Schoenbrun’s first novel infinitely expands the world we’ve glimpsed through their films: We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, I Saw the TV Glow, and most recently Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma. Public Access Afterworld is an epic for the digital age; an absolute tome of speculative fiction with a wandering timeline (Oppenheimer makes an appearance), a cast of unreliable narrators, a trans final girl/Chosen One, and a sense of humor against all odds. Buckle up, losers! We’re going to the TV dimension.
Public Access Afterworld by Jane Schoenbrun, (List Price: $33, Hogarth, 9780593978382, October 2026)
Reviewed by Ryan, Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, NC