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    Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance
    Unavailable
    Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance
    Unavailable
    Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance
    Audiobook5 hours

    Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance

    Written by Bill McKibben

    Narrated by Danny Campbell

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    "I hope no one secedes, but I also hope that Americans figure out creative ways to resist injustice and create communities where everybody counts. We've got a long history of resistance in Vermont and this book is testimony to that fact."
    —Bernie Sanders

    A book that's also the beginning of a movement, Bill McKibben's debut novel Radio Free Vermont follows a band of Vermont patriots who decide that their state might be better off as its own republic.

    As the host of Radio Free Vermont--"underground, underpowered, and underfoot"--seventy-two-year-old Vern Barclay is currently broadcasting from an "undisclosed and double-secret location." With the help of a young computer prodigy named Perry Alterson, Vern uses his radio show to advocate for a simple yet radical idea: an independent Vermont, one where the state secedes from the United States and operates under a free local economy. But for now, he and his radio show must remain untraceable, because in addition to being a lifelong Vermonter and concerned citizen, Vern Barclay is also a fugitive from the law.

    In Radio Free Vermont, Bill McKibben entertains and expands upon an idea that's become more popular than ever--seceding from the United States. Along with Vern and Perry, McKibben imagines an eccentric group of activists who carry out their own version of guerilla warfare, which includes dismissing local middle school children early in honor of 'Ethan Allen Day' and hijacking a Coors Light truck and replacing the stock with local brew. Witty, biting, and terrifyingly timely, Radio Free Vermont is Bill McKibben's fictional response to the burgeoning resistance movement.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateNov 7, 2017
    ISBN9780525523239
    Unavailable
    Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance
    Author

    Bill McKibben

    Bill McKibben is the author of The End of Nature (1989), the first book on the climate crisis written for a general audience, and his work appears regularly in many periodicals, from The New Yorker to Rolling Stone. He founded 350.org, the first grassroots global climate-change awareness campaign, and, more recently, Third Act, organizing for progressive action with people over age sixty. He serves as the Schumann Distinguished Scholar in Environmental Studies at Middlebury College. His newest book, forthcoming in 2022 from Macmillan, is The Flag, the Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened.

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    Reviews for Radio Free Vermont

    4/5

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    • 5/5
      Just GREAT! This was so appealing in these crazy times in which we live---I loved the characters and the story, fable though it is, felt as though it was a description of real people doing real things. Bill McKibben continues to be a true hero of our times with his environmental concerns.
    • 5/5
      As a Vermonter, I really appreciated McKibben's local references. There is a lot of chatter here about independence or joining Canada - all in good fun. And I wish that Sylvia's school for newcomers actually existed. This is a fast, funny read.
    • 5/5
      Welcome to Vermont in the winter of 2017. Donald Trump has been elected president, the winters are more midatlantic mudfest than snowy paradise, and the strange, unique state of Vermont seems more and more in danger of becoming just another bland American state. Enter Vern Barclay, 70 year old radio show host and current leader of a quiet underground movement seeking a free, independent republic of Vermont. Vern comes into his activism more by accident than by malicious intent, but before he knows it, he has become the leader of a movement dedicated to keeping Vermont small, fair, weird, beautiful, and free.As a University of Vermont alumna and as a former resident of the state, I always enjoy reading stories focused on my former home. McKibben has created a small, odd tale of resistance that mirrors the small, odd state of its setting. Even when I lived in Vermont (which is about a decade ago, now), you could walk into a restaurant and know exactly where the food you were eating came from. Vermont was a localvore haven long before the word was invented. The state is home to way more microbreweries and distilleries than you think you may need. The funky, friendly, live-and-let-live attitude of the majority of the state means that you can have your hippy-dippy Subaru and co-op grocery, and your handguns too. Add to all this the fact that Vermont, being small yet mighty, has made overtures of independence and succession in the past. In fact, one area of the state, called the Northeast Kingdom gets its name from an unsuccessful attempt at sovereignty when the country was young.What we have in Radio Free Vermont is an uplifting (though very, very white) story of resistance Vermont style, involving calm discussion, reasoned arguments, lots of local beer, minor property damage, cross country skiers, and no violence. This is a resistance with an undercurrent of subtle Yankee humor. This is a resistance of the intimately local, and of neighborly cooperation. It is not loud, or violent, but it is the spark of something beautiful and funny that helps light the darkness of our current times.An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for an honest review.
    • 4/5
      Described as a fable, this novel tells the tale of Vern Barclay, well-known Vermont radio personality, who has joined forces with a young computer whiz to promote the secession of Vermont from the union. They go into hiding to broadcast their messages of subversion, and are joined by two women, and then followed by thousands as their message continues to resonate. The more popular they become, the more dangerous their situation, since the governor is threatened enough to declare that they are terrorists. With great humor and fondness for his characters, McKibben strikes just the right chord of dissatisfaction leading to action, certainly an important message for our times. Highlighting some of Vermont's best beers adds to the fun.
    • 3/5
      Fun story, but I truly did not get the fable part, even with the author's explanation, I think because of the ending.
    • 4/5
      Vern, Perry, Sylvia, and Trance give us options for resistance in troubled times. Thanks for this fable Bill McKibben and these humorous, quirky, intelligent characters!
    • 5/5
      Take E.F. Schumacher's Small is beautiful, Ernest Callenbach's Ecotopia, Kirkpatrick Sale's Bioregionalism, Sinclair Lewis' It Can't Happen Here, some Edward Abbey-style monkeywrenching, Vonnegut-style zany, a big dose of Hunter S. Thompson gonzo, all backed with McKibben's deep knowledge of the climate-changing environment, his Cassandra-voiced warnings, and his deep love for the people and state of Vermont. Scrape away the hopelessness of our political era and this book gets you wondering... "Maybe I should start a podcast?" Slapstick for the serious-minded.
    • 4/5
      I was very lucky to live most of my life in small towns. Reading Radio Free Vermont was a reminder of why I love those towns. People who are there for you no matter what you do, even if you start a revolution accidentally. Those life long friends will be there to hide you when you are wanted for terrorism (really?) and when you need to be broken out of jail. They will even let you set their houses on fire all for a good cause.

