Queer Books | Alistair Mackay on his dazzling debut novel
It’s not every day that we see a South African, queer, dystopian-sci-fi novel hitting bookstore shelves. The fact that it’s also a gripping, poignant and timely book is further cause for celebration. It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way is Alistair Mackay’s first novel, and it’s making waves in the literary world; earning him rave reviews.
Set in Cape Town, it’s the story of three queer men who face the unravelling of the world in a cataclysmic climatic collapse.
Luthando’s environmental activism leads him to a clash with the government, while his life partner, Viwe, becomes embroiled in religious end-of-days fanaticism.
And their friend Malcolm is worried that his work in the technological augmentation of human memory is being used for sinister purposes.
