Bellwether (novel)

infobox Book |
name = Bellwether
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = Cover of first edition (paperback)
author = Connie Willis
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country = United States
language = English
series =
genre = Novel
publisher = Bantam Books
release_date = 1996
english_release_date =
media_type = Print (Paperback)
pages = 247 pp
isbn = ISBN 0-553-37562-8
preceded_by =
followed_by = "Bellwether", a 1996 novel by Connie Willis, is a book that can fall into many genres, such as comedy, fairy tale, romance, and science fiction. The novel is broadly based on the unsettling concepts of human culture. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1997.

Plot introduction

The main character, Dr. Sandra Foster, studies fads in Boulder, Colorado. Her employer, Hi-Tek, wants to know how to predict fads, in order to take advantage of this knowledge and thus to possibly create one. While Dr. Foster is extensively researching and analysing fads, Hi-Tek itself is swept by management fads. In addition, the Management wants one of its employees to win the mysterious Niebnitz Research Grant (the fictitious award is very similar to the MacArthur Felloship's Genius Grant). Meanwhile, the employees struggle with chaos created by the administrative assistant from Hell. Willis uses humor to come to an unsettling conclusion.