5 Dystopian Books for Your TBR

[@DevonExplorer]

Sphere's excellent. Michael Crichton was such an accomplished writer and as a trained medical doctor he was great at science based topics. I don't think you'll be disappointed and another you might really like is Prey and the rather famous The Andromeda Strain. I read a lot of Nevil Shute's books when I was 14 yrs old, but as that was in the mid 1960s I honestly can't remember any details at all, lol. Some great books there. Cheers. :)

[@WordsinTime]

@@DevonExplorer Thanks for the info! I’m actually doubling up on Crichton this month with The Andromeda Strain and Sphere!

[@Kim_Miller]

I read On The Beach as a teenager in the 60s. It must have been pretty new back then. There are a few vaguely remembered passages still in my mind, the most prominent is the guy racing his Ferrari around a desolate Melbourne. Reading the comments about it here reminds me that its lack of action reflects the 'not with a bang but a whimper' sense of the world ending.

[@WordsinTime]

@@Kim_Miller Driving a Ferrari around Melbourne would be an experience for sure haha

[@wilhelm-z4t]

The movie's not bad, either. Don't like the mercy-killing aspect, though. It's also a political polemic. If you can ignore those aspects, an interesting read and film. Post apocalyptic but not SF. More social commentary. As I recall, the book was required reading in my high school.

[@markdurand9076]

A Canticle for Leibowitz is a classic post apocalypse novel. A must read for fans.

[@WordsinTime]

@@markdurand9076 I read it a couple of years ago. Glad you liked it!

[@wilhelm-z4t]

Absolutely!! A fantastic book. I wish they'd make a movie from it. I suppose some people might be turned-off by the traditional Christian themes, but that's their problem.

[@wilhelm-z4t]

When I was in middle school, we read a number of short stories. Things like the _Monkey's Paw, The Necklace, and Second Night Out._ All of them were amazingly good. But one stood out in particular for me. That was _By the Waters of Babylon_ by Stephen Vincent Benét. It's a post-apocalyptic short story first published July 31, 1937, in _The Saturday Evening Post_ as _The Place of the Gods._ Besides being a good story, the amazing thing is there is something in it that accurately predicts a future development or seems to. Regardless, an excellent short-story.

[@WordsinTime]

@@wilhelm-z4t Thanks for the recommendations!

[@darthandy6161]

Huzzah for Sphere! I read it almost 20 years ago, but I remember really enjoying it.

[@WordsinTime]

@@darthandy6161 Nice!

[@mormengil]

High Rise was the last book I gave to my mother to read before she passed, and she really liked it. So it has huge sentimental value for me. And also I find it extremely hard to sit down and read it now....

[@WordsinTime]

@@mormengil That’s sad but also a good memory to have ❤️

[@astrosquirrel5038]

Sphere is one of my all time novels. Crichton was brilliant and I think it’s his best work, so you’re in for a treat!

[@WordsinTime]

@@astrosquirrel5038 Awesome!

[@Scottlp2]

The movie is only so so, but I read that Dustin Hoffman said it needed more time to fix that they didn’t have.

[@DJYoue]

I've read four (I think) Crichten novels, but not got arround to Sphere yet, looking forward to hearing your take!

[@WordsinTime]

@@DJYoue I’ll be starting it pretty soon!

[@Paul_McSeol]

Handmaids Tale is amazing. Reminded me of V for Vendetta. And Sphere is my favorite Crichton book. Hope you enjoy!

[@WordsinTime]

@@Paul_McSeol I love V for Vendetta so I’m looking forward to it.

[@wilhelm-z4t]

_The Marching Morons_ is dystopian SF novella by Cyril M. Kornbluth, published in April 1951. It's a tale for our times, very much dependent on your p.o.v., though! He also wrote the excellent _The Little Black Bag._ There's also _The Day of the Triffids,_ a 1951 post-apocalyptic novel by John Wyndham. More YA, but still entertaining, I think, are _The Tripods_ series of YA SF novels by John Christopher.

