# Recommend Some Books Please **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 1, 2003, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600 "2003-07-01T16:08:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Penumbra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9f8e36/32.png) [@Penumbra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penumbra)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/1 "2003-07-01T16:08:14Z")
Recently I have become a big fan of Political Tragedy novels such as Orwells 1984 and Animal Farm, This Perfect Day by Ira Levin, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Jennifer Government by Max Barry… But those are the only books that I have been able to find in the political tragedy novel genre. If anyone has any other good books of this type that you would like to recommend for my reading pleasure it would be much appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Asylum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/53a042/32.png) [@Asylum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asylum)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/2 "2003-07-01T17:10:05Z")
You could try The Iron Heel by Jack London. It’s pretty much just bad socialist propaganda, but it came out in 1907, long before Brave New World or 1984 hit the scene so it might be of some interest. It can be a bit difficult to find, but your local bookstore should be able to order it for you. You also might want to check out Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, although that’s a bit more of novel about cultural tragedy as opposed to political. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/3 "2003-07-01T18:03:35Z")
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/4 "2003-07-01T18:04:47Z")
Check out Oryx & Crake by Margaret Atwood - it’s her latest and it really brought to mind both 1984 and Brave New World. Actually, The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera may appeal. Of course, it’s set in a real world Prague when a whole lot of political shit is going down. Great, albiet depressing. ---
**Author:** ![Quantum\_Butterfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e79b87/32.png) [@Quantum\_Butterfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quantum_Butterfly)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/5 "2003-07-01T18:36:38Z")
You would probably get more hits on this topic in Cafe Society. Any friendly mods want to shift a thread? ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/6 "2003-07-01T21:13:19Z")
> [@](#): > > You would probably get more hits on this topic in Cafe Society. Any friendly mods want to shift a thread? Yup. Try _The Moneychangers_ by Sinclair Lewis. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/7 "2003-07-01T21:18:22Z")
Whoops. That’s Upton Sinclair, not Sinclair Lewis. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/8 "2003-07-01T21:28:45Z")
And another you might enjoy. Not _exactly_ what you’re looking for, but it’s worth a read. _Men Like Gods_, by H. G. Wells. I’m pretty sure it’s out of print, but used copies are readily available for a reasonable price. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2003, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/9 "2003-07-01T22:08:27Z")
All The King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy ---
**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:** [July 1, 2003, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-books-please/185600/10 "2003-07-01T22:51:40Z")
the people’s choice by jeff greenfield