It Could Happen Here – CZM Book Club: The Cloud Weaver's Song by Saul Tanpepper

Host: Margaret Killjoy (Cool Zone Media)
Date: March 29, 2026
Episode Theme: Exploring hope and resistance through climate fiction rooted in East African folklore

Episode Overview

In this Cool Zone Media Book Club episode, host Margaret Killjoy presents a thoughtful reading and discussion of Saul Tanpepper’s speculative story, “The Cloud Weaver’s Song.” Set in a climate-ravaged East Africa, the tale weaves together folklore, ancestral memory, speculative technology (spider mechs!), and a persistent struggle to adapt and resist in the face of environmental collapse. The episode moves between narrative immersion and reflective commentary, highlighting the power of climate fiction, the complexity of revolutionary change, and the importance of imagining better futures.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction to "The Cloud Weaver’s Song"

• Margaret Killjoy introduces the story as a lyrical blend of folklore and sci-fi:
  • “How do you feel about folklore? How do you feel about children's bedtime stories? How do you feel about spider mechs?... Today we are reading The Cloud Weaver’s Song by Saul Tanpepper which blends the lyricism and mythopoetics of folklore with just gorgeous sci-fi imagery about climate refugees ancestry... and struggling to convince established power structures the world is changing.” (01:58)
• Background: Story set in Eritrea; originated from the “Afterglow: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors” anthology (2021).

2. Narrative Read-Aloud (Core Story Elements)

• Margaret reads the full story, immersing listeners in a future where:
  • The Afar people, forced from their ancestral land by the “Great Drying,” build sky-high towers and become “Sky People” harvesting water from clouds using webs spun from glass—echoing both folklore and speculative technology (spider mechs).
  • Towers become home for climate refugees; conflict arises as changing environmental patterns require new adaptation—but leaders resist change, clinging to tradition.
  • Main characters: Simhar (the innovative weaver) and Ali (the sand gatherer/termite-skin climber), who risk punishment to prove the clouds have dropped and their people must look downward, not upward, for water and survival.
  • Ancestry, myth, and social critique combine as Simhar’s innovations are first punished, then adopted—paralleling cycles of revolution and resistance in both nature and society.
• Notable quote:
  • “When spiderwebs unite, they can capture a lion. The leaders are stubborn, this is true, but they are not stupid. I will spin my webs to capture their attention... We cannot keep building higher and breathing thinner air while chasing clouds that are no longer there.” (18:42)

3. Themes Explored in the Story

A. Climate Adaptation, Folklore, and Technology

• Community responds to ongoing climate disaster with adaptation, echoing rich mythopoetic tradition.
• Innovations (spider mechs for web-weaving, termite mechs for tower-building) are tied to inheritance and social hierarchy.

B. Tradition vs. Change & the Politics of Adaptation

• The Council of Elders (post-revolution establishment) is resistant to recognizing new truths—clinging to old paradigms even when conditions fundamentally shift.
• Simhar’s defiance is presented as both necessary (ancestral lesson: “Necessity makes us do what we must in order to survive”) and transformative.

C. Revolutionary Action and its Limits

• The revolution is both historical (referencing Eritrea’s real revolutionary past) and metaphorical (each new adaptation as ongoing revolution).
• Hazel’s commentary: “Our protagonists deal with a council of elders, the powers that be who even after the revolution, have become dangerously stuck in their ways... the story smartly reminds us of the shortfalls of revolution, or maybe rather imagining that the revolution is never finished while still calling us into revolutionary action and charging us with a duty to fight for a better future.” (32:51)

D. Uplifting Narrative Amid Collapse

• Despite hardship, story ends with hope: the ground beneath the towers blossoms into a garden, signaling renewal and adaptability.

4. Author’s & Crew’s Reflections (Margaret, Hazel, Saul Tanpepper)

• Saul Tanpepper (via quoted interview, paraphrased by Margaret):

  • Sought to imagine brighter climate futures instead of dystopic ones.
  • Setting and characters inspired by friends who escaped oppressive regimes in Eritrea, grounding the tale in lived lineage of resilience.
  • “This story is about breaking free of the shackles of colonial thinking and becoming fully engaged participants in our own destinies.” (31:06, author’s statement as read by Margaret)

• Hazel (producer/commentator):

  • Contextualizes Eritrea’s revolutionary and post-colonial history, highlighting how real lived struggles shape the narrative resonance.
  • “Knowing that the characters in this story are modeled on real people seeking refuge from war is really powerful to me and grounds the story in real lineage of resistance and relentlessness. The way this story ties in real and imagined ancestors to craft new folklore for future ancestors is so, so rich and layered.” (32:15)

• Margaret Killjoy:

  • Stresses the frustration of trying to convince leaders to recognize change, drawing a parallel to contemporary struggles over climate adaptation.
  • “People are like, no, no, the clouds are always doing this thing. It'll be fine... Even when it's like the new thing, people get caught up in immediately creating that as essentially conservatism.... but also it's somehow a story of hope anyway.” (33:36)

Notable Quotes and Moments

• The power of myth and adaptation:
  “For I think you will agree that it is always better to take shelter in a stranger's house than to refuse to leave your own when it is burning to the ground.” (06:57)

• On leadership and resistance:
  “The leaders are like lions, always hunting the weak to make way for the strong.... There is an old saying: when spiderwebs unite, they can capture a lion.” (18:32)

• Real-world resonance:
  “Our protagonists deal with a council of elders, the powers that be who even after the revolution, have become dangerously stuck in their ways... The revolution is never finished...” (32:51, Hazel)

• Refusal to cling to tradition despite crisis:
  “We are the people of the sky, young Samhar Ibrahim. But if you wish to forsake your birthright, then that is your decision.” (30:24)

• Closing image of hope:
  “Within six months the ground beneath the towers had turned into a garden... For tonight the wires will sing with joy.” (36:50)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:58 – Margaret introduces the story and its context
• 03:30–29:18 – Dramatic read-aloud of “The Cloud Weaver’s Song” (Story highlights: Afar migration, cloud-weaving culture, Simhar and Ali’s rebellion, struggle with the council, ultimate exile, and hope for renewal)
• 31:06 – Author’s statement and background (via Margaret)
• 32:15–34:41 – Hazel’s historical and thematic commentary on Eritrea, revolution, and what the story models for resistance
• 34:41 – Margaret’s closing reflections: the struggle to recognize a new reality, and how hope persists
• 36:50 – Story’s final hopeful image (transitional narration and brief, lighthearted comment on “spider mechs” as speculative technology)

Tone & Takeaways

• Warm, storyteller’s tone: Blending grounded narration with critical, hopeful commentary.
• Rich with metaphor and symbolism: Sky, clouds, and mechs represent tradition, adaptation, and the possibilities of the future.
• Deeply rooted in real histories: Draws parallels between imaginative climate futures and lived experience of diaspora, revolution, and endurance.
• Embracing hope: Story as springboard to envision equitable, resilient futures.

For Further Connection

• Learn more about Saul Tanpepper’s work at tanpepperwrites.com
• For more on Eritrean history or the Afterglow climate fiction anthology, explore resources linked through Cool Zone Media’s show notes.

Quote to summarize the episode’s spirit:
"My goodness, the way this story ties in real and imagined ancestors to craft new folklore for future ancestors is so, so rich and layered."
— Hazel (32:15)

Take care of each other. Dream of the weaver’s song.