In this collection Margaret Atwood asks a wide range of "Burning Questions," such as: How can we live on our planet? How slippery is the slope? Is it true? And is it fair? Why do people everywhere, in all cultures, tell stories? So what if beauty is only skin deep? What do zombies have to do with authoritarianism? In over fifty pieces, Atwood aims her prodigious intellect and impish humour at our world, and reports back to us on what she finds. This roller-coaster period brought the end of history, a financial crash, the rise of Trump, and a pandemic. From debt to tech, the climate crisis to freedom; from when to dispense advice to the young (answer: only when asked) to how to define granola, we have no better questioner of the many and varied mysteries of our human universe. These essays and occasional pieces: lectures, literary introductions, autobiographical sketches, book reviews, political commentary, and more- chart the ceaseless activity of a truly original mind."--Jacket.