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Classic Post-Apoc/Dystopian Books and Partials ARC Winner

2/12/2012

13 Comments

 
When Flannery asked me to write a guest post for The Year of the Classics, I was thrilled.  As a teenager I read classics almost exclusively (nerd alert).  Ironically, now that I’m thirty I spend most of my time reading books that were written for young adults.  Of course that’s obviously not a big deal because thirty is still young.  That’s what I like to tell myself anyway.  I often wonder what our generation’s classics will be – will they be the obscure critical darlings, or the massively popular best sellers? 

Sometimes when I think about the latest dystopian/post-apocalyptic trend, it makes me afraid for the future of this world – like the trend itself is a symptom of our collective acknowledgment that the world will be ending soon. But then I comfort myself by remembering that we’ve been imagining different versions of this world's demise for centuries.  See, the classics aren’t just timeless works of art; they’re useful too. For false but comforting piece of mind!

In honor of the Partials giveaway today, I thought I’d go back and revisit some of my favorite classics in dystopian/post-apocalyptic science fiction.  In any genre, it’s interesting to go back to where it all started.  (For a very comprehensive, not to mention stunning view of science fiction in general – check out this map).  But in this genre it’s particularly interesting, because we’re now living in the time that many of these books tried to envision.  Some of their predictions seem silly now, but some have proven disconcertingly accurate. 

1984 Orwell cover
1984 by George Orwell
First published in 1949

This should be an absolute staple for any dystopian fan.  Orwell’s vision of the future is utterly frightening, all the more so because it’s a plausible one.  In an intensely rigid “utopian” society where surveillance and mind-control are widespread, Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth, revising news and media from the past to fit current propaganda, even as he dreams of breaking free.  Orwell’s vivid descriptions have proven to be, in many ways, prophetic.  

“War is peace.
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is
strength.”


Brave New World cover
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
First published in 1932

Aldous Huxley imagined a no less controlling, but very different future than that of George Orwell.  In the society of Brave New World, humanity is mass-produced and conditioned to perform different tasks, resulting in a highly compartmentalized society.  The elite “alphas” live deceptively free lives – being consumers, having sex (but never relationships), and drugging themselves happy.  When outcast alpha Bernard Marx goes on vacation to visit the “savages,” a group of people living in a more collective way, he encounters John, the son of a lost alpha.  Bernard brings him back into society, but John can’t adapt.

“But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real
danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin.”


Fahrenheit 451 cover
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Originally published in 1950

Another chilling prediction of the future – especially frightening for all of us book nerds. Imagine a society in which all literature is banned and must be burned.  Television watching is a major part of everyday life and too much thinking is discouraged.  Sound a bit too familiar?  Guy Montag is a fireman – only in this society firemen don’t put out fires.  They start them.  Guy loves his job: hunting down and burning illegal books and the homes of those who keep them.  But a chance encounter with a young girl sparks Guy’s thoughts, and soon he becomes dangerously curious.

“We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once
in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?”


Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? cover
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
By Philip K. Dick

Originally published in 1968

Philip K. Dick is, in my opinion, the master of the plot-twist.  I always feel excited and a bit nervous when I start one of his stories: I never know what’s going to come next.  In this classic novella, much of the Earth’s organic life has become extinct after mass nuclear war and is now considered precious.  The majority of humanity has fled from Earth to live more comfortably on other planets.  Rick Deckard is a bounty hunter who tracks down and exterminates androids who are passing as human.  This is a very thought-provoking work about empathy and what it means to be human and alive.

“Empathy, he once had decided, must be limited to herbivores or
anyhow omnivores who could depart from a meat diet. Because, ultimately, the empathic gift blurred the boundaries between hunter and victim, between the successful and the defeated.”

