Dystopia and Apocalypse Reading List

So, way back at the beginning of December I decided that I was going to compile a list of dystopias and read them all back-to-back. It's been a long journey. I actually thought I had started back in October or November, but it turns out it was only December. I can't believe it's only been about two months. My list started out with about five or six books, but quickly grew to eleven books. I can tell you right now that I'm so over death and destruction. I just want to read something fluffy and fun. Thank goodness, in between these I took time to read two classics, Tess of The D'Urbervilles and The Age of Innocence, and I had my handy-dandy audiobooks to add some sanity to life (though, it doesn't help that I chose audiobook title's such as Poe: A Life Cut Short and Stiff: The Curious Lives of Cadavers). Anyhow, I've managed to compile a pretty diverse list of books from many different genres. There's all sorts of genres that encompass the subgenre of dystopias. Most book blogs seem to focus on one genre, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised that I get around with all sorts of genres highlighted here.

A Gift Upon The Shore

4 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Science Fiction

This book is one of those old, dusty paperbacks with yellowing pages. At least my copy was. I loved it. The premise is two women who are in the midst of surviving a nuclear holocaust in the Pacific-Northwest region of America. It's very earthy, very pagan. Probably one of the most realistic visions of what a nuclear apocalypse may be like. This book is scary and yet beautiful. The women also try to preserve all the books they can in case there's future generations to read and make sense of them. Things in the book preserving business are complicated when the ladies meet an extremist "Christian" cult afraid of knowledge.

The Hallowed Ones

3 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Young Adult

An Amish girl in Pennsylvania surviving the zombie-vampire apocalypse. "Sacred Ground" is the only safe place, that includes Amish territory. She meets an English guy (Amish speak for, non-Amish person) who she develops a big crush on and in turn hides him in a barn in Amishland so he's safe. Things naturally get complicated as she's turn between her Amish friends and family and doing what she feels is right. This obviously isn't your average Amish novel that gets turned into a movie on The Hallmark Channel.

The Handmaid's Tale

5 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Contemporary

Oh my GAWD!!!!!!!! I loved this book. This really is a modern classic. It's also probably the dystopia all dystopias since want to emulate. We know Margaret Atwood is a genius. Her books are amazing. I'm probably one of the last people on earth to read this one and I'm GLAD I did. If you haven't read it, the premise is basically there is no more America. There is no freedom, especially for women. Women are taken away from their own families to live with "commanders" and their job in the homes of these commanders is to get pregnant, thus a woman's worth is based on how fertile she is. There's a scary wall where people are hanged, a weird hotel for hookers and the men who love them, and women are constantly disappearing never to be heard from again.

The Long Tomorrow

2 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Science Fiction

All cities have been destroyed and no more are allowed to exist. No more electricity or technology of any kind. Knowledge and free thinking is shunned. Two teenage boys from "The New Mennonites" decide to search for a fabled city said to still contain all these things. I didn't like this one too much though the premise is interesting. 

The Hunger Games

5 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Young Adult

I think everyone is basically familiar with this book or has at least seen the movie. Teenagers are chosen to fight to the death, similar to the story The Lottery or the Japanese novel and movie series Battle Royale. I really loved this one. I thought it was exciting and never a dull moment. I could have done without the love triangle aspect of it, but that's pretty much the sole complaint.

Alas, Babylon

4 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Science Fiction

I loved this book as well, thinking back I'm not sure why I only gave it four stars. This book was a pet favorite of mine because it's based in Florida and basically my house has a nuclear bomb dropped right on top of it. Not that that'd be fun, but it's pretty cool reading about places you are familiar with. What happened was, America is under nuclear attack by Russia. Pretty much all major and/or important cities are nuked. In Florida alone they got Miami, Homestead, Jacksonville, Orlando in two different spots (one is more modern day Winter Park-ish the other is the former military base where the Southport neighborhood now resides), and Tampa. Saved from the attacks is Deland (in the book called Fort Repose). Things get interesting with a whole slew of crazy characters and this book was first published in 1959 so there's still tensions between white-folk and black-folk and this is the south so that adds an interesting element to the story.

Never Let Me Go

3 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Contemporary

I didn't feel like this book lived up to the hype and praise and this is very loosely a dystopia. Children are cloned so that their organs can be harvested. However, the characters are never stressed or freaked by this. Most of it just focuses on how snotty the main character's BFF is.

Tribulation Force

4 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Christian Fiction

This is the second in the Left Behind series. The Rapture has happened. Every person who has accepted Christ as their savior has "vanished" aka gone to Heaven. PARTY!!! Except, life really sucks for those left behind (dun dun dun). We follow the lives of a pilot and his daughter and a big-time reporter who after witnessing The Rapture first hand, all accept Christ into their lives. To make things really exciting the pilot and reporter both get jobs working for The Antichrist.

The Road

2 out of 5 Stars

Main Genre: Contemporary

America has burned to the ground. A father and son are walking across America heading south in hopes to better survive what appears to be a nuclear winter. This is probably the most gruesome and violent of all the books on this list.