Lalami imagines a not-too-distant future in which Americans are monitored by the Risk Assessment Administration. If a person’s risk score passes a threshold, they are imprisoned…but they are not not called prisoners, they are called “retainees” where they are “free, under observation.” After a series of confusing interactions with authorities at an airport, this not-prison …
What an inspiring reminder that protest can be patriotic! Explore 25 historical moments of American resistance that helped shape our nation in the illustrated children’s book Rise Up!: Powerful Protests in American History. Today’s also the on-sale day for the much-anticipated Hunger Games prequel, Sunrise on the Reaping. NPR did a great piece on …
The world has ended, almost. On a small island the last vestiges of humanity reside peacefully under the guidance of three brilliant but emotionally removed elders. That is until one of the elders dies and slowly the Fog, the misty harbinger of the end of the world, starts creeping towards them. As the clock slowly …
A middle-aged woman wakes up and finds an invisible wall has been put up, a little ways outside where she is staying. This wall extends infinitely and everything beyond the wall is frozen in time. She finds no people living near her. She is terrified and thinks it might be some military experiment gone wrong. …
In this amazingly excellent dystopian novel, the main theme crops up often in the form of a quote from Star Trek: Voyager: “Survival is insufficient.” Besides the fact that I got the warm and fuzzies figuring the author must be a Star Trek fan, this quote perfectly describes the band of wandering musicians and Shakespearean …
[In David Yoon’s City of Orange, a] man wakes up. He has no memory. He’s not sure where he is. He’s injured and thirsty. As he explores what looks like an apocalyptic landscape for food, water, and answers, he gradually realizes everything is not as it seems. Show up for the “what the heck?” Stick …
From Marissa at Grass Roots Books & Music in Corvallis, OR, originally posted on nwbooklovers on April 11, 2018: In Zumas’s all-too-familiar dystopia set in a small Oregon coastal town, Roe v. Wade has been overturned. The narrative explores the complexity of childbearing — both the desire for and not for — and the reduction …
Octavia Butler (a Seattleite!) should be required reading, and this book is a prime example as to why. This novel follows teenage Lauren, a visionary leader dedicated to seeking freedom and safety despite the fear, violence, and complacency of those around her. You will be in awe of her at every turn. Butler transcends the …
Otaku by Chris Kluwe will have to be compared to Ernie Cline’s Ready Player One because they have a lot in common. Stop me if you’ve heard this one: a dystopian world that’s gone to hell and it would really suck if there wasn’t some kind of global virtual reality game for people to get …
“Cloud isn’t just a place to work. It’s a place to live. And when you’re here, you’ll never want to leave.” The world is dominated by Cloud, a retail conglomerate that controls everything — your home, union, healthcare, government… it’s all Cloud. Essentially, it’s the Amazon of the next decade. That’s what makes it so …