Snow Crash cover
Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson
Originally published in 1992

“But wait…” I hear you say. “This book was published after 1980 and the author is in fact still alive.”  Well, these authors aren’t the only ones who can make predictions.  For my last trick I thought I’d predict a classic of the future.  Dun dun dun!  In this novel, Neal Stephenson describes a world in which everything has been privatized: governments, jails, chop-shops, and even the mafia. The Earth is so overcrowded that people live in tiny storage units – if they’re lucky.  But thankfully there’s the metaverse: a virtual world where people go to escape the real one.  It already sounds familiar!  And did I mention that this novel is incredibly funny?

“Most countries are static, all they need to do is keep having babies. But America's like this big old clanking smoking machine that just lumbers across the landscape scooping up and eating everything in sight.”

And now that you've read through my first post here, I will reward you by handing out fabulous prizes! Many congratulations to Rachel H., the winner of Partials by Dan Wells!
Partials ARC Giveaway Winner
I had so much fun writing this guest post that I've decided to move in here.  Lucky for me, Flannery and Tatiana seem okay with it.  They haven't thrown my stuff out on the curb yet anyway....

I am so happy to be a new member of the Readventurers.  Being a third wheel has never felt this good!
Readventurer C Signature
13 Comments
Tatiana link
2/12/2012 01:36:37 am

Welcome, Catie!

And great post.

Reply
Flannery (The Readventurer) link
2/12/2012 01:40:00 am

Catie! I am so excited about your post. Even though I knew of most of these books, I get pumped up every time someone recommends them. I had to read Fahrenheit in seventh grade and I haven't read it since then. So shameful. Since this is the Year of the Classics, I hope to read every book on this list.

Thanks for joining us!

Reply
Tatiana (The Readventurer) link
2/12/2012 01:57:23 am

I've read 2 out of the 5 books on the list and am pumped up to read the other 3 now. You sell them well:)

Cassi Haggard link
2/12/2012 02:17:07 am

I tried to read Brave New World when I was WAAAAAY too young for it. Totally freaked me out and I never finished it.

(Bought it at a flea-market, maybe middle school or so. I can't exactly remember when)

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
2/12/2012 02:34:50 am

Thanks for making me feel so welcome! I am looking forward to reading a few more sci-fi classics this year myself.

Cassi - these books are all pretty frightening. It's amazing how relevant many of them are right now. You might give it another try!

Reply
Cassi Haggard link
2/12/2012 03:44:28 am

I've always planned to. You know how hard it is to get around to books though. So many books not ever enough time!

Reply
Jessica
2/12/2012 02:50:39 am

When I was in college my senior capstone course in political science was called Politics of the Future. We read Fahrenheit 451 as part of the course and had to write our own utopia.

I've never read 1984, I should add it to my list.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
2/12/2012 10:27:20 am

You should Jessica! It's intense and well worth the read.

Reply
Chachic link
2/12/2012 12:22:33 pm

Congrats on your first post! Looking forward to seeing more of you here, Catie. :)

Reply
Maja
2/12/2012 04:42:27 pm

Ohh, your family is expanding! I'm so happy for you, ladies.

Catie, I guess I should definitely go back to Snow Crash. I don't even remember why I put it on hold, but that nice (and very expensive) paperback keeps staring at me from my shelf. Mean book.

Amazing first post. I can't wait to read more.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
2/12/2012 10:15:20 pm

It's so great to see you two ladies here! I hope to be hanging out over at The Book Nook and The Nocturnal Library quite a bit more now too. I'm excited to be a new member of this blogging world. Thanks for the welcome!

Maja, I hope you pick it up again someday because I think you'd find it hilarious!

Reply
Ireland hotel link
3/4/2012 06:30:01 pm

I’m very interested in, I just started reading and I’m glad I did. You’re a great blogger, one of the best that I’ve seen. This blog definitely has some information on topic that I just wasn’t aware of. Thanks for bringing this stuff to light.

Reply
creazione siti web link
3/5/2012 06:32:51 pm

I must say, you’ve got one of the best blogs I’ve seen in a long time. What I wouldn’t give to be able to create a blog that’s as interesting as this. I guess Ill just have to keep reading yours and hope that one day I can write on a subject with as much knowledge as you’ve got on this one!

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