You're listening to Shortwave from NPR.

To me, great sci-fi writing isn't about predicting the future.

It's about how the world could be.

And Station 11 is great sci-fi writing.

The book was published by Emily St. John Mandel back in 2014.

But the premise may sound eerily similar today.

In the book, a catastrophic flu outbreak has devastated the world.

In the aftermath, the survivors are forced to decide how to rebuild what's been lost.

It's a story about stitching together society in a post-pandemic world and how the right

piece of art at the right moment in time can change you.

And now that book has become a hit TV show.

Today, we bring you a conversation from our friends at Pop Culture Happy Hour.

They look at Station 11 the show, the book, and the pandemic raw living in from a sci-fi

point of view.

Enjoy.

The HBO Max mini-series Station 11 begins with a highly contagious and deadly virus wiping

out 99% of humanity.

Now that might not sound like comfort viewing, but hear me out.

It's a show about loss and grief, sure.

But it's also about resilience, empathy, humor, and how difficult it can be to figure

out what to keep and what to leave behind as we all move collectively into an uncertain

future.

...