[@WordsinTime]

@@wilhelm-z4t I’ve read The Day of the Triffids and quite liked it. I’ll have to check out the others.

[@toddblanchard7765]

I have read Sphere - I would call it "OK" perhaps 6 out of 10. The pages do tend to turn themselves, but in the end, it seemed to have little heft or lasting power. Enjoy.

[@WordsinTime]

@@toddblanchard7765 I’ve heard that about Crichton books. Great stories that can be anticlimactic.

[@paulallison6418]

Hi Jonathan, loved the video and what a list here! 6 great dystopian novels of which I have only read two of them. The other 4 are either already on my TBR or they soon will be. The book I know least of all is Vurt but Jeff Noon is an author on the move so I am sure it will be interesting. The rest are famous all time classics, enjoy!

[@WordsinTime]

@@paulallison6418 I’m glad you enjoyed it! And Vurt sounds unique so I’m looking forward to it.

[@rhoadsy]

Two of my favorite dystopian novels that are on the odd side are Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde and The Book of Dave by Will Self.

[@WordsinTime]

@@rhoadsy I’ve head of Shades of Grey, I’ll have to check out The Book of Dave!

[@asajohannesson2012]

I read On the Beach when I was about 17, for school. I remember liking it. I've never felt the urge to read it again. I read Ice last year, I think. It was...strange...

[@WordsinTime]

@@asajohannesson2012 That’s ominous haha

[@TuftyMcTavish]

Lots of oldies in this set... but wait, *six* seasons of “The Handmaid’s Tale”?! Whoa. I think I’ve only seen S1 and S2. I had no idea it had been chugging along for so long.

[@WordsinTime]

@@TuftyMcTavish Haha yeah I remember there being a lot of buzz when it started. Apparently it’s still going.

[@douglasdea637]

Not quite dystopian but three horror-sci-fi books that I like: 1. Lucifer's Hammer by Niven and Pournelle. A comet hits Earth and survivors fight for life. 2. Legacy of Heorot, also by Niven and Pournelle. A human colony on an alien world is beset by a series of monsters. 3. The Terror by Dan Simmons. A tale of the Franklin expedition. Two ships are stuck in ice in the frozen north when a mysterious monster attacks. For true dystopian I recently read Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. Not really sci-fi except that it takes place in the "future" of 2024+. Society is controlled by a conservative/libertarian government and communities become walled off enclaves. Everything becomes scarce as companies revert to wage slavery and corporate scrip. People go crazy with a new drug and start destroying everything. A teenage girl observes all of this as she starts working on a new religion.

[@WordsinTime]

@@douglasdea637 Thanks for the recommendations! I haven’t read The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler but recently read Dawn.

[@dipanjanbiswas6580]

Love the idea of manuscripts!

[@WordsinTime]

@@dipanjanbiswas6580 Yeah, they’re unique books!

[@NancyFeusse]

I read On the Beach in the mid-80’s, when the Cold War was going full fledge. Most of the book was good though not award-winning, but the ending was amazingly powerful! It really captured the fears that were a daily reality back then. Definitely worth reading!!!

[@WordsinTime]

@@NancyFeusse Good to hear!

[@snaredman1]

Sphere is phenomenal, I definitely think you are going to like it!

[@WordsinTime]

@@snaredman1 That’s good to hear!

[@thomasray]

The future isn't bleak, the best is yet to come!

[@WordsinTime]

@@thomasray Haha I love the optimism!

[@expressoric]

"Ice" is a really brilliant novel, in which a catastrophe is the nemesis of an evil government, and doesn't even focus on the dystopian theme. I don't like "High Rise" as much as some other novels by Ballard, but it's still very good. "The Handmaid's Tale" is very dreary. I think that "Nineteen Eighty-Four" has influenced all of those novels.

[@WordsinTime]

@@expressoric Good to know! I’m looking forward to Ice!

