krista
Young Armadillo
Warrior of Words
Posts: 52
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Post by krista on May 31, 2011 1:06:21 GMT -5
Hello, fellow Armadillos!
While I'm job hunting for the summer, I've decided to start up reading for pleasure again now that I'm done with student teaching, and subsequently, my undergraduate career!
I'm a huge lover of dystopian novels. I'm head over heels for 1984, Brave New World, and Oryx and Crake. However, are there any other dystopian or apocalyptic novels you lovely ladies and gents would like to recommend?
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Post by onlyaworkingtitle on May 31, 2011 1:29:01 GMT -5
You might take a gander at the first dystopian novel (from which we've gotten the vocabulary to describe them), Utopia by Sir Thomas More. It's not exactly what we might refer to as "dystopian" today, but it examines several very different (and flawed) societies from the point of view of an outsider and is, as I said, the source of the words "utopia" and "dystopia".
For more modern dystopias, I'd recommend Koushun Takami's Battle Royale, which takes place in a Japan whose Big-Brother-esque government has instated a randomized kill game for middle school students, and looks closely at the emotional implications of being forced to kill your classmates. Also, I've been told to read The Road, though I can't speak from experience in recommending it.
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Post by brosephargh on May 31, 2011 1:48:46 GMT -5
It's more post-apocalyptic, obviously, but you should definitely try Cormac McCarthy's The Road. I just absolutely love it. <3 There is, of course, a movie, but it pales in comparison to the book.
It's DEFINITELY worth a read!
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Post by Lizzie on May 31, 2011 10:22:08 GMT -5
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is my absolute favorite dystopian novel.
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krista
Young Armadillo
Warrior of Words
Posts: 52
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Post by krista on May 31, 2011 10:51:25 GMT -5
You might take a gander at the first dystopian novel (from which we've gotten the vocabulary to describe them), Utopia by Sir Thomas More. It's not exactly what we might refer to as "dystopian" today, but it examines several very different (and flawed) societies from the point of view of an outsider and is, as I said, the source of the words "utopia" and "dystopia". For more modern dystopias, I'd recommend Koushun Takami's Battle Royale, which takes place in a Japan whose Big-Brother-esque government has instated a randomized kill game for middle school students, and looks closely at the emotional implications of being forced to kill your classmates. Also, I've been told to read The Road, though I can't speak from experience in recommending it. Thank you! I've always wanted to read Utopia but I never remembered to put it on my endless book list until now! Battle Royale sounds like something that would be right up my alley. I've gotten many recommendations about The Road but I'm not sure I'd be able to read it. I mistakenly watched the movie in theaters and became subsequently depressed from viewing it. I know dystopian novels clearly aren't happiness in a bottle but it was such a dark movie--I can only imagine how the book would make me feel!  |
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krista
Young Armadillo
Warrior of Words
Posts: 52
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Post by krista on May 31, 2011 10:52:39 GMT -5
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is my absolute favorite dystopian novel. I love Atwood! I have The Handmaid's Tale on my Nook right now but I've yet to start reading it. I'm hoping to start it within the next few days. Thank you for the recommendation! |
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jasper
Armadillo Pup
On. Say on. Be said on. Somehow on.
Posts: 9
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Post by jasper on May 31, 2011 10:55:25 GMT -5
Alasdair Gray's Lanark is fantastic. It's more of a metaphysical dystopia-- half of the book is the life of a kind of selfish and cold young artist, and the other half is a world where his personal flaws are extrapolated into societal flaws.
Gray said that books 1 and 2 are about a man dying because he cannot love, and that books 3 and 4 are about a world dying for the same reason.
It's really imaginative and allusive and strange, but one of my favorite books.
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Post by mizzles on May 31, 2011 11:51:09 GMT -5
Interesting easy (it's a YA series) good summer read: The Uglies series
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Post by betonblack91 on Jun 1, 2011 10:44:20 GMT -5
Have you tried the play Endgame by Samuel Beckett it verges on post-apocalyptic but it is fantastic. It is not an outrightly Dystopian society, but it is more what is suggested. Plus it is very funny.
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Post by Eternal Lobster on Jun 1, 2011 12:08:24 GMT -5
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is my absolute favorite dystopian novel. I actually just finished reading that last night! I stayed up all night to read it, it was fabulous. We covered her short story "Happy Endings" in a class last semester, where she analyzes the writing process, plots, and endings of a story. I kept giggling while reading her novel because it related so much back to her short story! I also liked how relatable it was to The Canterbury Tales. |
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Post by Lizzie on Jun 1, 2011 12:19:34 GMT -5
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is my absolute favorite dystopian novel. I actually just finished reading that last night! I stayed up all night to read it, it was fabulous. We covered her short story "Happy Endings" in a class last semester, where she analyzes the writing process, plots, and endings of a story. I kept giggling while reading her novel because it related so much back to her short story! I also liked how relatable it was to The Canterbury Tales. Atwood overall is just fantastic, her writing is really superb. I would highly recommend her short story "Rape Fantasies". |
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Post by Eternal Lobster on Jun 1, 2011 12:42:15 GMT -5
You know, I had forgotten that I had read that one, too!
As for other dystopian literature: Hunger Games, V for Vendetta, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Never Let Me Go, and The Giver.
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Post by leonwingstein on Jun 1, 2011 19:41:58 GMT -5
How about "The Long Walk" by Stephen King writing as Richard Bachman. Or "Fahrenheit 451".
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Post by Marina on Jun 1, 2011 19:45:51 GMT -5
1984 scared the crap out of me. Some of the stuff he talked about in the end of the book hit close to home.
Hunger Games is also pretty good if you want the YA genre.
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Post by Silva on Jun 1, 2011 20:04:36 GMT -5
1984 scared the crap out of me. Some of the stuff he talked about in the end of the book hit close to home. Dystopian literature in general scares me, but 1984 was definitely the worst for me. |
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