      I enjoyed the antics of Vern, Perry and his initial revolution move: literally turning Walmart into a crapper- it was such good writing that I even plugged my nose and wanted to gag reading the actions of Perry's sewer warfare; Sylvia, Trance, and even Vern's mother kept me entertained through out this "fable". Where would Vern be without good friends?

      Sometimes you just have to start a resistance; a rebellion and make people think. Do they want largess, or do they want to continue to know their neighbors, chit chat, have a great howdy when you walk down the street and have someones back, or do you want strangers, supplies from some other state or do you want your own products when you provide some of the best in your own area? Capitalism, big corporate take overs and largess, doesn't sound great looking through Vern's eyes.

      Bill Mckibben's quality writing kept me laughing and leg slapping the whole way through his "fable" at the same time as causing me to think about what I want to protect in my little corner of the nation.

      I appreciate the opportunity to read this book before it is published. I thank Penguin First to Read for that chance in lieu of my honest review.

      I give this book a 4 for a little bit of reality and a whole lot of great writing!
    • 5/5
      The writers of the reviews I've read have taken McKibben at face value in this piece of fiction, supposing that he's endorsing secession (and quickly moving on to mention the significant ethical considerations of such a pathway). After listening to a few interviews with McKibben on the subject, I can assure you that he has no such agenda. It's better to think of this book as a dark night of the soul of sorts, or a flight of fancy.If you've ever heard McKibben speak, you'll remember how he begins by rattling off a list of the latest disasters around the globe related to climate change. He's a driven and seemingly-tireless man. I couldn't think of a more "presidential" human. And yet, even such luminary must occasionally have a little fun, and this is where "Radio Free Vermont" comes in.As you might have guessed from the title, this book is about a resistance movement in Vermont, a secessionist resistance movement. It's also a book about craft beer, biathlon (cross-country skiing and shooting), and Vermont history, culture, and spirit.I found it both riveting and fun, if a little unbelievable at points. It hit close to home, as I have many Vermont ties, and like to romanticize the place.Expectedly, there was an undertone of Global Weirding—a strong sense of nostalgia for the magic and rejuvenating powers of winter, and the ways they've been mortally wounded by our relentless "progress."There are some dark undertones to the text; the protagonists are classified as a "terrorist cell," and the FBI and security contractors are deployed to eliminate them, which felt like a Margaret Atwood attitude. That said, McKibben would be in a better place than most to guess as to what sort of how our government might escalate force against its own citizens, especially in this fascist age of Trump.If you like Vermont, if you like McKibben, or you're just a little rebellious around the edges, you'll have a lot of fun with this book.
    • 5/5
      Radio Free Vermont stands as proof that resistance can be accomplished in a positive and clever manner which I found encouraging in our current depressing and frustrating time. Radio talk show host Vern Barclay creates a new underground radio show – Radio Free Vermont, “underground, underpowered, and underfoot.” While supporting the idea that Vermont citizens might be better off seceding, Barclay’s true mission is advocating for a better future. Through Radio Free Vermont, he cleverly and at times hilariously argues for solutions to climate change, education, and the importance of small town communities and buying local. He and his band of revolutionaries take over the broadcast system at a local Starbucks, switch out Coors for local beer on a delivery truck, and enlist their followers to pick the best theme song for their resistance. I loved the shout out to Paul Harvey, the king of radio talk show hosts, and the references to soul music from the 1960’s and 1970’s. As a music lover, I enjoyed learning more about the non-Motown music from that era and revisiting songs that I haven’t listened to in a while. McKibben packs so much into this short but fabulous gem of a novel.Radio Free Vermont is a joy to read from beginning to end and provides a positive example of effective resistance that is devoid of name-calling and dishonesty. Instead, McKibben encourages those wanting to work toward a better future instead of protecting large corporations and the very rich, perpetuating cycles of poverty, and ruining the climate for future generations. Thanks to Blue Rider Press and NetGalley for this very worthwhile and timely ARC.