Interestingly written. Clear sense of style and interesting story. Might look into this author further, sophomore effort is strong and it would be interesting to see future ideas from this author.

This is a quietly devastating dystopian novel that explores what it means to nurture in a world built to consume. At the center is Camille, a zookeeper who continues to care for the last surviving animals in a society that has long since stopped valuing them, or anything vulnerable. Her devotion is rendered in poetic, deliberate prose that lingers in the intimate moments: feeding routines, silent companionship, and the slow erosion of institutional structure. The act of caretaking becomes an expression of feminist resistance, especially in the ultimate decision to sacrifice to save a crocodile, a creature emblematic of prehistoric endurance, misunderstood danger, and feminine rage.

The relationship between Camille and her friend Sailor adds nuance, modeling solidarity and chosen kinship in the absence of larger social stability. Their intimacy, both emotional and practical, challenges dominant narratives of individualism in apocalyptic fiction. Sloley’s vision of womanhood resists romantic tropes and instead centers survival through care, patience, and mutual reliance.

But the novel’s power is complicated by its insular whiteness. Camille’s world is quietly shaped by privilege: she had the resources and education to be a zookeeper, and even in the apocalypse, her inner world remains the primary lens. The narrative glosses over the colonial and racial legacies embedded in both zoos and dystopias, treating the island as an abstracted ruin without reckoning with whose land it might have been (with some superficial attempts - mention of the AIM protest on Alcatraz) or who never had the luxury to grieve the old world in peace. This absence is not just a missed opportunity; it limits the novel’s capacity to fully engage with the systemic forces it gestures toward.

In The Island of Lost Things, Emma Sloley imagines a future stripped of wildness, where the last animals on Earth are kept not in open fields but in converted prison cells on Alcatraz Island. Camille, a quiet and introspective zookeeper, tends to these creatures with devotion, employed by the continent’s elite to preserve what little remains of a once-vibrant natural world.

When Sailor arrives from the shuttered Paris Zoo, she brings not only a new presence to the island, but also a dangerous kind of hope. Together, she and Camille drift through the nighttime corridors of the zoo, sharing whispered stories and half-remembered dreams. But Sailor has a plan—to smuggle animals off the island in search of rumored freedom. The question is: will Camille risk the fragile safety of her quiet life for the possibility of something real and wild beyond the walls?

Eerie, tender, and steeped in melancholy, this novel asks what it means to preserve life, and what we lose when we stop believing in the wild altogether.

#flatironbooks #emmasloley #theislandoflostthings #feliz #dystopianfiction #climatenovels #debutnovel2025

Set in a near future where most animals have been killed off by disease and the air is barely breathable for humans, The Island of Last Things tells the story of two keepers working at the world's one remaining zoo.

Quiet Camille has worked on Alcatraz Island for nine years. She isn't thrilled that the zoo is primarily kept afloat financially by catering to ultra-wealthy tourists, but she cares deeply for the animals and sincerely believes in conservationism. On one momentous day, two new inhabitants arrive and completely alter the environment of the zoo: an elephant bull who will provide companionship and possibly mate with Alcatraz's other pachyderm, and Sailor, a rule-flouting keeper from the Paris Zoo.

Despite their personality differences, the two women soon become close friends. Camille isn't always comfortable with how Sailor pushes the envelope at the zoo, but she knows that Sailor shares her passion for animal welfare. However, Camille doesn't know the true circumstances of Sailor's arrival at Alcatraz, and has been largely sheltered from the dangers of the outside world. Sailor, desperate with the hope of finding a fabled animal sanctuary, takes advantage of Camille's naivete to achieve her aims.

A quiet novel that explores ethics, desperation, and connection at the end of the world, The Island of Last Things builds to a dramatic conclusion that will leave readers reeling and, despite everything, hopeful.

I listened to this on audio and found Suzy Jackson’s narration excellent. She captures Camille’s quiet sincerity and Sailor’s restless energy with precision, which is critical to keeping the book’s emotional core intact.

If you’re looking for hard sci-fi dystopia, this isn’t quite that. Instead, this is a contemplative, immersive character study about what happens when people (and animals) are backed into corners – and what it means to reach for something better, even if it’s risky, even if it’s foolish. Like the jaguar pacing its enclosure, Sailor cannot abide confinement, and Camille discovers she may not want to either.

Recommended for readers who love quietly propulsive stories, layered ethical quandaries, and deeply observed character work – especially those who don’t mind putting the book down to let it linger before picking it up again.

𝐀 𝐬𝐨𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐳𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐳𝐨𝐨 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝.

𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌: The Island of Last Things
𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓: Emma Sloley
𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: 4.5 stars

I was incredibly immersed in the world that Sloley created in The Island of Last Things. The book is reflective, brimming with life where there is hardly any left, and moving. The main character Camille and Sailor became so important to me as I followed their story alongside the animals at the world’s last zoo. As I read the book I found myself reflecting on books such as 𝘋𝘰 𝘈𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘰𝘪𝘥𝘴 𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘚𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘱? and 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 because there is such an underlying warning within this novel. A mass outbreak has lead to almost every plant and animal on earth being wiped out. They are kept in a ‘sanctuary’ which plays along a fine line between actual conservatorship and a money grab for the final wealthy few left in a crumbling world. I could not put this story down and you won’t be able to either!! One of the most intriguing endings I have read in a while- it will leave you speechless. The writing is detailed and immersive, the characters three-dimensional, and the animals touched my heart. Sloley has crafted an incredible story that will not soon leave me!!

The setting and the devastating climate and last of the animals was so beautifully done and i felt like those were strong aspects of the book but I felt like the characters were a little lacking and not as strong. Was heartbreaking and definitely for readers of Charlotte McConaghy.

The premise of this story is so good – there was a blight, animals are actually going extinct, and Alcatraz is the last zoo. That sounded SO interesting, but there was next to no world building outside of the zoo. They mention the blight, carrying branded inhalers, and at various times reference how different the world is compared to present day, but there was just not enough building given the number of times the outside world is referenced. I did enjoy when there was exposition about the animals and how they used to be, pre-blight. Talking about the miracle of petting a cat, for example, really does make you pause and think about the animals we see every day.

That being said – overall, I'm just meh about this book. I thought there were so many opportunities to really create something unique and instead it was just sort of a sloooooooow moving journey with not as much going on as the blurb would have you believe. The ending for one character SHOCKED me, but the ending for the other felt, again, meh. It was just kind of like okay, it's over now. The end. Which I did not love.

Solid 2.5 stars.