Home

'Home' is work of fiction for older children. It is set in an American post apocalyptic landscape and, through the voices of its two young narrators, demonstrates the redemptive power of a relationship with the natural world. It draws its themes from the ecological writings of James Lovelock, Richard Mabey and Richard Louv. 'Home' borders on the territory of both science and eco fiction but differs from both genres. Although, like much science fiction, set in the future, the world of 'Home' is low tech. In 'Home' technology is solely controlled by the ruling class, technological advance has ceased and the rulers' promises of technology-based redemption have become redundant. This scenario allowed Davies to focus on her characters, without the distractions of pseudo science, and created a clear allegory of the place of science and technology in present day society, where ordinary people are alienated from scientific knowledge. In children's 'eco fiction' young protagonists often avert ecological disaster. In 'Home' the ecological disaster has happened and the Earth has saved itself, irrespective of human help. This offers readers a new, far less sentimental and less anthropocentric view of the natural world and their place in it.