By the twenty-second century, human heedlessness and natural disasters have led to a world where the air is unsafe to breathe, the soil will grow nothing but kudzu, and wars will never end. Crowded together in domed communities, growing food in greenhouses, and living under martial law, people go about their lives, working at their jobs and caring for their families while striving to make the world a better place for their children.

Hundreds of young volunteers come together for a dome-raising project in South Carolina. It’s love at first sight for seventeen-year-old Michael Travis when he sees a graceful weaver floating lightly in her antigravity belt above the giant dome. When he learns that she was born on the far side of the Moon, he is determined to meet her and share his dreams of living on Mars.

More than a tale of survival, Weavers of the Crystal Domes is a salute to the resilience and ingenuity of our species, a coming-of-age story set in the world of the future.

Knowing there was room for another diner, Megan had texted all of her music class friends that she was going to invite the most studious and serious-minded person in her crew to join would surely be the rowdiest dinner group on the compound. They all told her to forget it, nobody like that would want to associate with them. They were wrong. Megan had invited her brother.

Luna was the only person who knew she was bringing Michael. When he stepped with his sister into the dining area, Luna thought, “He does look like the studious type, but that’s to be expected. After all, he’s been studying me for weeks.” She was glad to see that he appeared to be quite normal. “If he’s Megan’s brother, he can’t be too bad,” she thought. “I’ll try to be nice to him.”

Luna had saved two seats for Megan and her guest, and soon a very nervous and awkward young man was sitting beside her. Now that he was inches from the object of his admiration, he felt too nervous to respond to her friendly greeting. He didn’t have a clue what to say to her.

Michael stared silently at his hands, realizing they were clamped onto his knees as if to keep him from running away. He began to feel short of breath.

Luna decided to break the ice. “I hear that you want to build habitats on Mars,” she said, leaning toward him. “Do you really plan to make Mars your permanent home?”

Michael looked toward her and nodded silently.

Luna smiled at him brightly. “I think that Mars would be a wonderful place to live, even better than the Moon.”

Michael smiled and began to speak.