MANCHESTER, N.H. – A local bookstore has rearranged its shelves to move titles previously described as dystopian science fiction under the current affairs section.

The decision comes after several years of unfortunate events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the attempted insurrection on January 6, 2021, the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza, the impending consequences of global warming, or the Doomsday Clock moving to a mere 90 seconds to midnight, made bookstore owner Gabrielle Habermann question how the literary world differentiates fiction from reality.

“I was a school kid during the Cold War,” said Habermann. “I’ll never forget doing drills to prepare for the seemingly inevitable moment the Soviet Union launched nuclear weapons toward us. But even then, the thought of a dystopian future felt more like science fiction than a real possibility.”

Habermann also said the most concerning thing about everything going on in the world is the complete lack of concern by a large majority of people, which is perpetuated by a certain demographic of partisan news organizations.

“Ever since the pandemic began, there’s been an outspoken and vociferous group of people who used their influence to discredit science and subject matter experts in order to push a political agenda that has put us in the situation we’re currently in,” said Habermann. “If we, collectively as a human race, stopped looking at everything as if it was a political issue, I think we could really make a significant impact on the world around us.”

Critics of the Habermann’s decision to reclassify the books say he’s overreacting and that it’s a poor business decision because “going woke means going broke.”

“These college educated blowhards think they’re so smart, but Tucker Carlson has proven it time-and-time again that being woke is anti-American and that’s not something I can get behind,” said Thomas Frank, who admits he hasn’t read a book since high school after failing to understand the symbolism of Catcher in the Rye. “It’s a proven fact books pollute the mind, except for Rush Limbaugh’s biography, of course, but this is a whole new level of wokeness. If you think I’m going to bring my kids to a store that sells lies disguised as other lies, you’d better think again.”

Despite the criticism, sales at Habermann’s bookstore remain steady. If nothing else, the change has gone relatively unnoticed by the store’s regular customers.

“Wait, they moved the dystopian section?” asked Sharon Coolidge, a mother of four. “I’ll be honest, I’m a big fan of nonfiction and I just read Wanderers by Chuck Wendig and assumed it was based on real events. It all seemed so plausible. I’m literally shook it wasn’t a true story. That’s supposed to be science fiction?”

The lack of fluctuation in sales from the move has left Habermann and his bookstore counterparts to questions whether or not it even makes sense to even classify books by genre anymore.

“If the line between science fiction dystopia and nonfiction has been blurred to the point no one even notices, what’s the point of genres anymore?” asked Habermann. “Horror. Fantasy. Hentai. If I combined those together, would anyone notice?”

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