Any dystopian future (or other sci-fi) books I can't miss?

[gorcorps]

Dystopian future sci-fi books are my favorite. I've read a ton of them, and I'm starting to think I don't have many good ones left. So let me know what I've missed.

What I've read (and can remember off the bat):
Fahrenheit 451
1984
Brave New World
The Road
The Hunger Games trilogy (just finishing it, highly recommended even as a "young adult" series)
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
The Running Man
The Chrysalids
The Giver (there's more in this series I haven't read yet and I know of)
I Am Legend
A Scanner Darkly

What else have I missed? It also doesn't NEED to be this genre, as I've enjoyed other sci-fi stuff too... but I've always found even "bad" dystopian future books quite interesting. I can google some lists but they're pretty much all what I've read already. And I'd rather have personal recs from people here.

 

[trmiv]

In the "other" sci-fi category: "Hyperion" and "The Fall of Hyperion"

 

[Kadarin]

Frank Herbert's Hellstrom's Hive

 

[HAL9000]

Douglas Adams - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

 

[Angry Irishman]

I just picked up a signed copy of Fahrenheit 451...it's beautiful and one of my favorite books of all time.

I'll second I am legend. Not anything like the movie and a quick interesting read.

 

[dighn]

In the "other" sci-fi category: "Hyperion" and "The Fall of Hyperion"

just came in here to recommend the hyperion cantos. epic series and it's pretty dark.

 

[magomago]

forever war

 

[trmiv]

just came in here to recommend the hyperion cantos. it is epic and dystopia is an element of it.

Yea I guess it is dystopian. Set quite a bit further in the future than a lot of dystopian books though. Either way, absolutely excellent. I never continued on to Endymion or Rise of Endymion though.

 

[thecrecarc]

The Postman is classic.

 

[gorcorps]

Frank Herbert's Hellstrom's Hive

Interesting... added to the list

Douglas Adams - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

I've read the first 4 or so already. The first couple were very good. I was actually impressed that the movie did a good job of keeping the same sense of humor and feel as the book.

 

[Malak]

Have you read Dune yet? Because that's like 15 books, would keep you busy. Covers like 15,000 years of history, showing political, religious, and social shifts.

 

[HAL9000]

I've read the first 4 or so already. The first couple were very good. I was actually impressed that the movie did a good job of keeping the same sense of humor and feel as the book.

Yeah I'd agree with that! It was good fun.

 

[dr150]

In the "other" sci-fi category: "Hyperion" and "The Fall of Hyperion"

This!! :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

A Hugo Award winner no less.

 

[artikk]

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion.

 

[Kadarin]

Yea I guess it is dystopian. Set quite a bit further in the future than a lot of dystopian books though. Either way, absolutely excellent. I never continued on to Endymion or Rise of Endymion though.

You should. Endymion is the weakest of the series IMO, but it does do an excellent setup for an amazing and powerful finale.

 

[Fayd]

Have you read Dune yet? Because that's like 15 books, would keep you busy. Covers like 15,000 years of history, showing political, religious, and social shifts.

also the dosadi experiment from herbert is kind of interesting. it's not so much that the galaxy is a dystopia, but that the galaxy is about to get it's shit slapped.

 

[M0RPH]

A Canticle for Leibowitz

A Canticle for Leibowitz opens 600 years after 20th century civilization has been destroyed by a global nuclear war, known as the "Flame Deluge".

(on topic, unlike some books suggested here)

 

[Kadarin]

Interesting... added to the list

While you're at it you could check out The Santaroga Barrier.

In the "other science fiction" category:

Walter Jon Williams - Aristoi
Glen Cook - The Dragon Never Sleeps
Peter F. Hamilton - The Dreaming Void (trilogy)
Ian McDonald - Desolation Road

 

[sjwaste]

Marked. Great reading list.

I finished Asimov's Foundation series and am now on the last of the Robot series, Robots and Empire. Actually, I'm waiting for it to become available on the Nook.

I'd recommend those two as well, but they're not necessarily dystopian.

 

[PottedMeat]

A Canticle for Leibowitz

A Canticle for Leibowitz opens 600 years after 20th century civilization has been destroyed by a global nuclear war, known as the "Flame Deluge".

(on topic, unlike some books suggested here)

came to recommend this. i picked it up after watching b5 - deconstruction of falling stars

 

[nublikescake]

Don't forget "We". It's the precursor to most of these books.

 

[thecrecarc]

Don't forget "We". It's the precursor to most of these books.

We is pretty good. It makes 1984 seem like a copy.

 

[nageov3t]

A Canticle for Leibowitz

A Canticle for Leibowitz opens 600 years after 20th century civilization has been destroyed by a global nuclear war, known as the "Flame Deluge".

(on topic, unlike some books suggested here)

exactly what I was going to recommend

I'd also say "On the Beach" -- it's not a light-hearted sci-fi adventure novel, but it's pretty great. probably the best anti-war book I've ever read, it's about a town on the edge of Australia after the rest of the world has been annihilated by nuclear war and fallout, waiting for the wind currents to bring the fallout to them as well.

"The Stand" obviously bears mentioning as well.

and this may be reaching, but I'd also throw out "World War Z" and "Day by Day Armageddon"

 

[chelhxi]

Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents - Octavia Butler. One of my all time favorite authors.

 

[Mermaidman]

River of Gods

Near-future stuff, set in India.