Futuristic, Speculative, Science Fiction and Dystopian Fiction for Young Adults
June 25, 2008
UPDATED to add: An amended version of this list is now available here. Please click through to see the updated list.
Last week, I had a contest by which people could win a copy of Mary Pearson's latest book, The Adoration of Jenna Fox (reviewed here). I asked people, as kind of a bonus question, to "recommend another futuristic, speculative, science fiction or dystopian fiction title aimed at young adults." And the suggestions poured in. Here is a summary (alphabetical by author), with many thanks to everyone who commented. Note that a few are crossover titles, published for adults but with teen appeal.
- Feed by M. T. Anderson, recommended by Sara Lewis Holmes, Anna Marie, , Laura, and Kim.
- The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, recommended by Rebecca B. and Gautami Tripathy.
- Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, recommended by Rebecca B.
- Jennifer Government by Max Barry, recommended by Lenore.
- The Voyage Begun by Nancy Bond, recommended by Charlotte.
- Sky Horizon by David Brin, recommended by Cindi.
- The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier, recommended by Renee.
- Airhead by Meg Cabot, recommended by Gretchen.
- Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, recommended by Jen Rouse and Mrs. Hill.
- The Obernewtyn series by Isobelle Carmody, recommended by Emmaco.
- The Tripods Trilogy by John Christopher, recommended by Laura.
- City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, recommended by Eliza.
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, recommended by Jen.
- Eva by Peter Dickinson, suggested by Anamaria.
- Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, recommended by Anna Marie and Laura.
- Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn, recommended by Kate.
- The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, recommended by Tessa.
- Enchantress from the Stars (and sequels) by Sylvia Engdahl, recommended by Sara Lewis Holmes.
- The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer, recommended by Janssen and Laura.
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding, recommended by JenFW.
- Found (The Missing, Book 1) by Margaret Peterson Haddix, recommended by Kristine Michael and Mrs. Hill. (Reviewed here)
- Into the Forest by Jean Hegland, recommended by Lenore
- Green Angel by Alice Hoffman, recommended by Rebecca B.
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, recommended by JenFW.
- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, recommended by Sue Sirgany and Christie.
- Children of Men by P.D. James, recommended by Sherry Early
- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, recommended by Hank
- Out of the Silent Planet (and sequels) by C. S. Lewis, recommended by Hank
- The Giver by Lois Lowry, recommended by Megan Germano, Tasses, Laura, Kristen, and Eliza.
- Messenger by Lois Lowry, recommended by Tasses
- Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry, recommended by Nan Hoekstra and Tasses.
- The Declaration by Gemma Malley, recommended by WEB and Sherry Early. (Reviewed here)
- Z is for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien, recommended by Renee.
- 1984 by George Orwell, recommended by JenFW and Kristen.
- Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, recommended by Rebecca B. and Jen. (Reviewed here)
- The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett, recommended by Tessa.
- The Hungry City Chronicles by Philip Reeve, recommended by Laura.
- The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex, recommended by anonymous.
- How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff, recommended by JenFW, Laura, and Alessandra.
- Unwind by Neal Shusterman, recommened by Abby (the) Librarian and Sherry Early
- The Time Machine by H. G. Wells, recommended by Hank
- The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, recommended by Abby (the) Librarian, cuileann, Laura, Tessa, and Eliza. (Reviewed here)
- Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin, recommended by Sara Lewis Holmes and Jen. (Reviewed here)
I'm going to add (in addition to the many excellent titles above):
- The Fire-Us series by Jennifer Armstrong and Nancy Butcher
- Exodus by Julie Bertagna. (Reviewed here)
- Neptune's Children by Bonnie Dobkin. (Reviewed here)
- The Other Side of the Island by Allegra Goodman.
- Rash by Pete Hautman. (Reviewed here)
- Fearless by Tim Lott. (Reviewed here)
- The Stand by Stephen King.
- The Tomorrow series by John Marsden. (Reviewed here)
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
- The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson
- The dead & the gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer. (Reviewed here)
- The Traces series by Malcolm Rose (Reviewed here)
Any other suggestions? Please note that this list is not comprehensive - it merely represents some suggested titles in this genre by readers of the blog. But I am happy to continue adding to it. See also Little Willow's Dystopia Booklist and (found via LW) the Dystopian Literature Wikipedia page.
© 2009 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.