Hope: A History of the Future is a book about climate change, the imminent future, and the hope we may or may not still have. (And also a seemingly immortal cat.)

I really liked this book, even though it took me a while to get through. Initially, the way things were told non-chronologically gets a little confusing, but for some reason, that way of telling the story made me even more intrigued to keep going.

Most of the characters were interesting enough, though I felt like fewer characters would’ve probably made the book a little less confusing. (I ended up just writing down all the names, and maybe this is just me having a bad memory for names, but I struggled a bit to keep all the characters in mind and how they were related to each other.)

Also: The cat truly was the star of this book. It’s not a big part of the book, but I loved how this fricking cat just kept appearing everywhere, seemingly immortal and capable of who knows what else.

Despite the confusion, I really enjoyed the book. This book is a dystopia, but it ends on a quite hopeful note, which I certainly needed after some of the more dire descriptions of the future this book imagines.

I was really drawn into this by the premise of the story but unfortunately I just could not get into the writing. It was confusing jumping back and forth between timelines and the writing style was so very different between the family reading the book and the story inside of the book. Also just given current events a lot of this made me feel pretty depressed - it wasn't what I was expecting.

Thank you to NetGalley, SparkPress, and G.G. Kellner for this digital advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, SparkPress, and G.G. Kellner for this digital advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was immediately drawn to this novel because of the black cat on the cover and the premise of a book falling through time.

I felt like the novel was written almost by two different authors. The Grandmother’s story was melodic, beautifully written, and flowed perfectly. It conveyed the message of urgency against climate change while always carrying a message of hope, peace, and recovery. The characters from the future had depth and personality. However, the juxtaposition between her story and the story of the family who discovers the futuristic book in the past is severely lacking. I could not connect with those characters at all, nor understand the family’s relationship to the book other than it showed up in their house. The constant switching between family members reading on their own messed with the reader’s ability to immerse themselves in the future’s “history”. We also learn very little about Hope, the cat, other than being a symbol if constancy throughout the story

I would recommend this book for those interested in Climate Fiction and clean/cozy fiction (there is no cursing or love scenes). It is definitely very light on the fantasy and I am not sure why it is marketed as women’s fiction, either. In a time when everyone is on edge with global problems, it does certainly offer a glimmer of hope towards our future.

Hope, a History of the Future by G.G. Kellner is the story of Game, Mia, Ruth and Little Bird. A family who have found a mysterious book in their house. The books publication date is 2200, a date in the future, and we journey through the mystical history of the book whilst this family read through.

This was not what I expected it to be. A science fiction, genre-bending story that turned out to be a fictional representation of morality and climate change that may have been marketed incorrectly. The story itself was a weak part of the book as the premise was incredibly interesting but fell short in every way possible. We go through each reader’s journey but the dialogue is predictable and demanding and did not go through the free-flow that was expected. There was an interacting formality that made this more character-driven that story-heavy and with an interesting premise such as this; was disappointing that the expectation wasn’t delivered.

Based in precedent and scientific prediction, this book gives a fictional taste of what our world could become, due to the current projections of our political and environmental climates.

On a quiet afternoon, a history book from the future lands in the Denzell household. Over the next 24 hours, the book appears to each member of the family and shows them an aspect of what the world will come to look like by the year 2200. The novel brings up thought-provoking ideas of what is past, present, and future in an interesting and creative way.

I enjoyed the inclusion of resources in this novel, such as the content pages, timelines, and appendix of referenced sources. Additionally, the narrative of the history book is compelling. My favourite part of this novel would be Plato, the cat.

Aside from the overall concept of the story and Plato, there was not a lot additionally that I enjoyed. The writing of the Denzell family was very much tell and not show, and their presence was little more than as the vehicle to tell the story of the history of the future. I found myself annoyed being pulled out of the history and back to the Denzell's. With that being said, the book is not poorly written. There is an audience out there for this style of writing; I am just not that audience.

Thank you to NetGalley and SparkPress for providing me with an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

This is a great book though I feel it may not be some peoples idea of a good read as it deals with some very dystopian areas. It is an intriguing concept and it is a book I have already recommended my schools library to get in. The story follows the book from the future that tells the story of global warming and the effects,
The story is very different to anything I have read before and will certainly make you think. Some of the areas are very American orientated but I learnt a lot about declarations etc that I had no idea about before and it certainly makes for an interesting read and gives a basis for some of the areas in the book.
It will not be everyone's idea of a pleasurable read but I certainly enjoyed it and recommend it.

Well. That was a lot.

Joyce discovers a book that seems to have appeared out of nowhere in the library full of items inherited from the previous owner.

It paints a dire picture of the earth’s future and she tries to hide it from her family until she’s processed it but the book or Plato, the cat that also came with the house, has other ideas.

Over the course of a day the entire family reads the tails of survivors int eh collapse of our planet from a book that seems to be from the future.

Can they prevent catastrophe with this warning?

This book isn’t one I would usually pick up but something about the description and the cover drew me in and although it took me a while to get into it, I’m really glad I was given the opportunity by NetGalley and Spark Press to read it.
I really liked the role Plato played in ensuring each member of the Denzell family read the mysterious book. Although, the Denzell family did feel a little uninteresting I appreciate their role in this story was to simply read the book. I also really liked the storyline of Mia, Gabe and Ruth.
The book was thought provoking as it really opened my eyes to the scary and endless possibilities of what could happen if we carry on treating the Earth and each other in the way we currently do.
Thank you NetGalley and Spark Press for the opportunity to read and review.

Not for me and not what I was expecting from the description. It is certainly not womens fiction and at this scary time, not a book I felt comfortable reading.

