Kira Jane Buxton's writing has appeared in the New York Times, NewYorker.com, McSweeney's, The Rumpus, Huffington Post, and more. She calls the tropical utopia of Seattle, Washington, home and spends her time with three cats, a dog, two crows, a charm of hummingbirds, five Steller's jays, two dark-eyed juncos, two squirrels, and a husband
"Hollow Kingdom is a grown-up's Watership Down for our times -- or
the end of them. Kira Jane Buxton has created a crow so full of
personality you won't even miss the company of humans, who are
devolving at hyper-speed rates into something sub-literate and
grotesque. But Buxton shows there's humor in our plight and
strength in tenderness, and she portrays the intelligence and
astounding beauty of the natural world in a completely fresh way.
This book is a triumphant feat of imagination, and it had me
believing that the bonds we've formed with our pets might help them
save us after all. I'll never look at a corvid the same way
again."--Zoe Zolbrod, author ofThe Telling and Currency and former
editor at The Rumpus
"Hollow Kingdom combines dark subject matter with an oddball sense
of humor in what proves to be a winning formula . . . a surprising,
funny, genre-bending novel, an environmentalist parable crossed
with an epic adventure story, difficult to describe and even more
difficult to put down."--Shelf Awareness
"Hollow Kingdom is a nature book for our own age, an exuberant,
glittering, hard-hitting mashup of Dawn of the Dead and The
Incredible Journey. It's an adventure lit by strange myths,
brand-names, television and smartphone screens, a fable with teeth
and claws about animals making new lives amongst the ruins of
humanity. It's transformative, poignant, and funny as hell. S.T.
the irrepressible, cursing crow is my new favourite apocalyptic
hero."--Helen Macdonald, New York Times bestselling author of H Is
for Hawk
"Hollow Kingdom offers a bird's-eye view of the apocalypse we all
want and need-especially when the bird in question is a plucky,
Cheeto-loving domesticated crow . . . With infinite heart and
humor, Kira Jane Buxton's fine-feathered narrator guides us through
richly imagined animal realms while braving the terrifying collapse
of the human world. A dazzling, wholly original debut, revealing
the great paradox of humanity's fatal flaws and resilient
spirit."--Mona Awad, authorof 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl and
Bunny
"[Hollow Kingdom] has a lot to say about humanity and the impact we
are having on the planet, but it also shows that there is hope.
Experiencing the story from the perspective of the animals was a
pretty cool experience."--BookRiot
"A call to liberate ourselves from our own domestication . . . a
magnum opus on environmental degradation, an expose on the impact
of technological dependency, and -- above all else -- a testament
to the bizarre and indelicate beauty of re-wilding."--The Nerd
Daily
"A hilariously exuberant and heart-bursting fable for our times,
Hollow Kingdom reminds us that creativity and determination (and a
whole lot of love) can go a long way toward saving the world. When
Mr. Rogers said to look for the helpers, who knew that might mean a
salty-mouthed crow and a faithful bloodhound?"--Jennie Shortridge,
bestselling author of LoveWater Memory and member of the Seattle7
Writers
"A plucky hero, a boisterous tale, startling prose and eerie events
combine for a thoroughly enjoyable account of the end of the world
as we know it. The Secret Life of Pets meets The Walking
Dead."--Karen Joy Fowler, PEN/Faulkner Award-winningauthor of We
Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
"Beautifully written and hilarious, science fiction and zombie
horror and serious literature, and seemingly by accident kind of
virtuous -- almost shockingly good-hearted and inspiring. No
ordinary (you know, entirely alive) humans are featured here, but
the animals, and in particular a certain domesticated crow who is
our foul-mouthed narrator, are wicked funny and irresistibly
endearing."--Sullivan County Democrat
"Buxton spins a fresh, alarming apocalypse from the perspectives of
intelligent, communicative animals in her hilarious debut . . .
