readers advisory for all discussion

So I've been thinking (hard work), and I'd like to know what the hive mind has to say about building a civilization from the ground up. I'm interested in both earthly and otherworldly efforts. YA or adult. Here are some I'm already familiar with to start things off:

Red Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson
Ender's Game series by Ender's Game
The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau
Invitation to the Game by Monica Hughes

And I'll add more in as I think about it. I really enjoy reading about what jobs people find vital to establishing a new civilization, how they assign tasks, what governing system they use, how they cultivate food, etc.

I'm sure you all have a little something to say about this topic. I look forward to hearing your recs!

Are you interested in seeing it actually develop or in seeing some description of how it has happened?

For the former, Octavia Butler's Parable of the Talents and Parable of the Sower might work, and for the latter, maybe The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin.

Both, really, though I find that reading about it as it is actually happening is more suspenseful. (as it is trial and error in many cases)

Thanks!

so I haven't read any of those what do you mean by building a civilization from the ground up are these post apocalyptic or space colonization? what counts as the ground?

I mentioned in the query that i'm interested in earthly and otherworldly pursuits. In the former case, characters are usually building a new society after a disaster-on an island, after a disease outbreak, etc. Both those types of stories and space colonizers are of interest to me.

there is America Pacifica, which i think i mentioned elsewhere. it takes place after the "event", when the society, such as it is, has been established already, but the thing i found interesting about it was the ingenuity - what obstacles they had encountered and the physical restrictions they faced and the things they did to adapt. however, these are mostly only details, not the focus.

also, World Made by Hand, which i know i talked about somewhere. this is a proposed trilogy, the first two of which are out. they cover a community which is basically amish-y, after an event. so, again - already estabnlished, but the work distribution is definitely a major focus.

you might try Ammonite. it's mostly about a woman on a space colony that has lost touch with earth and is struggling between trying to continue doing what is no longer sustainable on this planet (they were living in a small contained place) and trying to contact the native population and work with them to create something new and to learn how they survive on this planet. it does look at questions of how they cultivate food, how they create a government, particularly how they change from the positions and ideas of power that they already have and how different cultures interact to create new one. i think that the woman travels around the planet some and also sees different populations and styles of living. there's a feminist element, and if i remember right, all the characters might be women.

edit --i don't remember exactly why, but the civilizations of the natives are themselves relatively new, as well. the main character is looking at them and seeing how they created structures. i think this is because of a sickness that created a necessity for everyone to change the way that everything was done on this planet.

I think the Pern books, later on are about it. Building or rebuilding a tech from a medieval set up. But if you mean planet landfall (a theme I love) then check Dragonsdawn, a sort of far far prequel to the Pern books.

Building a civilization also shows up in fantasy : arguably Terry Pratchett is doing that with his discworld books. It starts medieval, but in each book, particularly the new ones, new tech is being introduced. And Lois Bujold in the Passage books.

there are also these books, which i have just bought, but have not yet read - maybe someone who has read them could give you more specifics:

The Wild Shore
The Gold Coast
Pacific Edge

from this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Ca... it seems like the wild shore would give you what you were looking for, but i think the third one sounds promising for you, too. i have read him before and he is nothing if not detail-oriented, so these are worth a shot, i think.

Thanks for the wonderful suggestions. I'll start collecting them!

then come back and tell us all about them!

Emilie wrote: "you might try Ammonite. it's mostly about a woman on a space colony that has lost touch with earth and is struggling between trying to continue doing what is no longer sustainable on..."

oh yes "Ammonite" is a really great read

Darkover Landfall is about some colonists who crash on the wrong planet and have to make do with what they've got on their ship to build homes.

did you get around to any of these?