Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare: Novelette Review
Happy Monday to you, dearest reader!
I am so excited about a few new projects I have on my plate and I wish I could tell you more, but alas — us writers are a secretive folk, only coaxed out with snacks and affirmations.
So instead, how about a review?
I have another double duo morsel for you this week! That’s right! Another review and interview combo! Check out the review below (there is mild spoilers below) and come back on Thursday for the interview!
The Author
Patrick Barb is an author of weird, dark, and horrifying tales, currently living (and trying not to freeze to death) in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He is the author of the novellas Gargantuana’s Ghost (Grey Matter Press), Turn (Alien Buddha Press), and The Nut House (serialized in Cosmic Horror Monthly), as well as the novelette Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare (Spooky House Press) and the forthcoming dark fiction collection Pre-Approved for Haunting (Keylight Books / Turner Publishing, October 2023). He is an Active Member of the HWA and a Full Member of the SFWA. Visit him at patrickbarb.com. — bio provided by Patrick Barb himself
The Book
In a near-future United States, surveillance technology's the hottest trend in high-tech parenting. Children have their every move monitored from birth, thanks to repurposed military drones and contact lens digital cameras that show life from your child's perspective. But in the aftermath of a tragedy at his son's high school, one father must contend with the dark side of his reliance on these innovations. — Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare Goodreads description
Barb’s Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare is a 2022 novelette from Spooky House Press that explores a possible Black Mirror-esque future where technology allows parents way too much visibility into their child’s life. Why go to their birthday party when you can send a drone instead and watch? Why ask them how their day of when you can see what they saw through their hi-tech contacts? Is the main character, a father, a bad person for needing that control?
The Review
Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare was a masterful narrative that deals with the universal fears all parents face, wrapped up in a dystopian techno thriller. The story is told in segments as the father is being interviewed by a police officer. Through the father’s storytelling, we see a man consumed by work and a father distanced by the technology he believes should actually bring him closer. Through this character’s words, we also learn about a son. The son. If you think We Need To Talk About Kevin, you would not be far off. Barb delicately explores the heavy topics of parental alienation and school violence, creating a poignant and terrifying story.
I really enjoyed this novelette. I read it all in one sitting, I just couldn’t put it down. Barb created a frightening believable future, decked out in technology that seems just around the corner. I could picture every scene of Helicopter Parenting in the Age of Drone Warfare and it’s going to live rent-free in my head for the foreseeable future.
So yes, I would absolutely recommend this novelette to you, my dear reader. Especially if you’re a fan of the Black Mirror series!
If you end up reading it, let me know what you think! And don’t forget to check back on Thursday for the interview with Patrick Barb himself.
10/10
x PLM
