At a recent panel hosted by Scribd in New York, I sat down with Green for a candid chat about the intersection of art, politics, internet culture, and sci-fi that went into his book.īut to understand why Green’s take on these things is so unique - and, it’s worth noting, entirely different from a John Green novel - you first need to understand why Green himself is such a unique figure within YouTube culture. If that sounds to you like a book that serves as a perhaps unwitting analog for the current sociopolitical era, you’re not far off. It’s with the experience of waking up one day to find yourself a massive viral celebrity in a world whose politics have shifted overnight in conjunction with the changes in your own personal life.

Green’s book is ostensibly a fun sci-fi romp, a bit of a thought experiment about the intersection of modern life with the advent of giant robots from outer space - a kind of modernized version of Day The Earth Stood Still with a lot more irony.īut Green’s main preoccupation, as portrayed through his passionate, difficult 20-something heroine April May, isn’t with larger philosophical questions about what giant robots from outer space might want with us. Green has launched a major industry convention, Vidcon, taken home an Emmy, and interviewed a president - and now, in his newly released debut novel, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, he’s put a uniquely personal spin on the experience of becoming an overnight celebrity. If you’ve spent any time on YouTube in the last decade or so, chances are good that you’ve experienced the influence of Hank Green.įrom vlogging to webseries to educational videos and everything in between, Green has had a hand in shaping vast swaths of YouTube culture, and he arguably occupies the most central role on the platform of any YouTuber - including his brother John, a celebrated young adult novelist with whom Hank regularly collaborates.

An absolutely remarkable thing series