# Favorite Post-Apocolyptic/Dystopian Books/Movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 12, 2007, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894 "2007-09-12T13:35:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/81 "2007-09-14T22:26:20Z")
I would’ve said Everyday Is Like Sunday is _pre-apocalyptic_, if anything; wishing for destruction to cleanse the tedium of the narrator’s life. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2007, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/82 "2007-09-14T23:00:47Z")
My husband got me two PA novels for our anniversary - they’re not the best I’ve ever read, but they were solidly entertaining - “Plague Year” by Jeff Carlson and “Extinction” by Ray Hammond. “Exctiontion” isn’t technically a PA novel; it’s more of a “you’re gonna have an apocalypse if you keep doing things this way” novel, but I think it fits in with the mindset of people who enjoy PA fiction. It’s especially interesting because it’s set in 2055, and is very much based on current conditions. I’ve read a lot of the fiction listed here, and I didn’t think much of “A Canticle for Leibowitz” either. Must be a love/hate thing; I just thought it was dry and boring. “The Stand” is one of my all-time favourite novels; I read it every couple of years, it seems. (Octavia E. Butler died in February 2006! I hate the way people are giants in the sci-fi world, and they’re hardly noted at all in mainstream media.) ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2007, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/83 "2007-09-14T23:29:48Z")
i just finished one last night. pfeffer’s “life as we know it”. written as diary entries of a girl. the books starts at the end of her sophmore year, astroid hits the moon, moon goes off its orbit, natural disasters ensue. very well done. small town pa, they live about 4 miles out of town. the book goes from may to feb. divided by spring, summer, fall, and finally winter parts. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2007, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/84 "2007-09-14T23:52:56Z")
[QUOTE=Crusoe] I would’ve said Everyday Is Like Sunday is _pre-apocalyptic_, if anything; wishing for destruction to cleanse the tedium of the narrator’s life. [/QUOTE] As I understand the words, the apocalypse has happened everywhere _except_ the narrator’s town, which they “forgot to bomb.” (And yes, the narrator wishes they would’ve.) And at the end “a strange dust lands on your hands and on your face,” which sounds solidly post-apocalyptic to me. Speaking of post-apocalyptic songs, there’s also [Nothing But Flowers](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOEIRI5HSuQ) by **Talking Heads**. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/85 "2007-09-15T10:08:31Z")
Fair enough; my own interpretation is that he’s talking about a town that wasn’t bombed in World War II, and he wishes it had been. Morrissey often seemed to prefer singing about the everyday and mundane to visions of the future. No real reason to agree with me, I know. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/86 "2007-09-15T12:56:38Z")
Except the narrator specifically says “Come, come, **nuclear** bomb.” So we’re not talking about the Blitz. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/87 "2007-09-15T15:30:16Z")
Whyndam’s _Chrysalids_ is quite good, not as good as _DotT_ IMO, but OK. For short stories, I quite like _The Lottery_ (Jackson, arguably PA but I think so) and parts of the _Looking for Jake_ short story collection by Mieville. Bruce Sterling’s _Heavy Weather_ is a quite good take on a post-AGW America. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/88 "2007-09-15T21:19:53Z")
[QUOTE=Ichbin Dubist] _Dr Bloodmoney_, Philip K. Dick [/QUOTE] That was the first one I thought of, any of his short stories on the same subject would do too. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/89 "2007-09-15T21:47:40Z")
I have long been a fan of the post-apocalyptic genre, being a child of the 80’s. Apart from what’s already been mentioned, these leap to mind: _The Long, Loud Silence_ (Wilson A. Tucker - US divided in the wake of an atomic/bio attack) _Warday_ (Whitley Strieber & James Kunetka - a pseudo-documentary about the US in the wake of a nuclear war with USSR - very imaginative, realistic, and thorough) _On The Beach_ (Australia threatened by fallout in the wake of a northern hemispheric nuclear war) _Z For Zacharia_ (teenage girl’s trials after surviving a nuclear war in a meteorologically isolated town and dealing with a surviving soldier who happens by) I assume you’ve seen “The Day After” as well… and I understand the movie “Threads” is quite good too. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/90 "2007-09-15T21:55:07Z")
Oh, also the movie “Night Of The Comet”, in case you wonder what happens when a renegade comet turns all unexposed people on earth into dust or zombies, and the only ones left are uzi-packing cheerleaders. It’s fun, I promise. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/91 "2007-09-15T21:59:26Z")
