The Nobody People

June 24, 2019
A host of varied characters grapple with alienation and bigotry in this complex novel about the cost of being different. A few people have begun to manifest supernatural abilities such as telekinesis and bending time. Calling themselves Resonants, they establish a school where their children can be taught to master their powers. But when their existence is revealed to the world, ordinary humans react with fear, suspicion, and calls for their eradication. What distinguishes this effort by Proehl (A Hundred Thousand Words) from myriad other takes on this age-old trope is the book’s sharp, even uncomfortable awareness of the ways in which factors such as race, religion, and queerness would complicate and compound the bigotry such individuals face. The story is set in present-day New York and doesn’t shy from confronting the burgeoning trends of domestic terrorism, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of prejudice. The characters are intricately human, each rendered in minute and thoughtful detail that pushes back against stereotypes. Though the teetering tower of subplots and POV characters sometimes crashes into confusion, the book builds effectively to a brutally realistic, deeply tense, and worrying climax and leaves the reader eagerly awaiting the next installment. Agent: Seth Fishman, Gernert Company.