So one of the tricks of writing a novel set in the “near future” is that whatever reality you come up with should be relevant, conceivable, and interesting, and of course I hope I’ve pulled that off in my new novel The Bird Saviors. It opens with a pink snowstorm, a strange weather phenomenon that happens now and then (albeit rarely), when a snowstorm and dust storm collide. The recent heat and drought in the Midwest has several headlines about another Dust Bowl on various news sites, and one of the better ones appears here, on ThinkProgress.org. I totally agree with Joe Romm (head writer/organizer of ThinkProgress) that drought is much more of a threat with Global Warming than some of the other effects, such as rising sea levels. If you want a taste of just how bad drought can be, read Tim Egan’s The Worst Hard Time (2006). It’s a great read about the Dust Bowl Years, or drought of the 1930s, and will make anyone think twice about the possibility of another serious drought in the middle of the country.
And any time you mention the Dust Bowl, you have to add the obligatory Dorothea Lange photo. Here’s one of her on a car, driving around the country, taking pictures of Oaters and such.
