This Great Hemisphere - by Mateo Askaripour

Book Synopsis

"A thrilling page-turner."--Brit Bennett, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Wildly imaginative."--The Washington Post

"Askaripour soars."--The Boston Globe

A rallying cry for anyone who has ever felt invisible. A powerful, captivating novel about how far we'll go to protect the ones we love, and what happens when we resist the narratives others write about us.

Welcome to the Northwestern Hemisphere, 2529. An equally exciting and terrifying world born from the ashes of our own, where almost half of people are born invisible, and thus relegated to second-class citizenship. Sweetmint, a young invisible woman, has done everything right her entire life, from excelling in school to landing a highly sought-after apprenticeship with a mysterious, powerful inventor. But all she has fought so hard to earn comes crashing down when she learns that her missing brother, whom she had presumed dead, is not only alive and well but also the primary suspect of a high-profile political murder.

Armed with nothing more than courage, intellect, and unwavering love for her brother, Sweetmint sets off on the mission of a lifetime: to find her brother before it's too late. With five days until the hemisphere's big election, Sweetmint must evade and outsmart all who aim to destroy her and her people, braving a world full of hard truths that many would rather remain hidden.

Review Quotes

Named One of the Best Books of the Year by NPR and Boston Globe

Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2024 by People, Elle, New York Post, Oprah Daily, The Root, New Scientist, Ebony, Screen Rant, Betches, Book Riot, Literary Hub, CrimeReads, Gizmodo, She Reads, Psychopomp, Maris Review, Parade, Well-Read Black Girl, Transfer Orbit, and Daily Kos

An Amazon Book of the Month

"A masterful mashup of two time-tested literary genres: the quest to return to family and home and a propulsive, pulse-pounding, twisty political thriller. In both of these dimensions, Askaripour soars . . . The narrative has a forceful momentum and love emerges as the most powerful force in this relentlessly page-turning novel."
--The Boston Globe

"A wonderful Russian nesting doll of a novel, This Great Hemisphere is futuristic, dystopian speculative fiction with a wildly inventive and thoughtful allegory of race at the center. It's also a moving saga about love and family, as well as a twisty political thriller . . . [An] incredibly original story."
--NPR, Best Books of the Year

"This futuristic dystopian thriller is creative soul food for the revolution. Both a quest story and an astute political thriller about power and identity, Askaripour's sophomore novel is radically inventive, delivering the intellectual heft, emotional power, and much needed diversion we need post-election....This novel's emotional punch comes from the depth of the character but also from the specificity and vividness of the heroine Sweetmint's struggles. Using invisibility as a metaphor for race, the author delivers a forceful epic about love and family wrapped in a twisty political thriller."
--The Emancipator, Best Radical Books of 2024

"Wildly imaginative and often wondrously lush. Askaripour traces the perils of racial betrayal and the rewards of collusion with the point of a bloodied knife."
--Ron Charles, The Washington Post

"This Great Hemisphere is a sprawling speculative-fiction narrative that tackles racism, classism, and the perpetual power struggle of politics. But it also delivers a heartwarming story about a young woman learning to navigate the world . . . Askaripour possesses a powerful imagination, and it is in full display . . . Rich, multilayered, [with] some dazzling passages."
--Gabino Iglesias, NPR

"A brilliant adventure . . . I loved everything about this novel. It had my heart pounding at times. It made me think. It made me consider concepts like family and genetics and destiny. I want everyone to read it!"
-- Danielle Prescod for PopSugar, "10 Black Authors Share Their Favorite Books by Fellow Black Writers"

"A cinematic epic."
--People

"With remarkable world-building, Askaripour takes readers on a vast and winding adventure through a future split by hemispheres, visibility, and power."
--Elle, "The Best New Books to Read in Summer 2024"

"[An] engrossing epic."
--New York Post

"A rollicking read, just like his debut."
--Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor, "Amazon's Most Anticipated Books of Summer"

"A big, juicy speculative epic--part thriller, part mystery, part adventure, part SF yarn, part social satire, part allegory of colonialism."
--Literary Hub, "Most Anticipated Books of 2024"

"Fans of speculative fiction will love This Great Hemisphere . . . a gripping novel."
--The Root, "July 2024 Books By Black Authors We Can't Wait to Read"

"The divided world of The Great Hemisphere allows for a thought-provoking [and] fast-paced story as Sweetmint is pulled into a dangerous mystery . . . As Askaripour's novel follows her through this chaos, the author explores the ways that society's concept of reality can be manipulated."
--Screen Rant, "10 Most-Anticipated Sci-Fi Books Coming Out In July 2024"

"An eye-opening dystopian adventure set in a future world."
--Ebony, "Get Lit! Black Authors to Read in July"

"The page-turning prose and standout characters will appeal to a wide range of readers. Part sf adventure, part mystery, part social satire, this is a vividly imagined and captivating story."
--Booklist *starred review*

"This energetic, speculative deconstruction of colonialism feels like watching an expert put together a 1000-piece jigsaw."
--Publishers Weekly

"Propulsive... A page-turning vision of a future made all too plausible by our volatile present."
--Kirkus

"Part political thriller and part sci-fi, This Great Hemisphere similarly explores the allure of power and the lengths people go to gain and retain it, but it's also a story about rebellion, resilience and the strength to shape your own future."
--BookPage

"A stunning and compelling work of social justice speculative fiction."
--Library Journal (starred)

"This Great Hemisphere is an inventive and immersive epic that follows its brave invisible protagonist as she navigates a futuristic new world that often mirrors our own. A thrilling page-turner."
--Brit Bennett, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Vanishing Half

"This Great Hemisphere is a boldly imaginative sophomore novel from Askaripour. Too few writers have the courage to dream this big."
--Jason Mott, National Book Award-winning author of Hell of a Book

"This Great Hemisphere is a tense, urgent exploration of power in all its forms and how it corrupts. It's a story of America and subjugation and hope and all the things some may choose not to see. An allegory reminiscent of Colson Whitehead's Intuitionist and Zone One, this one will keep your brain churning long after you've finished it."
--Yume Kitasei, author of The Stardust Grail

"Mateo Askaripour's This Great Hemisphere is a wildly imaginative novel, bursting with cinematic fervor. The world-building here is meticulous and astounding. The characters are so well-realized that they haunt the heart, motivate the mind, and shake the soul. The story itself strikes the perfect balance between wisdom and warning. I can't help but to think that the spirit of the great prophet Octavia Butler hovers over This Great Hemisphere. And quiet as it's kept, Mateo Askaripour just might be that level of oracle, too. This is a fiery must-read."
--Robert Jones, Jr., author of The New York Times bestselling novel, The Prophets, a finalist for the National Book Award

About the Author

New York Times bestselling author Mateo Askaripour wants people to feel seen. His first novel, Black Buck, takes on racism in corporate America with humor and wit. Askaripour was chosen as one of Entertainment Weekly's "10 rising stars to make waves," and Black Buck was a Read with Jenna Today show book club pick. Most recently, he was named as a recipient of the National Book Foundation's "5 Under 35" prize. This Great Hemisphere is his second novel. He lives in Brooklyn. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter at @AskMateo.