It was the black cat on the cover that first caught my attention and encouraged me to read this book. Plato did not mislead me. This fascinating book drew me in from the start and had me thinking about the present and wondering about what's to come in the future. I especially enjoyed how the Grandmother told the story of the future. Hope, a History of the Future is a page turned; add it to your to-read list. Thanks to author G.G. Kellner, SparkPress, and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

This book was not my cup of tea, but I do think the right readers are out there. First, this book is listed as SFF and women's fiction. Honestly, it's neither of those, and I think labeling it more accurately would help find the right readers for it. Technically it is speculative fiction, but truly the book should be classified as eco-fiction. It involves looking ahead at our world for what could happen if we don't do anything about climate change (as well as a few other things) and then how the world was reshaped after a great change.

The setup of the story is a family who finds this book mysteriously in their house, and each of them take turns reading it. The book has a publication date of 2200 (and the family is in a time close to our own) and appears to be about the future. So we read about this family and we read the book they are reading.

Honestly, the frame story is the weakest part of the book. This family doesn't really do anything. They are just the vehicle though which the reader gets to read this book from 2200. In fact, their dialogue is quite didactic and it feels more like they are lecturing the reader rather than being an actual family, though there are hints of characterization and relationships. It's just very shallow.

The story of Gabe, Mia, Ruth, and Little Bird was actually interesting. I would have preferred to leave the frame story out and just get more of their story. Had the book centered around that, I might have enjoyed it more.

One of the other reasons I didn't enjoy the story is that the point of view is third person omniscient. That means that we don't really get to dig deep into any of the characters and the actions and the few thoughts they have are more reported than shown. It means I didn't develop a connection to any of the characters, especially in the family in the frame story. I also realized toward the end that it seems like they didn't use contractions (I might have missed that since I didn't go back to check), which made their dialogue sound too formal and not like a family interacting.

I did really enjoy the cat(s) in the book. Very true to cat nature and possibly the most developed character(s).

When a mysterious book suddenly appears, a family finds themselves pulled into a tale from the future of adventure & survival. This book from the future hints at how survivors of climate change could create a more just and sustainable society. The novel tackles important questions about our future. The story within the found book was compelling and held my interest. The family reading the book was less interesting - except for their cat, who stole the show. I enjoyed this book and it made me think. However, it didn't feel polished and I wish that it had been better edited. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

It was hard in some ways to read this as the face of Europe changes once again. But also, there is never a better time to be thinking of what needs to fundamentally change so that universal means across the world, for all the people.

And it was good that the book contains poetry, is uplifting in parts, so that the view of our shared future is not purely dystopian.

The author has thought hard about rights and duties, philosophical concepts that are often missed in sound bites, hurry and avoidance of difficult subjects. She is to be commended for doing this in a poetic tale of true humanity.

I haven’t read a book in one sitting in quite a while, but this book captivated me and I couldn’t put it down! This story takes you on a journey through one family's discovery of a book that mysteriously makes its way into their lives. The book is dated from the future and the family members find themselves unable to stop reading about the world’s fate. This book is touching and makes you reflect on life as we know it.

Thank you Net Galley for the free. Switching between two timelines this book weaves two stories of the future and what lead up to it. Did not feel a close connection to the characters.

First of all, I'm a sucker for cat stories. Hope: A History of the Future, has a nice cat on the cover and several charming illustrations of the cat done by the author. When I first started to read, though, I feared the story might be a little too twee--the family in the present is too nice to each other, the people of the future are too nice. But, here's the thing. I found myself oddly compelled to keep reading. The people of the future went through a climatic change on the Earth and most didn't survive. They went through wars, climate change, racism and finally realized that that they have to get along to make any progress in the world. As I kept reading, I wondered why people can't get along.

The magical element of a book from the future falling from the air into a current-day family's house was fun. The cat who seems to move through time was fun. It is also nice to see a dystopian book have a hopeful ending.

Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read and review an eARC of Hope: A History of the Future.

In G.G. Kellner’s Hope, A History of the Future, a family in the present day year of 2037 mysteriously finds a book published in 2200. Each family member reads from this book titled A History of the Future in the constant looming presence of an equally mysterious cat. What unfolds in this future book is the story of survivors navigating a forever changed world.

Kellner has a wonderful imagination and her novel is a modern day parable that illustrates a lesson in humanity’s treatment of our earth. It is immediately evident that we are in the hands of an author that is very well versed in the realistic and plausible result of climate change. She paints a very clear and detailed picture of what has caused this now post apocalyptic world. Kellner uses scientific projections as well as historical documents to support her imagination which makes the story more realistic and believable. I very much enjoyed the adventures and characters within the history book.

The narrative from the family in 2037 acts as a segue way between the current modern times and a vision of the future marred by humanity’s choices. The foreshadowing stories are very detailed and well developed. However, I felt the present family’s story fell a little flat. At times the transitions read a little choppy and the characters and time period were underdeveloped. This is a short read that perhaps with more detail and polish could read more like an epic saga. It has a lot of potential and offers possibility to a sequel or to explore other characters from its world.

Overall this novel has an important and necessary message that the author successfully delivers. I would recommend this to a reader that can appreciate the fantasy elements in regards to the mystery of the history book and Plato the cat, as well as the science fiction of a future world.

3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this ARC.

A different type of read for me but I enjoyed it & will recommend it to others. Thanks for the opportunity to read & review this book.

AMAZING!! I love a book that makes me think. I love so much about this book it’s hard to begin. The title alone hooked me. The characters remind me of my own family. GRANDMOTHER is captivating and I felt like I was one of her villagers sitting around her listening to her stories. I love the cat but I was left feeling a bit confused about him. Maybe I missed a bit of the point. I also wish I knew more about Joyce’s neighbor and previous homeowner. All in all, I will recommend this many times over. I think it is a must read and a message that truly needs to be discussed more.