What We Can Know
By Ian McEwan

Ian McEwan is a wonderful writer. His way with words is a gift. But at times his words become so dense that reading his books is akin to climbing to the top of a steep mountain. For me, this book is like that.

The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world in 2119. Thomas Metcalfe is a middle-aged man who, with his wife Rose, is attempting to solve the mystery behind a poem called "Corona for Vivien", written by a famous poet in 2014 in honor of his wife. Francis Blundy, the poet, has presented this gift to his Vivien at a dinner party celebrating her birthday. There is only one copy of this poem. The fact is that, after the reading at that dinner party, no one has seen, heard or read the poem ever again. Ironically the poem's acclaim resides in its anonymity.

Tom and Rose are teachers in a college whose students are rather substandard. This is due in part because the world's peoples have been destroying each other – and the natural world – for hundreds of years. There was global warming; the rise of AI; the improvements in weaponry – all of which contributed to the devastation of the natural world. These students, not knowing the world they have missed out on, have decided they don't want to know about the past. Only about what they have now.

But Tom is still engaged in the hunt for the "Corona". His search is reminiscent of the searches for the Yeti or Bigfoot. Trying to prove the existence of what may not exist is a thankless job.

Here Mr. McEwan's point is made. We can only know what we have been exposed to, what we search for – what we long for. Tom talks about the disadvantages to the reborn world they now inherit. No war, the rebirth of other species, being protected from the tumultuous ideas of the past that have been lost. And yet, and yet…there is no diversity of race and very little exchange of opposing ideas. So what is it we are willing to give up in order to live in a peaceful – one might say boring – world?

Tom is a hybrid of sorts. He still longs for knowledge which may be forever lost. But he is still willing to search. And his search will lead him to the unexpected.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

The first third of the book dragged a bit and felt disorganized, but it picked up after, with part two being devastating and raw. Ian McEwan does an amazing job portraying the sanitation of our lives in social media/public record juxtaposed with reality. Climate change progression is neatly woven throughout the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the ARC!

I have not read other works by Ian McEwan, so can't compare. "What we can know" blends two timelines following future researchers as they are trying to find a lost poem from 100 years prior. They make suppositions based on what is known about the events from the past, just like researchers do now sometimes (although there is a discussion of hewing closer to known facts between the future researchers, it is not a major conflict). And then we get to find out what actually happened in the second half of the book.

My experience has been similar to other readers, where the second half is what I really wanted to read, my favorite being the relationship between Vivien and Percy and its progression. The first half or so (60%?) felt like a framing device rather than a valid story of its own. I did not care about the future researchers, things that troubled their personal and professional lives did not move me (student walkout episode felt bizarre). I would have much preferred the book if the framing part had been cut down to 20-30% of the book at most. If this wasn't an ARC, I would have stopped reading about 30% mark.

Climate change feels like it should be a big part of the plot. It is mentioned frequently. The effects of it are seen in the first part of the book and affect the availability of information to our "intrepid" future researchers. And yet it feels like a deep background character that does not matter more than a wallpaper pattern might. It's just setting the scene.

There is something very enigmatic about Ian McEwans's writing that the stories stay with you long after you've finished the book and that is a rare feat for an author to achieve.

Set 150 years in the future against the backdrop of climate change that has ravaged most of the world, but yet civilization continues on its merry old journey, we're introduced to a historian and professor who is obsessed with locating a lost poem that has become a sort of holy grail in terms of modern poetry even though only one copy was said to ever exist and a handful of people only ever heard its words spoken.

The title of the book, What We Can Know explores that idea that we only know what we know from history with the information left behind, be it journals, photographs, emails, etc. However, journals can lie either outright or through admission, emails can be scrubbed of information that someone does not want found. Archives can be curated so only the best intentions of whomever leaves it behind are highlighted while the more damning information is destroyed or buried. Even though I could not stand most of the characters in this novel, for one reason or another, the themes throughout resonated with me. I think back to how often we delete poor photographs of ourselves on our digital cameras or use filters to show us in the best possible light. How when I write journal entries, I make sure to omit how I am really feeling because I don't want my family in the future to see themselves in a poor light in my eyes or judge any questionable decisions I may have made. We all create an image for future generations to venerate, but the reality of our lives is usually much darker and colder.