S.T.'s complicated personality and the masterful blend of humorous
and tragic make this novel an eloquent, emotional exploration of
survival during an unthinkable cataclysm."--Publishers Weekly
"Buxton's quirky ideas and compelling nonhuman characters will
satisfy literary fiction and zombie genre enthusiasts alike who are
looking for something beguilingly different."--Booklist (Starred
Review)
"Everything you're hearing about Kira Jane Buxton's Hollow
Kingdom--that it's wildly original and inventive, funny and
profane--is wonderfully true. But even better, this book is timely,
smart, movingly written, and beautifully concluded."--Laurie
Frankel, author of This isHow It Always Is and member of the
Seattle7 Writers
"I love this book so much! I wanted to set it on fire while hugging
it. I wanted to hasten the apocalypse just to see how my own pets
fare in a more humane world without humans. Kira Jane Buxton's
voice is fresh, like a newly dug grave, but so joyful and honest
you'll laugh out loud, and then check to make sure you haven't lost
an eyeball. Hollow Kingdom is a wildly original debut and a paean
to my favorite city."--Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling
author ofHotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
"If you've ever thought that humans were the ones in charge, Kira
Jane Buxton's groundbreaking novel will have you thinking
otherwise. Full of unforgettable humor, insight and beauty, Hollow
Kingdom enriches our human experience by inhabiting the minds (and
bellies!) of our non-human animal companions and reminding us that
we're not alone here on this earth."--Ruth Ozeki, nationally
bestselling author of A Tale for the Time Being
"In a global pandemic that infects only humans, how would our pets
and other captive animals survive? How would nature remake our
environments? Remake us? Hilarious, fantastical, inspiring, and at
times heartbreaking, this work could change the way you look at
life around you. At the very least, you'll fall in love with the
crow protagonist and narrator, S.T."--Melanie Cade, owner of
independent bookstore Mojo Books & Records (Tampa)
"Kira Jane Buxton's hilariously philosophical and formidable first
novel tackles humankind's most existential questions . . . Buxton
does a stellar job of anthropomorphizing the novel's animals and
adding drama, suspense, tragedy and hope. It's amazing that such a
bizarre and far-fetched story can connect so deeply with our
reality and its discussions about social media, climate change,
immigration and self-identity. It doesn't get any weirder, funnier
or better than Hollow Kingdom."--BookPage (Starred Review)
"Literary debuts don't get much more high-concept than
this."--Entertainment Weekly
"Pick up this delightfully weird book for a change from the
usual--we promise it's like nothing you've read before."--Good
Housekeeping
"Surprisingly tender, laugh-out-loud funny, and deliciously strange
. . . a joy to read."--BuzzFeed
"The sense of place is amazing -- everything feels completely
authentic and lived in . . . When I got to the last chapter I
dragged my feet (metaphorically), knowing that for every page I
read there was one less page to read."--Smart Bitches, Trashy
Books
"What a surprising, funny, terrifying, marvelous, wholly original
novel! Buxton combines a vivid horror show (think zombies and the
gruesome, bloody extinction of man) with a touching love story
between the unlikeliest of BFFs: a crow, a hound, and a man who's
had a tough go of things on Tinder, and that was before his eyeball
fell out. With humor and a style that brings to mind Tom Robbins
and Karen Russell, Buxton's debut is heartwarming and heart
stopping, hilarious and tragic."--Amy Poeppel, author of Limelight
and Small Admissions
"Wow. Hilarious or horrifying? Sassy or wise? Hollow Kingdom is a
surprise and a marvel: a razor sharp and satisfying warning about
the coming apocalypse, told by one of the most engaging narrators I
have met in a long time. Good fiction makes you think. It turns you
upside down and makes you realize that you recognize the world from
that vantage point. Hollow Kingdom is that good fiction, and so
much more."
Rahna Reiko Rizzuto, author of Shadow Child
A "joyfully original approach to apocalyptic fiction . . . S.T.
ultimately gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, we still have a
chance to turn things around before Nature is so fed up that she
really does set her sights on destroying us for good."--NPR
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