Utopian and Dystopian Reading Group discussion

Does anyone have any thoughts on what we should read in July?

I have added some more books to the to-read list from 'Key works of Utopian Literature and Thought' from my handy Cambridge Companion. There are now 36 books on there. Does anyone have one they're keen to read or that they have read recently and think would be great for the group? I could also make you discussion leader :) (as I'm clearly not provoking much discussion at the moment!)
Or any other book suggetions?

The Possibility of an Island by Michel Houellebecq. I`ve enjoyed it.

This is really interesting you, I hadn't even heard of this before! I will add it to the to-read list.

I want to start reading when I'm done with my current read; which isn't dystopian, it's vampiric; but this one sounds soooooo good!

There are many good ones on the bookshelf. I wanted to clarify, we are not including YA dystopian fiction, are we?

I have a suggestion, The Unit which I have already read and I think would be a good group read.

I recently joined the group and I'm not sure which books everyone has already read, but I have Alas Babylon, Lucifers Hammer, and A Canticle for Leibowitz on my list.

oo I vote for Alas Babylon, i have that book but have not read it.

Dana * wrote: "There are many good ones on the bookshelf. I wanted to clarify, we are not including YA dystopian fiction, are we?

I have a suggestion, The Unit which I have already read and I t..."

yea sorry, my suggestion was YA

Melissa wrote: "Dana * wrote: "There are many good ones on the bookshelf. I wanted to clarify, we are not including YA dystopian fiction, are we?

I have a suggestion, The Unit which I have alrea..."

I am not complaining, just trying to clarify if YA should be suggested or not. There are so many YA dystopian novels nowadays...

Melissa wrote: "I want to start reading when I'm done with my current read; which isn't dystopian, it's vampiric; but this one sounds soooooo good!"

I also have this on my to-read list!!!

I don't mind YA being added at all (if they are good and worth reading!) but are some of these post-apocalyptic rather than dystopian?

Dystopias are utopias gone wrong (the effort to perfect the society didn't work out well) but some post-apocalyptic fiction doesn't have this element. What do you think?

You're right, I pulled from the wrong reading list. All of mine are post-ap, not dystopia.

Hello! How about "The Glass Bees" by Ernst Junger? I came across the author whilst compiling a list of German authors. According to amazon:

In The Glass Bees the celebrated German writer Ernst Jünger presents a disconcerting vision of the future. Zapparoni, a brilliant businessman, has turned his advanced understanding of technology and his strategic command of the information and entertainment industries into a discrete form of global domination. But Zapparoni is worried that the scientists he depends on might sell his secrets. He needs a chief of security, and Richard, a veteran and war hero, is ready for the job. However, when he arrives at the beautiful country compound that is Zapparoni's headquarters, he finds himself subjected to an unexpected ordeal. Soon he is led to question his past, his character, and even his senses....

Hi! I'm about to start Consider Phlebas as suggested, who's with me on that? Thanks!!

I will be starting it this week. I haven't read any Iain M. Banks (or Iain Banks) before, or any 'Space Opera' so I'm not really sure what to expect! I think it's actually quite Utopian though, which isn't something you see often in modern fiction so I'm looking forward to it. How about you?

Going to start it this coming week as well. We'll discuss! Cheers Eve! best, Nathan Eve wrote: "I will be starting it this week. I haven't read any Iain M. Banks (or Iain Banks) before, or any 'Space Opera' so I'm not really sure what to expect! I think it's actually quite Utopian though, whi..."

I haven't started on any Ian M. Banks yet, but I have it on my list. I came to suggest The Dispossessed Ursula k. Le Guin, I have heard much about it over the years and it seems like a perfect fit for this group. What does everyone think?

I'm going to echo The Unit and Awaken, but that's because I just bought them so feel free to ignore me. ;) Thanks for suggesting "The Glass Bees", Carley, I'd never heard of it before and I'm going to put it on my to-read list now. Sounds intriguing.

all of the titles mentioned sound great to me, thanks you all! I got sidetracked and haven't gotten too far into the Banks book yet...

I'm up for reading The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia next - I've read good things about it and I'm pretty excited about reading it.

I take it the Iain M. Banks isn't going down to well then Nathan? Judging from the reviews on here, I get the impression his later ones might be better.

hey Eve! The Banks thing seemed good, it's just dense and life intervened...I could get into it I think, but THE DISPOSSESSED looks cool too so I will pick that up!

So far I am not doing great as a reading group participant but I will improve!

Hope everyone is well and safe this weekend

Melissa wrote: "I want to start reading when I'm done with my current read; which isn't dystopian, it's vampiric; but this one sounds soooooo good!"
This is a good book.

I just got another bogey in the mail... a hardcover copy of the new book "When She Woke" by Hillary Jordan, straight from the publisher (no idea why). It sounds dystopian. Anybody read it? Is it any good?