THE DYSTOPIAN TREND
GUEST POST
ALEX FROM ELECTRIFYING REVIEWS
I look at Alex as a friend and a blogging trend-setter. He is not shy about putting himself out there and speaking his mind about books, blogging, and the latest thing. Alex is known to change the name and layout of his blog as often as he changes his hairstyle. He also has the very best book cover posts on the internet! For sure. Today, Alex blogs about the dystopian trend - one of my favorites. You can also visit him at Electrifying Reviews.
If you follow young adult books like I do, you have probably noticed that the genre seems to go through lots of trends, just like everything else. The last two were vampires and angels. Both trends got about a year when they dominated the young adult book market. Now, we are heading towards the future. The future, my friends, is dystopian.
Dystopian fiction, for those of you who don't know, is a futuristic society, usually set in the near future, where the world has basically changed drastically due to science, disease, and other types of holocaust. There is dystopian where the government controls everything (Matched, The Hunger Games), and then there are those where the government ceases to exist (Enclave). For me, I love them both.
The thing about dystopian is that there is really no limits. You could write about how the world has been taken over by giant fish who can also fly and can only eat bananas, and it could still be considered dystopian. I was just talking with an author friend last night who was talking about her latest WIP--a dystopian novel set in 2075 on the moon. See, there is really nothing you can't do when it comes to this amazing genre.
Though the fame of angels and vampires seems to have dwindled, I hope that dystopian novels can stay in the limelight for quite some time. They are my latest addiction, and I am always looking for a new dystopian to fill my appetite.
Now, I am going to talk about some of my favorite dystopian novels, along with some that I hope to read very soon.
My Favorites:
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
One of the most famous dystopian books, about a society where the government takes two dozen kids and puts them in a battle to the death, broadcast on live television for the world to see.
Matched by Ally Condie
In this book, the government decides everything. But when a girl falls in love with a guy that isn't the one she has been matched with, all hell breaks loose.
Wither by Lauren DeStefano
In this one, girls die at 21, guys at 25. Females are sold as wives to men in this startling brilliant book.
Enclave by Ann Aguirre
When a virus kills most people in the world, there are clans of people fighting to stay alive, with the constant threat of zombies, gangs, and warring clans at every turn.
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
Both of these are set in the same world, one infested with zombies. Romance and terror mix to create some truly amazing books.
Dystopians I Am Dying For:
Divergent by Veronica Roth
In this world, all sixteen-year-olds must decide how they want to live the rest of their lives. There is no turning back.
Blood Red Road by Moira Young
A desolate wasteland sweeps the main character away into a world she could never imagine.
Possession by Elana Johnson
Girls and boys aren't allowed to fall in love, and the main character is being pressured to join a group of brainwashed leaders.
XVI by Julia Karr
For girls, innocence expires at sixteen. From there on out, there is no punishment for sexually violating girls.
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Can love be cured? In this world it can.
Those That Wake by Jesse Karp
When New York City is destroyed, some may fight to survive.
So, do you love dystopian as much as me? What are some of your favorites?
0 comments:
Post a Comment