20 best dystopian novels of all time, ranked
Welcome to an unwelcomed future.
Humanity aims for constant progress and a movement towards a superior standard of living. But what happens when everything goes wrong instead? Well, you only have to read the best dystopian novels to find out – or turn on the news to see we're only a few steps removed.
Speculating about a future that has taken a distinct turn for the worse is a mainstay of science fiction writing. There's no beautiful end point, only a joyless, dysfunctional dystopia.
We take a look at 20 best dystopian novels focusing on the darker side of life.
_____________________________________________________________
20. Noughts & Crosses (2017)
Author: Malorie Blackman
Noughts & Crosses has been given more prominence of late, thanks to a largely successful TV adaption. The source novel is superb and achingly current. It shows a world split by race - where the Noughts are the dark-skinned ruling class and the Crosses are pale-skinned lower class and used to be the slaves of Noughts. A love affair between Sephy (a Nought) and Callum (a Cross) threatens the very fabric of society.
19. Stand On Zanzibar
Author: John Brunner (1968)
The earth is over crowded, politics is decided by assassinations and there’s people trying to appease erupting volcanoes with incense. Throw in a boatload of psychotropic drugs and what you have is a dazzling and inventive dystopian nightmare. Made in the 60 but it could have been writer yesterday, that’s how close Brunner has got to the way the world currently is right now.
18. The Drowned World (1962)
Author: J.G. Ballard
Ballard paints a vivid picture of a world irreversibly changed by global warming. The cities of Europe and America lie submerged in tropical lagoons. A biologist cataloguing flora and fauna is beset with strange dreams. A global scenario that might have seemed fanciful when the book was written back in 1962, Ballard’s predictions could well end up playing out in real life very soon.
17. The Windup Girl (2009)
Author: Paolo Bacigalupi
A modern dystopian classic, Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl describes a world where catastrophes are commonplace. Global warming has caused huge sea level rises and biotechnology rules, and mega corporations - calorie companies - control food production. He creates a vivid dystopian environment, set in Thailand. Like so many on this list, it is an entirely believable one.
16. The Children Of Men (1992)
Author: PD James
PD James’ The Children of Men is a riveting book set in 2021, where mass infertility has meant that no child has been born for 25 years. Unlike the movie, which follows main protagonist Theo Faron, the book takes a number of points of view (switching between third and first person) and is a little more sci-fi in its premise, with Omegas (those born in 1995) literally allowed to get away with murder. It’s a great book in its own right, one that’s elevated by Alfonso Cuarón’s fantastic movie.