# Dystopian/Post Apocalyptic- To Read List
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [April 7, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088 "2013-04-07T18:58:58Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/1 "2013-04-07T18:58:58Z")
Hey all,
I have read quite a but of dystopian/end of the world books from many different time periods. But, I am now looking for newer stuff. Since this type of literature may be affected by current events, I find it interesting to read the different books from different time periods to see if any common theme is represented in correlation to modern issues.
Do you all have any ideas for book written in the past 5 years on this topic?
I realize a lot today is about Zombies, and I am not closed to any topic, but any suggestions in the genre and discussions about their modern day parallels to general societal anxieties could prove an interesting discussion.
Thanks,
Lucky Mike
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/2 "2013-04-07T19:05:57Z")
I recommend Jeff Carlson’s Plague series: _Plague Year_, _Plague War_, and _Plague Zone_. The basic idea is a nanotech program designed to cure cancer goes out of control and kills any warm-blooded animal. The only limit is that it shuts off at high altitudes. So the surviving members of humanity are living in isolated mountaintops. They can descend down the slopes but if they spend more than a few hours down there, they’ll die.
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### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/3 "2013-04-07T19:27:29Z")
Thanks,
I will check it out asap.
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### Author:  [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/4 "2013-04-07T19:33:47Z")
An obvious recommendation: **The Road**. If you’ve not read it, I give it the highest recommendation. In fact, I find it difficult to take other post-apocalyptic fiction seriously after reading it.
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### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/5 "2013-04-07T19:49:05Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#):
>
> An obvious recommendation: **The Road**. If you’ve not read it, I give it the highest recommendation. In fact, I find it difficult to take other post-apocalyptic fiction seriously after reading it.
Yes, I did read that and I concur it was quit compelling. Above par for most books, of course this is why it was so critically acclaimed.
I was reflecting on that book when I read it in regards to modern concerns. The books is very vague about the “why”, it points to possibilities such as climate change, pollution, economic decline and conflict. Of course, I could have missed something huge.
What do you think was the most powerful anxiety expressed by the book?
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### Author:  [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/6 "2013-04-07T19:50:40Z")
I really like short stories lately. Not sure if that interests you but, how about:
[Brave New Worlds (Dystopian Stories)](http://www.amazon.com/Brave-New-Worlds-Dystopian-Stories/dp/1597804541)
[The End: Visions of Apocalypse](http://www.amazon.com/End-Visions-Apocalypse-ebook/dp/B00AVNAWSG/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365364065&sr=1-2&keywords=the+end)
[After the End: recent Apocalypses](http://www.amazon.com/After-End-Apocalypses-Paula-Guran/dp/1607013908/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365364157&sr=1-12&keywords=end+stories)
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### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/7 "2013-04-07T19:58:24Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#):
>
> I really like short stories lately. Not sure if that interests you but, how about:
>
> [Brave New Worlds (Dystopian Stories)](http://www.amazon.com/Brave-New-Worlds-Dystopian-Stories/dp/1597804541)
> [The End: Visions of Apocalypse](http://www.amazon.com/End-Visions-Apocalypse-ebook/dp/B00AVNAWSG/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365364065&sr=1-2&keywords=the+end)
> [After the End: recent Apocalypses](http://www.amazon.com/After-End-Apocalypses-Paula-Guran/dp/1607013908/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365364157&sr=1-12&keywords=end+stories)
Definitely interested, thank you very much.
I just downloaded the Plague Year to my Kindle.
Lazy Sunday, reading while surfing and playing EVE online.
Thanks again all.
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### Author:  [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/8 "2013-04-07T20:01:34Z")
Wool (a series), by Hugh Howey.
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### Author:  [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/9 "2013-04-07T20:20:17Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#):
>
> Wool (a series), by Hugh Howey.
Ditto. Surprisingly good, for a self-published book.
Post #8 in the Recommendation Compendium thread (at the top of this forum) has links to prior threads on PA/Dystopian fiction.
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### Author:  [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/10 "2013-04-07T20:27:55Z")
> [@Lucky\_Mike](#):
>
> Definitely interested, thank you very much.
I forgot to mention, you can download [selected stories from “Brave New Worlds”](http://www.baenebooks.com/p-1349-selections-from-brave-new-worlds-dystopian-stories.aspx? __utma=222178315.2069817057.1361145189.1364517993.1365366068.4&__ utmb=222178315.2.10.1365366068& __utmc=222178315&__ utmx=-&__utmz=222178315.1365366068.4.3.utmcsr=google%7Cutmccn=(organic)%7Cutmcmd=organic%7Cutmctr=(not%20provided)&__utmv=-&__utmk=207217424) for free from the publisher at the [Baen Free Library](http://www.baen.com/library/books.asp).
I can’t believe I forgot “Wool.” Unfortunately the later installments tapered off in quality, but the first few were excellent so I’d still recommend it as worth the price.
