Earth 7

Unferth’s remarkable third novel (after Barn 8) takes place in a distant future where a severely depopulated Earth has turned mostly to sand. At the outset, protagonist Dylan is being raised by her mother, Rosemary, in an underwater pod. Rosemary is a researcher, part of a team from a lab back on Earth’s surface who are working to preserve the DNA of the planet’s many species in an effort to eventually recreate Earth as it once was. The original collection, known as Earth 2, and its copies, 3 through 5, have been lost to looters, and the team is now compiling Earth 6. Though Dylan finds the work of the lab “irritating and absurd, all this so-called Earth-saving,” it offers her an escape from the suffocation of her mother and the depths of the ocean when she lands an internship on the surface. Tasked with sweeping sand, she makes a miraculous discovery of “micro-animals” that appear lifeless and can be used to hide DNA. Over the course of the satisfying narrative, Dylan, as an adult, carries on Rosemary’s work. Unferth shines in her ability to craft relatable characters in extraordinary circumstances, and the novel remains accessible even as it explores deep ontological questions about the nature of life. This is profound. Agent: Bill Clegg, Clegg Agency. (June)