Oh… while people are paying attention to the subject, this reminds me… I’ve been trying to find this book I read a long time ago, a post-apocalyptic story set in the US in which some sort of contagion turns people into vampires. All I really remember about it is that the nights were scary and the lead character had to kill and bury his wife after she got the vampire disease. Publish date would have been 1980’s at latest, most likely earlier than that. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/92 "2007-09-15T22:28:50Z")
[QUOTE=spoke-] Except the narrator specifically says “Come, come, **nuclear** bomb.” So we’re not talking about the Blitz. [/QUOTE] Well, yes, except he could mean that it didn’t get bombed first time round, so please bomb it this time. Why would he be beckoning the bomb if it’s post-apocalyptic? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/93 "2007-09-15T22:30:06Z")
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck] Oh, also the movie “Night Of The Comet”, in case you wonder what happens when a renegade comet turns all unexposed people on earth into dust or zombies, and the only ones left are uzi-packing cheerleaders. It’s fun, I promise. [/QUOTE] They were packing Mac-10s, remember? **Samantha** (when her Mac-10 jams): “Daddy would have gotten us Uzis.” ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/94 "2007-09-15T22:42:16Z")
[QUOTE=Zjestika] I really liked [Malevil](http://www.amazon.com/Malevil-Robert-Merle/dp/0446796859/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-2608268-9676628?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189653453&sr=8-1) by Robert Merle. It looks like it’s out of print in English, though. It’s set in France and follows some people in their post bomb turf wars. It’s not perfect, but great for a post-apocalyptic fix. [/QUOTE] I read this when I was a teen, and found it pretty entertaining. Can’t remember much about it though. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/95 "2007-09-15T22:59:19Z")
Book - _Canticle for Leibowitz_ Movie - _Road Warrior_ ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2007, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/96 "2007-09-15T23:31:21Z")
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck] Oh… while people are paying attention to the subject, this reminds me… I’ve been trying to find this book I read a long time ago, a post-apocalyptic story set in the US in which some sort of contagion turns people into vampires. All I really remember about it is that the nights were scary and the lead character had to kill and bury his wife after she got the vampire disease. Publish date would have been 1980’s at latest, most likely earlier than that. [/QUOTE] That sounds like Richard Matheson’s 1954 [I Am Legend](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Legend), which was made into two movies, _The Last Man on Earth_ with Vincent Price in 1964, and _The Omega Man_ with Charleton Heston in 1971. I don’t recall the main character having to kill his wife, but it’s been a long time since I read it. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2007, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/97 "2007-09-16T02:38:56Z")
[QUOTE=Purd Werfect] Well, Father was a _very_ poor driver. [/QUOTE] This is one of the funniest things I’ve read all week. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2007, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/98 "2007-09-16T03:00:38Z")
[QUOTE=LurkMeister] That sounds like Richard Matheson’s 1954 [I Am Legend](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Legend), which was made into two movies, _The Last Man on Earth_ with Vincent Price in 1964, and _The Omega Man_ with Charleton Heston in 1971. I don’t recall the main character having to kill his wife, but it’s been a long time since I read it. [/QUOTE] I’ll definitely check it out. I don’t know if it’s the same one, but it sounds worth the time. Ah, how often when I was 11 years old being dragged along with my parents to visit someone, picking up a book out of boredom, reading a fifth of it, and leaving it behind unfinished because it wasn’t mine… probably if I’d asked I could have had armloads of books. But I never thought of that, so I have to rely on the kind recollections of strangers (which on SDMB has thus far been nearly infallible). ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2007, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/99 "2007-09-16T03:30:57Z")
[QUOTE=Brain Wreck] I’ll definitely check it out. I don’t know if it’s the same one, but it sounds worth the time. [/QUOTE] The experts over at the horror board say your description fits I Am Legend, and that’s the only title they could come up with. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2007, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894/100 "2007-09-16T14:20:46Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] The experts over at the horror board say your description fits I Am Legend, and that’s the only title they could come up with. [/QUOTE] Great, thanks. It’s not the experts I’d doubt, but rather my own poor recollection and description. However I have used this board on other occasions to identify obscure sci-fi books whose details I only dimly recalled, and the success rate thus far has been 100%. I’ve ordered this one from Amazon, and we’ll find out shortly whether the success continues. Thanks again for the assistance. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-post-apocolyptic-dystopian-books-movies/418894.md?page=6)