Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre is a fiction book by American author Max Brooks set in the Pacific Northwest.[2] It chronicles the story of a small, isolated community of technologically-dependent city dwellers who suddenly are cut off from the rest of the world after a volcanic eruption.[2] In addition to lacking outdoor survival skills and resources, they find themselves also trying to survive attacks by Sasquatch.[2] The book was optioned by Legendary Entertainment to become a film, around the same time the book began to be sold to the public in June 2020.[3]
Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre
The plot focuses on the investigation being done by a reporter 13 months after the titular Sasquatch Massacre occurs in the community of Greenloop, Washington. Greenloop is a small eco-centric community, consisting of six smart homes and a central Community House. The location is remote; it is one and a half hours south of the city of Seattle, has a single access road, and supplies are delivered by drones. The homes inside are eco-friendly, powered by sunlight and waste. Many of the functions of the smart homes are automated, and are controlled via iPhones and iPads.
The narrator is guided into the events of the massacre by the brother of Kate Holland, one of the residents who is still missing. The narrator combines Kate's journal entries and additional interviews with experts on zoology, a Forest Service officer and others, in order to provide the reader context about the nature of the Bigfoot.
We learn that for therapeutic reasons, Kate was asked by her psychotherapist to maintain a written record of her thoughts, feelings and experiences in Greenloop. The initial entries describe her troubled relationship with her husband Dan, her lifestyle and the quirky upper-class neighbors of her small Greenloop community.
Upon the eruption of Mt. Rainier, the residents decide to shelter in place and wait for rescuers to arrive, relying on the capabilities of their technological homes and rationing to carry them through the coming days. As the National Guard and local officials try to regain control of the Mt. Rainier eruption area, including Seattle, the residents of Greenloop slowly realize how cut-off and unprepared they are.
It is then that the wild animals and worse, the sasquatches, appear. The journal entries (and therefore, the book that we are reading) then become a record of the residents' battles against the sasquatch.
Reactions
[I]n light of current events, Devolution becomes a more disquieting read, and the horror is not necessarily found in the obvious places. Yes, the Bigfoot attacks are well orchestrated and surprisingly violent. The true terror for a post-pandemic reader, however, is in the grounded reality of how victims of disaster can be overlooked and how thin the veneer of civility and technology is revealed to be in the face of grand social disruption.
Kirkus Reviews was positive, calling the book "a tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem".[5]Publishers Weekly and Library Journal also had positive reviews, saying Brooks "packs his plot with action, information, and atmosphere, and captures both the foibles and the heroism of his characters",[6] and that it was a "creative and well-executed conceit" that would also appeal to "those who appreciate nonfiction survival stories".[7]The Washington Post was negative, with the review titled "A great Bigfoot novel may be lurking out there. Max Brooks's 'Devolution' isn't it."[8]USA Today gave it a mixed review, saying it was "ambitious mishmash of individually interesting pieces. Not quite sharp enough for compelling satire, a little too sneering for effective horror, it will find plenty of readers among devotees of Brooks, but will be a miss for most general readers."[9] American gun enthusiast and self-defense instructor Massad Ayoob reviewed the book, concluding that it presented a good case for firearms ownership.[10]
References
^Hammett, Stephanie. "Max Brooks discusses new horror novel 'Devolution' with Northwest Passages Book Club". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
^ abc"Max Brooks". Max Brooks. Retrieved 2021-12-05.
^ Borys Kit (June 16, 2020), "Max Brooks' Bigfoot Book 'Devolution' Picked Up by Legendary (Exclusive)", The Hollywood Reporter
^ Neil McRobert (June 24, 2020). "Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay; Devolution by Max Brooks review – tales of apocalypse". The Guardian. Manchester, UK.
^ "Devolution", Library Journal (book review), Brooks's creative and well-executed conceit will have readers searching Wikipedia to look up names and events, even the parts they know are not based on reality. An obvious choice for Bigfoot fans...and those who appreciate nonfiction survival stories.
^ Ron Charles (June 9, 2020), "A great Bigfoot novel may be lurking out there. Max Brooks's 'Devolution' isn't it.", The Washington Post (book review)
^ Eliot Schrefer (June 15, 2020), "Review: 'World War Z' author Max Brooks wreaks havoc with Bigfoot in 'Devolution'", USA Today
^Ayoob, Massad (July 5, 2020), "Devolution", Backwoods Home Magazine (book review), ... I see it as a validation of the gun owner's life style. With the right hardware, the battle would have lasted about one medium-long chapter...
