Foundling Fathers
Foundling Fathers
Foundling Fathers
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Description
Description
What would a teenage Benjamin Franklin do with an iPhone after he discovers porn? From Philip K. Dick Award winning author Meg Elison comes this ingenious satire of U.S. history and modern technocracy gone terribly, terribly wrong. "Relentlessly, brutally, scathingly, funny. I'd expect nothing less from the one and only Meg Elison."
--Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me The trouble starts when a curious young man finds a smartphone in his privy. The problem is, it's supposed to be the year 1750. The Antediluvian Society--a shadowy cabal of right-wing billionaires--is fed up with a country they cannot fully control or understand. So they have done what any reasonable American patriots would do: Clone the Founding Fathers and raise them in secrecy. The plan, unbeknownst to the boys, is for them to restore America to its "original glory." Ben takes his technological discovery to his brothers, Thomas, John, and George. The boys have been raised on an isolated island plantation by Mary Libertas, a firm but kind woman, and Jeff Hancock, their de facto father. But the idyllic life is far too dull for young men. The boys have been chafing at the restrictions upon them (especially Tom, who has impregnated yet another of the servants). Hancock is complaining to the Society that it's well past the time to tell the boys where they come from and what they must do. Unfortunately for their keepers, the young men now have a phone...and many other notions. Seamlessly combining science fiction and history with sharp, witty commentary, Meg Elison has once again shown why she is one of speculative fiction's most exciting voices.
--Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me The trouble starts when a curious young man finds a smartphone in his privy. The problem is, it's supposed to be the year 1750. The Antediluvian Society--a shadowy cabal of right-wing billionaires--is fed up with a country they cannot fully control or understand. So they have done what any reasonable American patriots would do: Clone the Founding Fathers and raise them in secrecy. The plan, unbeknownst to the boys, is for them to restore America to its "original glory." Ben takes his technological discovery to his brothers, Thomas, John, and George. The boys have been raised on an isolated island plantation by Mary Libertas, a firm but kind woman, and Jeff Hancock, their de facto father. But the idyllic life is far too dull for young men. The boys have been chafing at the restrictions upon them (especially Tom, who has impregnated yet another of the servants). Hancock is complaining to the Society that it's well past the time to tell the boys where they come from and what they must do. Unfortunately for their keepers, the young men now have a phone...and many other notions. Seamlessly combining science fiction and history with sharp, witty commentary, Meg Elison has once again shown why she is one of speculative fiction's most exciting voices.
About the Author
About the Author
Meg Elison is the author of The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, winner of the 2014 Philip K. Dick Award. Her young adult novel, Find Layla, was named one of Vanity Fair's best books of the year. Her collection, Big Girl, contains the Locus Award-winning novelette The Pill. Elison has published dozens of science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories in outlets including Uncanny, Fangoria, Nightmare, Clarkesworld, and Fantasy & Science Fiction, as well as in several anthologies for the best stories of the year. As an essayist and satirist, she has published nonfiction in McSweeney's, Electric Literature, Reactor, and Psychopomp. Elison is a high school dropout and a graduate of UC Berkeley. She has been a Clayton B. Ofstad endowed distinguished writer-in-residence, as well as a Fred and Lola Case Writer. Elison is married to the cartoonist Colin Lidston, and she lives in the Berkshires in Massachusetts.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
Den of Geek Most Anticipated Books of 2026 "Foundling Fathers is an American revelation. Meg Elison is a singular, incisive wit (at least until they clone her)."
--Charlie Jane Anders, author of Lessons in Magic and Disaster "Audaciously funny and painfully accurate. Elison sends up our nation's flawed history and fervent mythologizing with creativity and wit."
--Samantha Mills, multiple award-winning author of The Wings Upon Her Back "This is exactly the kind of preposterous shit I would expect if cloning became more widely available which is both sad and hilarious. This book absolutely hooked me in about two pages."
--Powder & Page "Relentlessly, brutally, scathingly, funny. I'd expect nothing less from the one and only Meg Elison."
--Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me "Meg Elison delivers a satirical tale of arrogant billionaires so preoccupied with their attempt to re-create a mythical something (or in this case someones) they didn't stop to consider if they should."
--Stina Leicht, author of Persephone Station "A brilliant and timely premise that she weaves into a compelling tale that both unravels the founding mythology of the United States but somehow also gives me hope "
--Auston Habershaw, author of If Wishes Were Retail "In there with the political satire and the pitch-perfect 18th-century diction is a moving story of found family and four 'brothers' whose quirky brilliance does not get in the way of their being engagingly human."
--Ellen Kushner, author of Swordspoint "Deftly hilarious. You will be tempted to read page after page, chapter after chapter. Do not resist!"
--Eileen Gunn, author of Stable Strategies and Others "Meg Elison has produced a sly meditation on greatness, American politics, and the very notion of national hagiography. Also, this book is just a lot of fun to read."
--David Liss, author of The Peculiarities "The perfect read for the United States' 250th anniversary. Hilarious, curious, and furious, it gives this country's toxic nostalgia the wedgie it deserves."
--John Wiswell, author of Someone You Can Build a Nest In "Foundling Fathers has only grown more relevant--more current since Elison began writing it. It's funny, it's sad, it's edged, and like all Elison's work, it makes me believe that its world continues to run along without me after I finish reading."
--Alex Jennings, author of The Ballad of Perilous Graves
--Charlie Jane Anders, author of Lessons in Magic and Disaster "Audaciously funny and painfully accurate. Elison sends up our nation's flawed history and fervent mythologizing with creativity and wit."
--Samantha Mills, multiple award-winning author of The Wings Upon Her Back "This is exactly the kind of preposterous shit I would expect if cloning became more widely available which is both sad and hilarious. This book absolutely hooked me in about two pages."
--Powder & Page "Relentlessly, brutally, scathingly, funny. I'd expect nothing less from the one and only Meg Elison."
--Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me "Meg Elison delivers a satirical tale of arrogant billionaires so preoccupied with their attempt to re-create a mythical something (or in this case someones) they didn't stop to consider if they should."
--Stina Leicht, author of Persephone Station "A brilliant and timely premise that she weaves into a compelling tale that both unravels the founding mythology of the United States but somehow also gives me hope "
--Auston Habershaw, author of If Wishes Were Retail "In there with the political satire and the pitch-perfect 18th-century diction is a moving story of found family and four 'brothers' whose quirky brilliance does not get in the way of their being engagingly human."
--Ellen Kushner, author of Swordspoint "Deftly hilarious. You will be tempted to read page after page, chapter after chapter. Do not resist!"
--Eileen Gunn, author of Stable Strategies and Others "Meg Elison has produced a sly meditation on greatness, American politics, and the very notion of national hagiography. Also, this book is just a lot of fun to read."
--David Liss, author of The Peculiarities "The perfect read for the United States' 250th anniversary. Hilarious, curious, and furious, it gives this country's toxic nostalgia the wedgie it deserves."
--John Wiswell, author of Someone You Can Build a Nest In "Foundling Fathers has only grown more relevant--more current since Elison began writing it. It's funny, it's sad, it's edged, and like all Elison's work, it makes me believe that its world continues to run along without me after I finish reading."
--Alex Jennings, author of The Ballad of Perilous Graves
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Tachyon Publications
Pub date:
2026-06-23
Length:
192 pages
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