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### Author:  [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/11 "2013-04-07T20:44:20Z")
One that’s somewhat dated now, but still a classic, is _Alas, Babylon_ by Pat Frank.
It was written in 1959, (I think), but it’s interesting that the conflict that brought on the nuclear war was not a US vs. Soviet thing, but a mid-Eastern blowup.
The plot centers on a small community in Florida, and how they get by after the conflict. Racial issues of the day play a part in the story. The lack of electricity can be a killer too. One character’s mother dies because she’s diabetic, and even before she’s run out of insulin it can’t be chilled, and spoils.
The story gets a lot of little details that some neglect, and the last line of the book is devestating.
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### Author:  [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/12 "2013-04-07T20:46:39Z")
[Return from Stars](http://www.amazon.ca/Return-Stars-Stanislaw-Lem/dp/0151770824/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365367500&sr=8-1&keywords=return+from+stars) by Stanislaw Lem
It is Utopia but for few it looked as Dystopia - matter of a viewpoint, I guess
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### Author:  [@Zjestika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zjestika)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/13 "2013-04-07T21:01:00Z")
I recently finished [The Last Man on Earth Club](http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Man-Earth-Club/dp/1466361824/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365368337&sr=8-1&keywords=last+man+on+earth+club), and it was fantastic. It involved multi-dimensional apocalypses and has some of the most creative end-of-the-world scenarios I’ve ever read.
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### Author:  [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/14 "2013-04-07T21:10:25Z")
I wouldn’t be too quick to limit your reading to recent books if you haven’t read the older classics in the subgenre. An awr’ful awr’ful lot of newer books resonate with the older ones and read like updates with more modern jargon thrown in.\*
A Canticle for Leibowitz\* has to be high on that list, especially because of the way it… continues. I don’t know of any other tale that isn’t pretty linear within the story frame.
NIvenPournelle’s _Lucifer’s Hammer_ is pretty good at portraying a global catastrophe and the extended recovery. And while it’s a little eepy-creepy-supernatural, King’s _The Stand_.
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### Author:  [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/15 "2013-04-07T21:11:53Z")
Thanks, I’m going to check it out!
Perhaps you’ve resisted it’s siren lure but I’ll stand up and say _The Hunger Games_ is a pretty decent little dystopian novel – I wouldn’t bother with the sequels though. You can get it free from the Kindle Lending Library, if you’re a Prime member.
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### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/16 "2013-04-07T22:26:54Z")
> [@Baker](#):
>
> One that’s somewhat dated now, but still a classic, is _Alas, Babylon_ by Pat Frank.
>
> It was written in 1959, (I think), but it’s interesting that the conflict that brought on the nuclear war was not a US vs. Soviet thing, but a mid-Eastern blowup.
>
> The plot centers on a small community in Florida, and how they get by after the conflict. Racial issues of the day play a part in the story. The lack of electricity can be a killer too. One character’s mother dies because she’s diabetic, and even before she’s run out of insulin it can’t be chilled, and spoils.
>
> The story gets a lot of little details that some neglect, and the last line of the book is devestating.
Yes sir, read that one. Definitely a good example of a story inspired by the times.
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### Author:  [@Lucky\_Mike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucky_Mike)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/17 "2013-04-07T22:29:08Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#):
>
> I wouldn’t be too quick to limit your reading to recent books if you haven’t read the older classics in the subgenre. An awr’ful awr’ful lot of newer books resonate with the older ones and read like updates with more modern jargon thrown in.\*
>
> A Canticle for Leibowitz\* has to be high on that list, especially because of the way it… continues. I don’t know of any other tale that isn’t pretty linear within the story frame.
>
> NIvenPournelle’s _Lucifer’s Hammer_ is pretty good at portraying a global catastrophe and the extended recovery. And while it’s a little eepy-creepy-supernatural, King’s _The Stand_.
My apologies if I was unclear. My intent was to indicate I read a lot of old stuff already and was looking for new. As you correctly pointed out, all of those are great ones. I have read Canticle, Lucifers, The Stand etc… But I may have missed one and thank you for the notes.
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### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [April 8, 2013, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/18 "2013-04-08T00:27:03Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#):
>
> Wool (a series), by Hugh Howey.
I was going to suggest this, too. I have somewhat mixed feelings about it, but I think it’s worth at least one read if you’re interested in the genre.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [April 8, 2013, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/19 "2013-04-08T01:04:18Z")
If you don’t mind a somewhat older suggestion (from 1994) check out _The Harvest_ by Robert Charles Wilson. It’s a well-written end of the world novel and it’s unusual in that mankind ends in a way that’s not necessarily bad.
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### Author:  [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)
#### Post date: [April 8, 2013, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dystopian-post-apocalyptic-to-read-list/655088/20 "2013-04-08T01:21:38Z")
Haven’t read much new stuff lately, but I’d just like to toss out my favorite PA novel, _Emergence_, by David Palmer, in case anybody’s missed it.
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