[@PrivateIvan]

I've read On the Beach, and I can kind of agree with Asimov; Shute's novel is aimed at "normies," trying to sway them against nuclear war. I'd rather recommend the 1959 film with Gregory Peck and an all-star cast (for the time) including a non-dancing Fred Astaire as an extremely disenchanted nuclear scientist. Actually, thinking about it: the film is *more* sci-fi than the novel, especially the very creepy scenes of the sailor armored in anti-radiation gear exploring a deserted San Francisco. Besides, the movies only about 2 hours. On the other hand, High-Rise is one of my fave Ballard novels, so I wasn't predisposed toward the film (I've started it three times and yet to finish). Enjoy your reads! Thanks for another great vid!

[@WordsinTime]

@@PrivateIvan Interesting! Thanks for the info!

[@bookjack]

I've been wanting to read Ice for awhile. Great picks. Lots I hadn't heard of

[@WordsinTime]

@@bookjack Hope you enjoy Ice!

[@JohnG225]

Ice, Handmail's Tale and Vurt have been sat on the TBR for a while. Keep meaning to get High-Rise.

[@WordsinTime]

@@JohnG225 Hope you enjoy them if you pick them up!

[@bartsbookspace]

I wonder if you’ll enjoy Ice. The “dream” feel permeates the whole novel. I thought it was a unique and at times stunning read, though I was baffled by the story and came away scratching my head.

[@WordsinTime]

@@bartsbookspace Haha sounds like a challenge.

[@lightbearer313]

If you liked High Rise, two other of his books also examining the human condition but on a smaller scale that I recommend are Crash and Concrete Island. The last one is the story of just one man, and is my favourite Ballard novel.

[@WordsinTime]

@@lightbearer313 Good to know!

[@Cosmic-Industry]

For the first time I read already more than half of the recommendations: High-Rise, 1984, The Handmaid’s Tale and Vurt. Probably Vurt is the less known of the four but it’s a proper psychedelic rollercoaster! It was one of the very first books I read in English (which is not my native language) and it took me ages to finish. I always wanted to give it a second read. High-Rise is the book that made me fall in love with Ballard. I love the social commentary behind! I read The Handmaid’s Tale exactly when the Talibans came back into power in Afghanistan, and it hit me pretty hard because I could see the plot of the book unfolding in front of my eyes. 1984 is a well beloved classic and deserves its cult status. I’m looking forward to read On the Beach and Ice!

[@WordsinTime]

@@Cosmic-Industry Nice! Those are all good reviews so I’m looking forward to them. Hope you enjoy the other two!

[@mboyle16]

Sphere is my second favorite Crichton book ever.

[@WordsinTime]

@@mboyle16 Nice! I enjoyed it!

[@mboyle16]

@ thanks for replying. I did see your thoughts on it. I'm glad you liked it. I just found it to be a sneaky psychological horror book inside a soft sci-fi book. I have subscribed to your channel. Keep up the good work.

[@WordsinTime]

@ Glad to have you as part of the channel!

[@cherylmccutchan1282]

I really need to reread Handmaid's Tale. I would add to your list of dystopian adjectives "subjugation" and "enslavement". I think Handmaid's Tale would be great in conjunction with Brave New World. I was also totally enthralled by the book and movie A Clockwork Orange so Vurt might be a good choice for me also.

[@WordsinTime]

@@cherylmccutchan1282 The Handmaid’s Tale is the next book I’m going to read!

[@cindywingetbooks]

I just bought Sphere at a library sale. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it. I am one of the few people that didn't really care for The Handmaid's Tale. I felt like the world building was lacking.

[@WordsinTime]

@@cindywingetbooks Nice, I’m looking forward to Sphere.

[@mikesnyder1788]

"On the Beach" will be too slow and too soft for many science fiction readers but when I read it back in the early 1960's the impact was devastating and long lasting! And yes "A town like Alice" is not science fiction but this story of female internees being subjected to the horrors of the Japanese Imperial Army during WWII is an electrifying novel. Nevil Shute was a masterful storyteller!

