The Last Human Is Good Sci-Fi That Honors Humanity and Deserves Support Against Woke Publishing
Source: Auguste Meyrat. "Space Opera That Honors Humanity And Thwarts Leftist Publishers." September 22, 2026. thefederalist.com
The Gist
The author reviews a self-published sci-fi novel and says it's good because it builds an interesting universe and treats humans as special and spiritually meaningful, rather than following what he sees as trendy 'woke' themes like diversity and LGBT storylines. He argues readers should buy the book not just because it's well-written, but to support a writer who was shut out of mainstream publishing for not being progressive enough.
Conclusion
Readers should buy and support Isaac Young's self-published novel 'The Last Human,' both because it is a well-crafted science fiction work that treats humanity as exceptional rather than relativized, and because Young has been unfairly excluded from traditional publishing for not conforming to leftist/progressive orthodoxy.
Premises
- The novel demonstrates strong worldbuilding, constructing an original, coherent universe without relying on well-worn sci-fi tropes or historical templates.
- The book avoids 'cheap gimmicks' like leftist narratives of racial oppression or LGBT romance subplots, unlike critically acclaimed works such as N.K. Jemisin's The Fifth Season.
- The story explores meaningful, universal philosophical questions about identity, consciousness, and what makes someone human, rooted in a spiritual worldview that ties identity to an immaterial soul.
- Unlike most modern science fiction, which relativizes human values by portraying humans as just one species among many equally valid alien cultures, this novel treats humanity as exceptional, even 'divine' and uniquely powerful.
- Young was reportedly rejected by the publishing industry for not being 'adequately diverse and progressive,' forcing him to self-fund and self-promote his work.
- Young represents a broader group of talented writers being overlooked because of a 'woke agenda' infecting publishing.
Assumptions
- Depicting humanity as exceptional or spiritually distinct is inherently more valuable or truthful than depicting it as one equally-valid species among many.
- Publishers' preferences for diversity and progressive themes constitute unjust ideological gatekeeping rather than legitimate editorial or market judgments.
- Avoiding themes of racial oppression or LGBT relationships is a mark of literary quality rather than a subjective thematic preference.
- The commercial success of self-published conservative-coded authors is a meaningful corrective to perceived publishing bias.
- Readers share the author's political and cultural values and will be motivated to buy the book partly for ideological reasons.
- The rejection of Young's manuscript(s) by publishers, as characterized in the article, was primarily ideological rather than due to craft issues (the review itself later flags weak characterization and flat dialogue).