A few of the problems I had with the main characters was the fact that everyone seemed to have affairs without a care in the world - everyone. These are not just hidden love affairs, but just simply affairs for sexual sake. When I mean every character has an affair. Every. Single. Character has an affair if not more. I also took issue when some of the extensive vocabulary that Vivian uses in her casual emails. I come from a very educated, erudite family and no one talks like that outside of a formal essay. To me, the elitist sounding correspondence just did not seem realistic, even for a couple that quotes poetry to one another every other sentence (which, again - seems exaggerated beyond belief).

The beauty of McEwans's writing, however is that you don't have to love his characters to love the novel, as clearly is the case here. I would highly recommend this one for anyone who loves his previous works, but also those who love a good piece of literary fiction. Do not let the fact that it is set in the future make you think that it is a science fiction book, because it most certainly is not. McEwan uses it as a literary technique to show how future historians will research people living today and how things don't really change that much in 150 years. Humans are still going to human.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ian McEwan, and Knopf for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

I found that the story is difficult to follow. The story takes place in the future and the main character is reading through journals written by a poet and his wife. The writing is dry and boring. The author takes a while to get to the point.

Alternating between 2014 and 2119, Booker-wining McEwan tells the story of a love poem by an important author written to his wife, read at a dinner and then lost, and the attempt over 100 years later to discover that poem and its backstory. But that search reveals love affairs and a vicious crime, which permeate and challenge the protagonist’s views of those involved. A literary mystery that is a worthy read.

I’ve loved the other McEwan books that I’ve read, but I had a very hard time picking up this book. To be honest, if it wasn’t an ARC, I would have been tempted to DNF. McEwan is a beautiful writer, but I had a very hard time connecting to the characters in the first half, and the pacing of the novel felt so off. The first half is painfully drawn out and it takes entirely too long for the narrator to convince the reader to care about the poem. While the subliminal messaging of the novel is very important, now more than ever, it was lost in my frustration of the book formatting and slow pace. Thank you Netgalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately I had to put down this book when I was 25% of the way through. I found the style of the writing too hard to connect with. I have enjoyed other books by McEwan and books that feel structurally and tonally similar like “Cloud Cuckoo Land” but I just couldn’t get into this one. However, I have read many glowing reviews from other readers so I think I am just in the minority here.

This was my first book by this author and I didn’t really know what to expect going in. The title and the blurb intrigued me. However that was as far as it went for me. The novel was not bad or poorly written. I just did not connect with the book.

If you love literary fiction and/or consider yourself to be a literary scholar you are going to love this novel! Divided between “now-ish” and 2119, the chapters flip between timelines with constant character shifts providing multiple points of view. In 2014, a very elaborate poem was read at a dinner among friends, only to never been seen again. In 2119, a scholar navigates a physical world transformed by climate change and laments his students’ inability to read an entire book. He devotes his academic life to researching the poet, his wife, their friends, and the missing poem. The novel shows exactly how easily great works can potentially be lost in the future, by well-intended preservation techniques, unknowable climate catastrophes, or strategic human interactions. Absolutely brilliant!

Admirably written, this book is a conversation piece as much of it relates to our world today. Ian McEwan winds you up with his words and then releases you with your head spinning trying to make sense of it. It’s truly unforgettable.

You may think you’re reading a story of a couple of professors in 2119 who were interested in a famous poet, Francis Blundy, living in the Oxford area. Thomas and Rose wanted to know whatever happened to the only copy of a poem he presented in 2014 to his wife, Vivien, for her 54th birthday party with eight close friends.