[@WordsinTime]

@@mikesnyder1788 Nice, I’m glad you enjoyed them!

[@mondostrat]

Vurt sounds like it my be up my street. Neuromancer & Clockwork Orange are a couple of favorites.

[@WordsinTime]

@@mondostrat Yeah, it sounds super cool!

[@BookishChas]

Great video Jonathan! I’ve been on the fence about reading the Handmaids tale. I’ve heard Sphere is really good.

[@WordsinTime]

@@BookishChas Cheers Chas! I’ll let you know my thoughts soon!

[@InvadrFae]

Handmaid's Tale is really good actually, I didn't think I was going to like it either, but I was surprised

[@BookishChas]

@@InvadrFae oh that’s good to hear, thank you!

[@km-bo3zx]

I read “On the Beach” when I was in high school (50+ years ago). I remember little about it, except that it was a light read, with little action. Just a slow progression to an unsatisfying ending…..

[@WordsinTime]

@@km-bo3zx Hopefully I find something in it to enjoy!

[@stephenmorton8017]

they made a movie of this one.

[@mariosalerno8766]

I've never read On the beach because it was never translated to portuguese, but I remember there is a film based on this book, starred by Gregory Peck!

[@WordsinTime]

@@mariosalerno8766 It seems people enjoyed the film!

[@buddyneher9359]

@@WordsinTime there are several films of On the Beach because it was remade a couple of times. If you only watch one, watch the original. But as with the book, seems like a lot of commenters here don't really get subtlety. A lot of what you get out of this book depends on what you bring to it.

[@OurRawHeart]

Only read On The Beach last month There was a wonderful, almost polite, naivete about impending radiation and its death knell.

[@WordsinTime]

@@OurRawHeart Interesting!

[@chromabotia]

Personally, I'm a little burned out on "dystopian" sci-fi because the world, in reality, has become so dystopian. Margret Atwood writes so well that I would recommend any of her books. Also, of note, "The Last Dangerous Visions" anthology, edited by Harlan Ellison drops this month. It is being published posthumously as Harlan Ellison passed in 2018. The man that made this happen is J. Michael Straczynski, a life long friend of Harlan Ellison. Straczynski, is known as the creator and writer of Babylon 5 (2 Hugos for Babylon 5), Sense8 and many other projects. The proceeds from this book will go to restoration of Ellison's home, " Lost Aztec Temple of Mars," in Los Angles, CA. JMS is heading the restoration efforts. Thanks Jonathan, for having the best sci-fi channel around!

[@WordsinTime]

@@chromabotia I like to read dystopian books and then take a break from them because they can be heavy or depressing. Thanks for the info on Straczynski!

[@sjoerdth]

It's probably been over 20 years since I've read them, but at one point I had a minor obsession with the books (four standalones) in the "Vurt-verse." Vurt has one of my favorite opening lines: "A young boy puts a feather into his mouth." Since it's been so long since I read them and seemingly no one is talking about these books, I started to wonder if maybe current me wouldn't agree with past me's opinion. So I'm interested in what your opinion would be. I remember Noon's prose, style and world building as something really unique, hard to describe it, the first thing that comes to mind is "jazz infused", although I'm not much of a jazz guy 😅 I wouldn't say Vurt is dystopian, but maybe that's also something I'm misremembering.

[@WordsinTime]

@@sjoerdth Sounds trippy! Looking forward to it!

[@sjoerdth]

@@WordsinTime Trippy is actually extremely apt in Vurt's case 🙂

[@stephenmorton8017]

Turner's Drowning Towers fits all your bills here. Australian Author, set in Australia and dystopian. Simmons' Flashback is set in a balkanized USA in the throes of a permanent drug epidemic. cheers! lol.

[@WordsinTime]

@@stephenmorton8017 Haha thanks for the info!

