the strongest parts of the novel because it offers a positive message. For Christina and George, spending time in a healthy environment enables them to develop abilities that were dormant in their polluted country. The greater awareness existing in Ecotopia also means that people work together to maintain their environment. In a period where dystopic stories that can have really dark tones seem predominant, I found this story refreshing with its message of hope for the future. This effect is even greater because it's built on the contrast with a country that fell into a dystopia.

My complaint about Ecotopian World is that sometimes the author omits information I found important. For example, even within the USA's government, there's only a minority of bad people, yet nothing gets done to improve their terrible environmental situation. Why is that? No answer is offered. I give the author the benefit of the doubt because she already announced a sequel.

The novel would also benefit from another round of editing, as there are several grammar and formatting errors. Most of them are not a distraction, and in some cases I noticed them only because I was paying attention. It contains no profanities and no sex, which makes it suitable for kids as well. However, someone might be disturbed by some bits about egg harvesting from girls. It's not specifically targeted to teenagers and young adults, but for its contents and the importance of young characters I found it very well suited for them.

In my opinion, Ecotopian World is a good novel with some little flaws, so a rating of 3 out of 4 stars seems fair to me. The main storyline has an ending, but a few subplots will be developed in the sequel. I recommend this novel to people who want to read a story of hope for our future.

******
Ecotopian World
View: on Bookshelves

[Faithmwangi]

I don't this book is for me. Particularly because of the egg harvesting bit. However, I do appreciate the author's take on the environment and the positive spin identified in the novel.

[NetMassimo]

I don't this book is for me. Particularly because of the egg harvesting bit. However, I do appreciate the author's take on the environment and the positive spin identified in the novel.

The author didn't go into the details of that harvest, and that's a small part of the novel that aims to describe some evil activities, but I understand that it can be disturbing.

[Sanju Lali]

The western states breaking away from the rest of the states to form a new nation called Ecotopia, which is a nation based on environmental awareness and the use of magic. The premise appears to be quite interesting. Thanks for your great review.

[NetMassimo]

The western states breaking away from the rest of the states to form a new nation called Ecotopia, which is a nation based on environmental awareness and the use of magic. The premise appears to be quite interesting. Thanks for your great review.

I think the author made a good use of that premise. Thank you for your appreciation!

[SunVixen]

"The drop in the population's fertility convinced the Congress to vote a law that forced all girls' fertility to be checked when they're 13. All fertile girls have to become breeders, forced to give birth to 20 children, 2 from a husband they can select and the others from men selected by the authorities."

This seems like unnecessary cruelty. Poor breeders must give birth to so many children. So many births can undermine their health. Also, they will not be able to have any further education or job due to endless childbirth and care for little babies.

Why don't these breeders just donate their eggs? For example, you can take an egg from a breeder, artificially fertilize it and transplant it to some woman who really wants to have a baby.

Nevertheless, thanks for the wonderful review.

[NetMassimo]

"The drop in the population's fertility convinced the Congress to vote a law that forced all girls' fertility to be checked when they're 13. All fertile girls have to become breeders, forced to give birth to 20 children, 2 from a husband they can select and the others from men selected by the authorities."

This seems like unnecessary cruelty. Poor breeders must give birth to so many children. So many births can undermine their health. Also, they will not be able to have any further education or job due to endless childbirth and care for little babies.

Why don't these breeders just donate their eggs? For example, you can take an egg from a breeder, artificially fertilize it and transplant it to some woman who really wants to have a baby.

Nevertheless, thanks for the wonderful review.

There are no specific explanations, and the novel is set years after that law was imposed, so there are no debates about the options. However, egg harvesting is a possibility included in the novel that's not the first choice, possibly because IVF might still be a complex procedure, also frowned upon by conservatives. Yes, approving breeding programs while condeming IVF is totally hypocritical, but hypocrisy is abundant in what remains of the USA.

Thank you for your appreciation.

[SunVixen]

"The drop in the population's fertility convinced the Congress to vote a law that forced all girls' fertility to be checked when they're 13. All fertile girls have to become breeders, forced to give birth to 20 children, 2 from a husband they can select and the others from men selected by the authorities."

This seems like unnecessary cruelty. Poor breeders must give birth to so many children. So many births can undermine their health. Also, they will not be able to have any further education or job due to endless childbirth and care for little babies.

Why don't these breeders just donate their eggs? For example, you can take an egg from a breeder, artificially fertilize it and transplant it to some woman who really wants to have a baby.

Nevertheless, thanks for the wonderful review.

There are no specific explanations, and the novel is set years after that law was imposed, so there are no debates about the options. However, egg harvesting is a possibility included in the novel that's not the first choice, possibly because IVF might still be a complex procedure, also frowned upon by conservatives. Yes, approving breeding programs while condeming IVF is totally hypocritical, but hypocrisy is abundant in what remains of the USA.

Thank you for your appreciation.

I have not read this book yet, so I do not know about hypocrisy and other things. Thanks for the explanation.

I just read your review and was surprised. Why ruin the lives of some females and leave others without children?

[NetMassimo]

There are no specific explanations, and the novel is set years after that law was imposed, so there are no debates about the options. However, egg harvesting is a possibility included in the novel that's not the first choice, possibly because IVF might still be a complex procedure, also frowned upon by conservatives. Yes, approving breeding programs while condeming IVF is totally hypocritical, but hypocrisy is abundant in what remains of the USA.

Thank you for your appreciation.

I have not read this book yet, so I do not know about hypocrisy and other things. Thanks for the explanation.

I just read your review and was surprised. Why ruin the lives of some females and leave others without children?

The point is that most of the breeders' children get adopted by other people after being delivered by their biological mothers.

[SunVixen]

This weird system seems less stupid now. However, hardly anyone wanted to be a breeder.

[NetMassimo]

This weird system seems less stupid now. However, hardly anyone wanted to be a breeder.

The perspective of being a breeder is a theme developed in the novel.

[Kristin Ransome]

The idea of having "breeders" seems very similar to Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, which is a scary thought. I'm wondering if there is a clear cut line between the good society and the bad one, or if both systems have their pros and cons? If one is obviously better, why hasn't the US adopted different practices after seeing how well its working for the other? So many questions... I think I'm going to have to read this one! Thanks

[Nerea]

Sounds like an intriguing and thrilling time travel story. I'm amused by the reproductive arrangement highlighted in the story. I think I need to delve deep into the story to draw more gems. Additionally, I'm glad to know that the material is free from profanity and other graphic references. Thanks for the lovely review.

[unamilagra]

This reminds me of Handmaid's Tale with the forced breeding, hopefully without the forced "natural conception" that goes along with it. I like dystopian books and always think it's interesting to see what different authors think the future could hold for us. It sounds like with a bit of polishing, this could be a great book. Thanks for a thorough review!

[NetMassimo]

The idea of having "breeders" seems very similar to Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, which is a scary thought. I'm wondering if there is a clear cut line between the good society and the bad one, or if both systems have their pros and cons? If one is obviously better, why hasn't the US adopted different practices after seeing how well its working for the other? So many questions... I think I'm going to have to read this one! Thanks

In the novel, contacts between what remains of the USA and Ecotopia remained very limited for many years, which is also why within the USA government many people think that Ecotopians have a vaccine against infertility.