Yet, there was so much more taking the reader into the past with the effects of climate change, trade wars, destruction from nuclear bombs and discrimination. The world still existed in a much different form. McEwan wasn’t as harsh as I would have thought theorizing the possibilities that could have happened but he depicted the heaviness of greed and power without pointing fingers.

I think just about everyone reading this can relate to some part of the story. The reader gets to know quite well the guests from the dinner party with all their affairs and lifestyles. However, I was focused on Vivien’s first husband Percy who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Her life as a caretaker had me glued to the pages. I could feel her sheer exasperation.

There are two parts and there’s much that gets repeated in the process. But it works giving the reader an intense journey. I ended up writing down a lot of the passages. It’s a book you can read several times and get something different out of it with each visit.

My thanks to Alfred A. Knopf and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of September 23, 2025.

In McEwan's novel, perception itself becomes a fragile lens, shattering our most fundamental assumptions about reality.

Structured in two distinct parts, the story unfolds as a carefully constructed puzzle. The first section builds context methodically, while the second part delivers shocking revelations. Though the initial pacing tested my patience, the mystery of the missing poem became my obsessive companion.

McEwan masterfully paints lives with extraordinary depth. The poet's wife's story emerges as a haunting, unexpected revelation that exposes the limits of human perception.

The novel's brilliance lies in its exploration of hidden narratives. It's a meditation on knowledge's fragility, culminating in a conclusion so unexpected that it left me questioning everything I thought I understood.

While I appreciate the story's intellectual complexity, its deliberate pace challenged my engagement.

For those who cherish narrative depth, this book is a profound journey into the uncharted territories of human experience—a stark reminder that truth is rarely simple.

Thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for this advance review copy. My thoughts remain entirely my own.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this copy of the e-arc!

Sadly the formatting of this piece was very difficult to read on my kindle. I’m not sure what happened there but it definitely resulted in my lack of immersion and interest. The premise seemed so interesting but the authors writing style was a bit difficult to keep up with. I did not finish this book sadly.

Another excellent book from McEwan, in which the first half is devoted to scholars living in a (fascinating and quite honestly kind of beguiling) post climate-catastrophe world, one of whom is desperate to find a lost poem by a 20th century poet, while dealing with complicated relationships, teaching, archives, and the world in general. The second half is a memoir by the wife of said poet, whose work--when discovered--beautifully upends loads of assumptions made by the scholar and tells a wrenching story of loves of all kinds gone wrong. The characters and world are very real and layered and if not exactly sympathetic, at least very interesting and with compelling things to say. The lost poem/a country recently made into islands/the hunt is always appealing to me, and it's unique and tantalizing to read about. Top marks.

This was an engaging and well-written book that kept my interest throughout. The author delivered strong ideas and storytelling, with memorable moments that made it stand out. While there were a few areas that could have been expanded or polished further, overall it was an enjoyable and worthwhile read. I would recommend it to others looking for a thoughtful and rewarding experience.

Similar to what others said, I could not finish this. The galley was also in a format that makes it hard to read on a kindle. Thank you for the review copy though!

When I started reading this, I felt like it was not the right book that I needed in that moment. By the time I passed the 40% mark the story had dug its claws into me. The writing is beautiful and the introspection of it all reminds me slightly of ‘Remains of the Day.’ This one surprised me.

I hate to say it, but I couldn't finish it. The writing style was just too difficult for me to get into for some reason. I had high hopes for this, but just couldn't do it.

I am shocked at myself for this one but I couldn't finish it. The galley copy was formatted distractingly bad, and the book itself was so slow it wasn't holding my attention. I feel like it advertised itself as suspenseful but it didn't have the same grip I expected. I normally love books by McEwan but this wasn't a win for me.

I am not sure if it was the copy I received or if my Kindle corrupted it, but I was unable to read it due to the formatting. Some pages came in with single letters on them and others had no spaces between words. I tried to stick it out to read through, however it was hard to keep up with the plot.