Reading 'Red Clocks' While Reproductive Rights Are Under Attack

[Bustle]

Red Clocks is set in a near-future America where abortion rights are non-existent. In real life, abortion rights are very much under attack: Alabama signed into law a near-total ban on abortion, and four states have passed bills restricting access to abortions.

In an interview with Bustle, author Leni Zumas says, "I wanted to imagine an ordinary, unspectacular version of what might happen in the wake of these new laws. The characters are sort of just chugging along in their lives, when they realize — with growing horror — that their lives have changed. One of the superpowers of fiction is that it puts the reader inside the experience of a law’s consequences."

What has been your experience reading this novel as state governments attempt to restrict abortion rights? Do you think books like this can make a difference? Has it opened your eyes to a new experience of the world?