The Deep Sky is a gorgeous science fiction novel about what to do with a dying planet. Do we use ever-shrinking resources to shoot for the stars or do we use them to fix earthly ills? Author Yume Kitasei doesn't necessarily have the answer for us, but her work may help us each find one of our own.

Asuka leaves a warring and warming Earth on the planet's one-way mission to colonize space. Nations bankrupted themselves to sponsor seats on the colony ship populated with people with uteruses (yes, this means trans men too!) who will birth a new generation midway through the mission. But when an explosion goes off over a decade into the mission, the troubles of Earth find their way to the ship. Asuka, the sole surviving witness, finds it is her job to figure out who is behind the explosion.

Kitasei does not hold back when it comes to the depth of the themes. She explores Asuka's biracial identity, racism and eugenics, climate change, activism, and more. She also develops the technology of our future in great detail. Yet everything feels grounded in our present reality. At times, the picture Kitasei paints of our near future is terrifying. 

I devoured this audiobook. I listened for hours at a time, needing to know what was happening in Asuka's world. I see a future for the folks on the ship that is bright and even abolitionist. This book was a chance to escape a world hurtling towards the fate of Asuka's and get sucked into a mystery that I knew would have a resolution, good or bad. It alleviated the uncertainty of the present moment, while also encouraging me to think deeply about it. To me, that is exactly what science fiction is meant to do.

I loved Asuka as the main character. She was just as grounded in reality as the rest of the story. I really appreciated how she didn't have a romantic subplot; her interpersonal concerns and conflicts were platonic in nature. One of these sources of conflict was a disabled woman, so that was great to hear for a disabled reader such as myself. 

I only wish Kitasei had explored trans identity and transphobia. There were many folks on the ship who use they/them pronouns and one trans man. There was a men's rights hate group who were angry about spots on the ship being reserved for those with uteruses yet no mention of a reaction to the trans and nonbinary ship members. It seems a bit odd that it was left out.