Mindscape, a 2006 science fiction novel by Andrea Hairston, is about humanity's struggle to survive in the aftermath of the appearance of the Barrier, which divides the world into three zones. Only the phase-shifting Vermittlers can penetrate the Barrier and deliver the cure to the virus that appeared at the same time the mysterious barrier did.
Mindscape contains examples of:
- After the End: Humans live in refugee camps on their different sides of the Barrier and struggle to contain the virus.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Elleni teams up with a bunch of different characters in order to preserve the treaty.
- Mutants: The Vermittlers, the only people who can penetrate the barrier, are not trusted because they are genetically engineered. In the novel, the Vermittlers have a parallel in the Sioux Indian Ghost Dancers; both groups are treated as outcasts and relate to the Barrier by singing to it.
- First Contact: The Barrier that appears is actually an alien life-form. Both the Vermittlers and the Ghost Dancers communicate with it by singing.