Further reading
Jeff Spry (June 11, 2020), Author Max Brooks heads deep into the woods for new bigfoot horror novel, Devolution, Syfy
Tobias Carroll (June 29, 2020), "When Futurism Meets With Disaster: Max Brooks' Devolution", Tor.com (book review)
March 09, 2023
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Devolution A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre is a fiction book by American author Max Brooks set in the Pacific Northwest 2 It chronicles the story of a small isolated community of technologically dependent city dwellers who suddenly are cut off from the rest of the world after a volcanic eruption 2 In addition to lacking outdoor survival skills and resources they find themselves also trying to survive attacks by Sasquatch 2 The book was optioned by Legendary Entertainment to become a film around the same time the book began to be sold to the public in June 2020 3 Devolution A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch MassacreFirst edition US AuthorMax BrooksGenreSpeculative fiction horror 1 PublishedJune 16 2020PublisherDel Rey Books US Century UK Pages304ISBN978 1 9848 2678 7 Contents 1 Plot 2 Reactions 3 References 4 Further readingPlot EditThe plot focuses on the investigation being done by a reporter 13 months after the titular Sasquatch Massacre occurs in the community of Greenloop Washington Greenloop is a small eco centric community consisting of six smart homes and a central Community House The location is remote it is one and a half hours south of the city of Seattle has a single access road and supplies are delivered by drones The homes inside are eco friendly powered by sunlight and waste Many of the functions of the smart homes are automated and are controlled via iPhones and iPads The narrator is guided into the events of the massacre by the brother of Kate Holland one of the residents who is still missing The narrator combines Kate s journal entries and additional interviews with experts on zoology a Forest Service officer and others in order to provide the reader context about the nature of the Bigfoot We learn that for therapeutic reasons Kate was asked by her psychotherapist to maintain a written record of her thoughts feelings and experiences in Greenloop The initial entries describe her troubled relationship with her husband Dan her lifestyle and the quirky upper class neighbors of her small Greenloop community Upon the eruption of Mt Rainier the residents decide to shelter in place and wait for rescuers to arrive relying on the capabilities of their technological homes and rationing to carry them through the coming days As the National Guard and local officials try to regain control of the Mt Rainier eruption area including Seattle the residents of Greenloop slowly realize how cut off and unprepared they are It is then that the wild animals and worse the sasquatches appear The journal entries and therefore the book that we are reading then become a record of the residents battles against the sasquatch Reactions Edit I n light of current events Devolution becomes a more disquieting read and the horror is not necessarily found in the obvious places Yes the Bigfoot attacks are well orchestrated and surprisingly violent The true terror for a post pandemic reader however is in the grounded reality of how victims of disaster can be overlooked and how thin the veneer of civility and technology is revealed to be in the face of grand social disruption Neil McRobert The Guardian 4 Kirkus Reviews was positive calling the book a tasty if not always tasteful tale of supernatural mayhem 5 Publishers Weekly and Library Journal also had positive reviews saying Brooks packs his plot with action information and atmosphere and captures both the foibles and the heroism of his characters 6 and that it was a creative and well executed conceit that would also appeal to those who appreciate nonfiction survival stories 7 The Washington Post was negative with the review titled A great Bigfoot novel may be lurking out there Max Brooks s Devolution isn t it 8 USA Today gave it a mixed review saying it was ambitious mishmash of individually interesting pieces Not quite sharp enough for compelling satire a little too sneering for effective horror it will find plenty of readers among devotees of Brooks but will be a miss for most general readers 9 American gun enthusiast and self defense instructor Massad Ayoob reviewed the book concluding that it presented a good case for firearms ownership 10 References Edit Hammett Stephanie Max Brooks discusses new horror novel Devolution with Northwest Passages Book Club The Spokesman Review Retrieved 23 September 2020 a b c Max Brooks Max Brooks Retrieved 2021 12 05 Borys Kit June 16 2020 Max Brooks Bigfoot Book Devolution Picked Up by Legendary Exclusive The Hollywood Reporter Neil McRobert June 24 2020 Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay Devolution by Max Brooks review tales of apocalypse The Guardian Manchester UK Devolution Kirkus Reviews book review March 1 2020 Devolution Publishers Weekly book review May 2020 Devolution Library Journal book review Brooks s creative and well executed conceit will have readers searching Wikipedia to look up names and events even the parts they know are not based on reality An obvious choice for Bigfoot fans and those who appreciate nonfiction survival stories Ron Charles June 9 2020 A great Bigfoot novel may be lurking out there Max Brooks s Devolution isn t it The Washington Post book review Eliot Schrefer June 15 2020 Review World War Z author Max Brooks wreaks havoc with Bigfoot in Devolution USA Today Ayoob Massad July 5 2020 Devolution Backwoods Home Magazine book review I see it as a validation of the gun owner s life style With the right hardware the battle would have lasted about one medium long chapter Further reading EditJeff Spry June 11 2020 Author Max Brooks heads deep into the woods for new bigfoot horror novel Devolution Syfy Tobias Carroll June 29 2020 When Futurism Meets With Disaster Max Brooks Devolution Tor com book review Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Devolution Brooks novel amp oldid 1142212614, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