[@RenkotheLibrarian]

Vurt was recommended to me recently by a non-scifi reader. That could be a sign of a quality read. Ice has a lot of great atmosphere. Just don't expect to understand what's going on 70% of the time (at least, I had a hard time 😅)

[@WordsinTime]

@@RenkotheLibrarian Haha good to know!

[@wilhelm-z4t]

_Earth Abides_ is a 1949 post-apocalyptic SF novel by George R. Stewart. An unknown plague wipes out most of mankind and the survivors gradually revert to primitivism. Maybe only mildly dystopian. Also a little bit dated. The author was quite taken with the predator-prey model which must have been rather novel at the time. Apparently, Stephen King has said that _Earth Abides_ was an inspiration for his post-apocalyptic novel, _The Stand._ Cormac McCarthy's _The Road_ is sort of similar, too.

[@WordsinTime]

@@wilhelm-z4t Earth Abides and The Road are great. I haven’t read The Stand yet but I want to.

[@DaBIONICLEFan]

I read Shute's On the Beach 3 or 4 years ago, I remember it being pretty slow. Not much happens in it, just a forewarning - though to its credit I recall the ending being quite poignant.

[@WordsinTime]

@@DaBIONICLEFan Thanks for the heads up!

[@JSmithHendricks]

This video made me want to reach On the Beach!

[@WordsinTime]

@@JSmithHendricks Hope you enjoy!

[@JSmithHendricks]

@@WordsinTimeSo I went and read it and…it was certainly an intriguing premise, but…I found it dragged a bit. The characters and their plight were compelling at times, but I wouldn’t call it a must-read

[@WordsinTime]

@ Thanks for the heads up!

[@FrankOdonnell-ej3hd]

I’ve read Vurt and the Handmaid’s Tale and liked them both. Pretty sure On the Beach was made into a film but think I only saw part of it. Probably the only sci-fi novel I’ve read that was set in Australia was called Lexicon by Max Barry and I really loved it. Read all of Crichton’s novels and liked Sphere but it isn’t in the same league as Jurassic Park or the andromeda Strain. Be well.⚛️❤

[@WordsinTime]

@@FrankOdonnell-ej3hd Thanks for the info! I’m looking forward to those!

[@buddyneher9359]

That's a rather churlish comment of Asimov's toward On the Beach. On the Beach is a classic for a reason. And I daresay it's aged better that a fair bit o what Asimov wrote.

[@WordsinTime]

@@buddyneher9359 Hopefully I like it more than he did!

[@LadyPhoenix62]

If you haven’t read Swan Song by Robert McCammon, I highly recommend it. It’s a post nuclear war story with a touch of the supernatural

[@WordsinTime]

@@LadyPhoenix62 I’ve heard great things!

[@Deosis]

I watched the movie adaptation of Sphere, which was nice enough, and I keep forgetting Crichton write it. Haven't read the book.

[@WordsinTime]

@@Deosis He had so many books get adapted, it’s impressive,

[@Unpotted]

Space horror is the only kind of horror I read. The Alien and Predator novels are a lot of fun, as well as any alien invasion novel. Btw, had no idea you were in the USA now. Whereabouts? 😺✌️

[@WordsinTime]

@@Unpotted I used to live in Sydney and now I live in Los Angeles.

[@douglasdea637]

I recommend Legacy of Heorot, by Niven and Pournelle. A human colony on an alien world is beset by monsters.

[@MirrorReaper1]

Ice is one of Bookpilled's all-time favourites, so just be warned. :p

[@WordsinTime]

@@MirrorReaper1 Haha I hope I like it

[@TheRealPaulMarshall]

'On the Beach' is not science fiction. It uses a nuclear war to ask the question: If you knew that you would die on the day after tomorrow, why would you do the particular things that you would do tomorrow? It does that very well.

[@WordsinTime]

That’s an interesting thought experiment.

[@lissavanhouten6628]

Another possibility?: Adrian Tchaikovsky's Cage of Souls.

[@WordsinTime]

@@lissavanhouten6628 Nice! I’ve read 3 Tchaikovsky books but haven’t read Cage of Souls yet.

