e a lake's Top Five Dystopian Books

You might ask yourself, "What brought lake to writing in the dystopian genre?" Great question. I believe this can be answered with a quick review of my top five favorite Dystopian Books of all time.


The List:

1. 1984 - George Orwell
     I read this book in high school and it's stuck with me ever since. The world and society that Orwell so freely created was my first taste of the genre. Everything was so real to me in this novel; then and still today. I have read this dystopian book no less than five times.

2. The Gulag Archipelago - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
     Again, a book I read in high school. And while not fictional dystopian I still consider it set quite squarely in this genre. I mean where else was more dystopian than the 1960s and 70s Soviet Union? Read this dystopian book; you will see how real life can be real bad.

3. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
     This, my friends, is a true classic penned back in the mid 80s. Taking place in the near future in the Republic of Gilead, the story is as dystopian as it gets. If you haven't read this dystopian book, I highly recommend it.

4. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
     This is the shiny side of dystopia when compared to 1984. The government wants you to be happy and gives you the ability to do so. Population is controlled with test tube babies. It took me a while to get into this book, but once there - I was hooked.

5. The Most Dangerous Game - Richard Connell
   Here, we are probably looking at more of a short story than a full length book (although I do see it for sale on Amazon - all 25 pages of it). But I want it on the list, for several reasons. First, this 1920s classic will make the hair on the back of your neck go into perma-stand-on-end mode. Second, it more or less supports the myth that there are "no original writings" any longer. Some will claim that a very popular trilogy sprung from this writing. I'm fine with it either way.

Do You Have any Favorites?

Please add any that tickle you fancy in the comments below. We can even debate if dystopian and post-apocalyptic are the same. Or if one is a sub-genre of the other.


Unless next time, read one from my list. Any will get you hooked in the genre.


lake