Monday, August 11, 2014

Ten of the best dystopias

At the Observer, Guy Lodge rounded up ten of the best dystopias in fiction, film, art, and television, including:
The Giver
Lois Lowry, 1993

You can’t move for grim prophecies and romantic anti-authoritarianism in young adult fiction these days. The Hunger Games and Divergent, among many others, have latched on to the blend of profound scepticism and socially conscious idealism that bristles in 21st-century teens. All of which makes Lowry’s remarkable children’s novel – about a young boy elected to store all human memories preceding his society’s faux-utopia of Sameness – seem even more forward-thinking than it did on its publication in 1993, when it was challenged by numerous American parents’ councils and school library boards. More philosophically probing than its contemporary competition, and better-written too.
Read about another entry on the list.

The Giver made Joel Cunningham's list of six great young adult book series for fans of The Hunger Games and Lauren Davis's top ten list of science fiction’s most depressing futuristic retirement scenarios.

Writers Read: Lois Lowry (July 2009).

Read--Coffee with a Canine: Lois Lowry & Alfie.

--Marshal Zeringue