Articles by: Mary Woodbury

The Unworthy, Agustina Bazterrica

A searing, dystopian tale about climate crisis, ideological extremism, and the tidal pull of our most violent, exploitative instincts, this is another unforgettable novel from a master of feminist horror. Read More at Simon & Schuster.

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Dream State, Eric Puchner

Dream State explores several monumental themes—love, family, identity, human transience, climate change—but always with a scrupulous attention to the fate of individuals, and always with a powerful sense of intimate connection. . .a remarkable achievement.” Read more at Penguin Random House

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Elegy, Southwest, by Madeleine Watts

“This book is a fever dream, a mood, a spell, an entire climate filled with a particular kind of desert winter light— harsh, unsparing, and beautiful. Honestly, I feel that part of me is still actually living in the book. Tremendously moving.” -Leslie Jamison, New York Times bestselling author of […]

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Dark Matter Presents: The Off-Season, Marissa van Uden (Editor)

Dark Matter Presents The Off-Season: An Anthology of Coastal New Weird features twenty-five brand-new stories of disquieting and disturbing “New Weird” horror set in landscapes and communities on the edge of the sea. These unsettling stories de-familiarize the ordinary, evoke dread in the daylight, and haunt like half-remembered nightmares. They […]

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The Future, Naomi Alderman

“The Future couldn’t be more timely, or more welcome. It’s the book we need right now. It manages to be a persuasive, carefully thought-through manual for social and technological change, a roadmap to a better, greener, kinder tomorrow — a world that’s ours for the taking if we want it […]

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Help Support Dragonfly.eco!

This site has always been ad-free, free to read, and freely supports authors and their books via interviews and promotions. I do this because I enjoy the field of eco-literature and want to share it near and far. I have never had a grant, patreon, or kickstarter. This site is […]

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The Sleep of Reason, Rachel A. Rosen

Rachel A. Rosen’s debut novel, Cascade, has been described as magic realism, climate fantasy and, as its publisher prefers, fantasy that feels like science fiction. Set in a terrifying but all-too believable near future and leavened with a dry wit, Cascade features a cast of fully realized characters drawn into […]

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News and Events

Dragonfly has changed from Substack to Buttondown for our newsletter. Subscribe to read more news, and see our news archives here. Note that this newsletter is free. Donations are accepted, but nothing is behind a paywall. The January newsletter is out! Each month I post a recommended book or film […]

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Climate and Ecological Films

Eco-fiction isn’t limited to just the written word. It can include films and even games. Check back often, as I will update this post when new movies come out. This is just a sample listing, so if you think something should be included, please contact me. Most of these films […]

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Grist & Tory Stephens – Spotlight

About the Book Nearly a year ago, when helping to raise awareness of Grist’s Imagine 2022 Climate Fiction Contest winners, we talked with Tory Stephens, Grist’s Creative Manager of the Imagine 2200 initiative. Now we have exciting news about a new anthology, Metamorphosis, published by Milkweed Editions in 2024, curated […]

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World Eco-fiction Series

Welcome to the World Eco-fiction Series: Climate Change and Beyond. This spotlight series travels the planet exploring fictional stories close to natural landscapes and wildlife, often with environmental concerns. If you like this series, check out our article at Medium, “Around the World in 80 Books: A Guide to Ecological […]

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Rewilding our Stories (RoS) Discord

New: Join our 2025 book club! See details below about how to join the Discord and then check out the 2025 book club channel and our Storygraph challenge. Rewilding our Stories provides an inclusive, diverse, and safe space to explore the broad subjects of ecologically oriented fiction and creative nonfiction, […]

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Eco-Games

Thanks to so many wonderful game suggestions (primarily video games, but not all) from the Rewilding Our Stories community, we have a new eco-gaming section here at Dragonfly. While some games lean toward environmental lessons and strategize ways to reconstruct ecological systems, others beautifully immerse the player into an explorative […]

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Wild Dark Shore, Charlotte McConaghy

“At once a gripping mystery, an exquisitely written ode to the natural world, and a taut, psychological thriller, Wild Dark Shore is a triumph. Charlotte McConaghy is masterful in her ability to show the intricate connections between place and the human heart, and Wild Dark Shore shows her at the […]

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Gliff, Ali Smith

“An ingenious speculative novel … Smith makes the most of her protagonists’ youthful perspectives to bring a sense of wonder, inquisitiveness, and pathos to the story. The lush narrative doubles as an anthem of resistance, in this case against tyranny and the destruction of the environment. Inspired references to Charles […]

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