Published August 1, 2022.
 
Sim Kern's Real Sugar is Hard to Find is a collection of stories for reluctant witches, sugar smugglers, and soil thieves that explores the intersections of climate change, reproductive justice, queer identities, and family trauma. Whether fantasy, science fiction, or terrifyingly close-to-home, the worlds of these stories are inhabited by flawed characters whose lives are profoundly impacted by climate change and environmental degradation.
 
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Praise for Real Sugar is Hard to Find

“Sim Kern’s Real Sugar is Hard to Find is the climate fiction the world urgently needs right now, stories I couldn’t put down that chart an escape route from our current fossil fuel nightmare to a livable, decarbonized future. In these literary science fiction stories that arc from dystopia to utopia, the prose is beautiful and the characters are unforgettable. And beneath it all lies a deeply hopeful vision of family—blood, chosen, and the human family as a whole. Throughout the book, parenting and other connections to young people provide a consistent moral compass, reminding us that connecting with and addressing the needs of the next generation can help us all to find our way.”
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—Aya de León, author of A Spy in the Struggle and Queen of Urban Prophesy
 
"Sim Kern’s kaleidoscope of possible climate futures – ranging from terrifying to fantastical to aspirational – pulses with an unflinching heartbeat of hope. Even in darkness, Kern finds wonder in a single, cherished plant, a glimmer of green, a human heart unwilling to give up. Beautifully written and brimming with unforgettable characters and landscapes, Real Sugar is Hard to Find should be required reading for anyone who cares about justice for and on this fragile planet we share." 
 
—Julie Carrick Dalton, author of Waiting for the Night Song and The Last Beekeeper
 
"The timely tales in Sim Kern's collection are fierce, propulsive and beautiful. Their anguish in the face of contemporary trauma is matched by the respect and tenderness bestowed upon the people they have brought so vividly to life.  Kern is a vital new voice. "
 
—Dan Chaon,  author of Sleepwalk
 
“Intensely realized hothouse futures, charged with the material of real life, and real feeling. Smart, beautiful, heartfelt, and engaging, these stories fearlessly grapple with the wonders and horrors of new life in a dying world.”
 
—Christopher Brown, Philip K. Dick, World Fantasy and Campbell Award-nominated author of Tropic of Kansas, Rule of Capture and Failed State.