For so long I’ve been wanting to create a post about my dystopian books collection.
According to Wikipedia, a dystopia is a society characterized by a focus on that which is contrary to the author's ethos, such as mass poverty, public mistrust and suspicion, a police state or oppression.
I actually don’t know why but I do enjoy dystopian literature so much. The inverted world, the future that is based on the present but with war, death, depression and oppression. As depressing as they may be, they are so interesting to read.
And since I accumulated a number of dystopian books or novels I thought of sharing them in this post. Here they are:
The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
In 2015 I finished reading The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins.
It was a children's book but still such a good read for people who would enjoy an easy-to-read book filled with drama, love story and adventure.
Each book actually has its own magic for me.
The Hunger Games (Book 1) sets a good foundation and will make you want to read the next book. Catching Fire (Book 2) is filled with romance and the Peeta-Katniss-Gale love triangle was more emphasized. This book is what made me a Team Peeta actually. Mockingjay (Book 3) is a bit boring at first but once you are in the ending it will build some lasting tension.
Ready Player One by Earnest Cline
I really enjoyed reading Ready Player One. I name it as my best read of 2019.
This book is so A-M-A-Z-I-N-G-L-Y written that you won't be able to put it down. At least that's what happened to me. I picked this up from my bookshelf just to read the first few pages and surprisingly found it hard to let go. I finished 120 pages of it on day 1.
Ready Player One follows teenager Wade Watts as he tries to win the most important game in the OASIS, a virtual reality simulator accessible to anyone.
I was surprised that I enjoyed reading this book since I am not a gamer and I have no idea experience playing games where you have a character aside from Temple Run. HAHA. But the way the story is written/narrated will make you feel like you are in the same world as the character. I had such a good reading experience that I read it whenever and wherever I can. I was able to finish it in a span of one week reading at most a 45 minutes within a day.
Ready Player One definitely deserves a spot in my best books I’ve read ever!
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
I’ve read Fahrenheit 451 in September 2018 and it quickly became part of my unforgettable reads of all time.
Fahrenheit 451 is in a different level of reading experience that The Giver provided. Although both are dystopian-themed, book burning which is the central plot of Fahrenheit 451 did exist in the real world like the Nazi Book Burning.
Bradbury touched such a sensitive topic and turned it into an exemplary novel that will make you think and wonder what if. I struggled reading the first 25 pages of the book because of how bizarre the writing style is. I felt like I needed to read twice the paragraphs just to make sure I understood what was happening in the story.
But it is a good classic book to read. The fact that it is a story about the importance of literature and how knowledge through reading could change how a community acts is well represented in the totality of the novel.
The most surprising thing for me while reading the book was how the Bible and its important verses were presented. I didn’t expect Bradbury to include that. Even at the ending, Montag mentioned one of my life verses Ecclesiastes 3.
The Running Man by Stephen King
The Running Man was my first Stephen King novel ever read. It has an interesting plot. The story revolves around Ben Richards who lives in a dystopian America. He joined this ultraviolent TV game called The Running Man.
In the show The Running Man, contestants become a public enemy no. 1 for 30 days. You are given a new identity and must hide for the next month with only pocket money and a camera in your hand.
Your day-to-day struggle is being broadcasted to the public. And the public can reveal your hiding place for a chance to win a portion of your prize.
Reading the book was such a pleasure. I felt like I was in the show as well wherein I run and hide together with Ben Richards. When the reality of the society they lived in was revealed, I got so emotional.
Never Let Me Go by Kazue Ishiguro
This book has been my second read for the year. And it’s a devastating dystopian-themed book.
Never Let Me Go presents the story of friends Katie, Tommy and Ruth who were friends/schoolmates at a boarding school called Hailsham. Hailsham was a school designed for students who were destined to be organ donors in their adult life.
This book was intense. As slow as the story is in the beginning, you don’t want to miss reading this book until the end. It was the saddest, most intense storyline ever.
Dystopian Books I Haven’t Read Yet
I am Legend by Richard Matheson
I am Legend is set in a post-apocalyptic world. I haven’t read the book yet but I have seen the movie adaptation starring Will Smith.
Here’s a quick intro plot about I am Legend from Wikipedia -
In 2009, a genetically re-engineered measles virus, originally created as a cure for cancer, turned lethal. The virus kills 90% (5.4 billion out of 6 billion) of the world's population and turns 9.8% (588 million) into vampiric, cannibalistic mutants called Darkseekers, who are extremely vulnerable to sunlight, that kill 0.2% (12 million) who were immune to the virus. Three years after the outbreak, U.S. Army virologist Lt. Col. Robert Neville lives an isolated life in the deserted ruins of Manhattan, unsure if any other uninfected humans are left.
The book seems like a quick read but I have never touched it yet since I bought it. Hoping to read it this year.
World War Z by Max Brooks
I’ve seen the movie twice already and really loved it. I tried reading the book, I got to at least 25 pages of it but I couldn’t read through it yet.
Unlike the movie, the book presents its story like a post-apocalyptic report of what the different countries did to solve the zombie invasion.
The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
Another book I bought that is dystopia-themed. I have yet to read the book but here’s a quick intro part about The Girl with All the Gifts from Wikipedia --
Twenty years ago humanity was infected by a variant of the fungus called Ophiocordyceps unilateralis. The infected, referred to as "hungries", quickly lose their mental powers and feed on the flesh of healthy humans. The disease spreads through blood and saliva, but can also spread through spores created by the fungus. In England, the few surviving uninfected humans either live in heavily guarded areas such as Beacon, or roam in packs of hostile, scavenging "junkers".
This actually has a movie adaptation but I never got to see. Hoping to read this as well since the storyline sounds great.
That’s it for today’s post.
.png)
No comments