[@lissavanhouten6628]

@@WordsinTime I just started reading some of his works. I like his writing and the interesting ideas, worlds and characters he comes up with.

[@marjoriedonnett5467]

I read On the Beach many years ago and was relieved to know that the science in the novel doesn't work (but frightening alternative dystopian endings sometimes do work, scientifically, unfortunately). Great book, though. 1984, which I've read more than once, seems more and more possible. I absolutely hated The Handmaid's Tale, and avoid that author's novels as much as possible.

[@WordsinTime]

@@marjoriedonnett5467 Interesting!

[@tomhunter7672]

I find that the newer generation of readers do not enjoy books such as "House on Haunted Hill", or "On the Beach." Probably always happens. different eras; different styles. "On the Beach" is character driven. The world is coming to an end. How will the survivors react.

[@buddyneher9359]

I agree. Subtlety seems to be lost on a lot of commenters here, who may be representative of newer generations of readers.

[@WordsinTime]

@@tomhunter7672 Thanks for the info!

[@psikeyhackr6914]

Saw the movie, On the Beach, multiple times but never read the book.

[@WordsinTime]

@@psikeyhackr6914 Must have been pretty good!

[@psikeyhackr6914]

@@WordsinTime Fred Astaire was Cool!

[@danielsan99999]

Hi Jonathan! I have read On the Beach 3 times in the past 35 years. Is not, by any means, dystopian. Also, is not Post apocalyptic, is plain Apocalyptic! Is one of the bleakest novels ever writen. I can´t recomend it enough!!!

[@WordsinTime]

@@danielsan99999 I’m glad you enjoyed it! I feel like any apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic setting is an inherently dystopian future so the different subgenres can overlap.

[@TheRedPolyhedral]

I've read On the Beach, and it is not a book to be lightly set aside. It is a book to be hurled aside with great force. It is a hateful book, and I'd also say it isn't really sci-fi: for me it's speculative fiction or alternative history. Without wishing to spoil the plot for anyone, there is a baby involved at one point, which the author repeatedly refers to as "it" rather than "she". I found the characters fairly shallow and even two-dimensional at times As another comment said, it is a light read, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Use the paper to light your fire or line your hamster's cage instead. Asimov didn't go far enough in his criticism. If you want a good classical dystopian sci-fi book, try Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, or even Ape and Essence by the same author.

[@WordsinTime]

@@TheRedPolyhedral Uh oh. Good to know haha

[@thomasoa]

I was disappointed with Hi-Rise. It is more allegory or metaphor than science fiction, more Animal Farm than 1984. There isn't really an explanation for why the rest of the world doesn't matter. But maybe going in knowing that will make it less frustrating to read.

[@WordsinTime]

@@thomasoa Good to know!

[@excaliburknives3572]

The fact that The Road by Cormac McCarthy isn’t up here is a crime.

[@WordsinTime]

@@excaliburknives3572 I’ve already read it. It was in my top 25 sci-fi books of all time list. This isn’t a “best of” list, it’s books that I purchased recently.

[@excaliburknives3572]

@@WordsinTime oh my bad. Sorry.

[@wilhelm-z4t]

Yeah, a great gothic post-apocalyptic tale. Really, really depressing, though. Again, the film is pretty good, too. Also depressing as fook!

[@thecryptile]

On The Beach is a very bleak read and made into an equally bleak film; which is on KZbin right now.

[@WordsinTime]

@@thecryptile Good to know!

[@reynoldsmathey]

Just finished The Handmaid's Tale. A prescient and important book, made more relevant than ever. I have hopes that this will never happen, though. The people in the book looked like they were sleepwalking into authoritarianism and I don't see that happening in a contemporary America because we are able to communicate directly to one another without recourse to a central authority.

[@WordsinTime]

@@reynoldsmathey That’s a good point. I wonder what a difference technology such as social media and instant messaging would make in this kind of scenario.