Tumgik
#ya dystopian
Tbh I think we give Ready Player One too much crap. Like yeah it’s a mediocre cishet white boy nostalgia trip and the main character gets rich at the end but it’s actually got some good messages? It features a group of marginalized teens trying to stop a mega corporation from monetizing a free game. It tackles climate doomism. It confronts white privilege. It has some really good things to say about predatory loaning. And y’all are acting like it’s The Capitalist Manifesto or something. Like guys, I think y’all are expecting too much of a YA dystopian novel written in 2011. Of course it’s not going to be freaking George Orwell or something.
171 notes · View notes
rebellemovie · 1 year
Text
y'all
so i just found out that during the peak of the ya dystopian era in 2014, kylie and kendall jenner hired a ghostwriter to write them a generic ya dystopian novel about twins
the novel only sold 13,000 copies
meanwhile, i, a random 18 year old lesbian from a small town in north carolina who isn't related to any kardashians, has over 126,000 followers on tiktok for my dystopian movie concept
that's nearly TEN TIMES the amount of copies their book sold.
i am laughing so hard
10 notes · View notes
maepolzine · 6 months
Text
Revisiting a Series I was Obsessed With: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Looking back on a series I used to be obsessed with: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Almost a year ago, I posted one of these focused on other obsession I had in high school, which was Twilight, but I figured with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes being turned into a movie next month that I would revisit The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. I’m not re-reading the series (though I am in the middle of reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes), but I am discussing various…
Tumblr media
View On WordPress
2 notes · View notes
cassjackson-22 · 8 months
Text
Hey everyone, reintroducing myself here as I once again become active on this account! My name is Cassidy (Cassie, Cass, any variation will work) Jackson and I’m a 20 year old STEM major who writes YA dystopian, realistic fiction, and romcoms (maybe). I am currently getting my ya dystopian Draft Wip ready for beta readers (this is the first draft I’ve ever finished in my life); I am so proud of this!
This will serve as a master list of all things Cassie related where I’m going to attempt to get things up and running. I will be following from @cassieschaosdimension where everything and the kitchen sink is not about writing. If there is something writing related please use this blog as this will be solely focused on my writing. Feel free to tag me in ask games and ask me things in my ask box! I am so looking forward to getting started (again) on this journey!
My #s:
this is just cool = reblogs about writing that have to be on my blog too
cassie moot reblogs = reblogs from my mutuals
cassie rambles about writing = my thoughts about writing
you asked for it :D = anything from my ask box
take one down pass it around = tag games
cassie’s crafting conundrum = my podcast
draft wip = anything that has to do with my (hopefully debut novel)
sol wip = anything that has to do with my coauthor wip
ap lang wip = anything that has to do with my short story
ice skating wip = @procrastinationonvacation knows about this one, the first wip I ever sent them, anything that has to do with this soon to be not shelved seven year old idea
romcom wip = anything that has to do with my romcom idea (I’ve never written a romcom so this could be horrible or amazing)
Master list of wips:
Link to my podcast:
5 notes · View notes
tcplnyteens · 6 months
Text
Review: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Tumblr media
The House of the Scorpion is a pretty old book. So old that I remember seeing it on the shelves of bookstores and libraries when I was in elementary school. This year, in fact, marks its 21st anniversary since publication. But for the past few weeks, I’ve had snippets of free time here and there throughout the day, and The House of the Scorpion proved to be the perfect thing to fill those odd gaps. 
I need to preface this by saying that The House of the Scorpion is one of the best pieces of dystopian fiction I’ve ever read (and quite possibly one of the best books I’ve ever read, period). It’s up there with the classics like 1984 and Animal Farm, and the short stories of Ray Bradbury. I had so many thoughts and feelings after I finished The House of the Scorpion that I just had to write them down, which is a testimony to how good this book is. 
The House of the Scorpion is about a boy named Matteo Alcarán. Matt is a clone of the ancient El Patrón, the supreme leader of a country called Opium, a strip of land that lies between the United States and what used to be called Mexico. Growing up on the Alcarán estate, Matt must face off against people who see him as nothing more than a monster because of how he was born. In a heavily prejudiced and violent society, Matt struggles to reclaim his humanity—until a betrayal by one of the only people Matt has ever loved forces him into the dystopian hellscape of the outside world. Fleeing from the Alcarán estate, Matt discovers unspeakable truths, meets true friends, and begins to forge his own path in the world.
This book is so, so good that I don’t think any review I can write will do it justice. Nancy Farmer has mastered the morally gray protagonist. I never thought I could genuinely hate and continuously root for a book character as much as I did for Matt. As irrational and destructive some of his actions were, I felt that I could truly understand his character and where he was coming from. After all, how can you expect a kid to not turn into a selfish psychopath when the people around him have dehumanized and abused him all his life? It’s only human, and that’s what Farmer does so well—create characters that are so painfully human. As such, I found myself becoming more and more invested in Matt’s development over the course of the book. It was immensely rewarding to see him rise above the terrible definitions the Alcaráns assigned to him and grow into a strong, intelligent person.
The worldbuilding in The House of the Scorpion is also absolutely top-tier. Nancy Farmer flawlessly combines the pressing issues of the current day—climate change, the border crisis, drugs, cloning and ethics—into a strikingly realistic dystopia. The world of this book is not extreme like that of 1984. Instead, it’s a future projection of today’s issues, and a commentary on the state of the world and humanity, which brings me to my next idea: this book’s powerful ideas about humanity and the human psyche. How do children respond differently to oppression and abuse? In the worst situations, which parts of human nature shine through? What does it really mean to be human? These questions and more are all explored in depth in The House of the Scorpion. This book made me really think about my own opinions about humanity and the advancement of technology. 
Despite the masterful character and worldbuilding, the most appealing part of this book is, in my opinion, the storytelling. Nancy Farmer is a storyteller like no other. I don’t remember the last time I was so invested in and scared to continue reading a book. The sheer suspense and pacing of the story were done just perfectly. I couldn’t stop turning the page, but at the same time, I didn’t want to know what would happen next. I was genuinely terrified that Matt was going to die. Part of it was the genre of this book, and part of it was the perfectly anxiety-inducing plot progression, but I don’t think I’ve ever been so convinced that a character was going to die. Usually when I read thrillers or action novels, I’m relaxed because the protagonist’s plot armor will protect them from anything. This was not the case for The House of the Scorpion, to my genuine surprise and fright. (I’m not telling you if Matt dies or not. Muahahaha.)
Anyway, that looming sense of dread made the book’s bittersweet ending hit so much harder. I won’t tell you why it was bittersweet for me, because I think this book needs to be experienced completely authentically. I’ll just say that even though it was sad, I was ultimately really surprised and happy that Farmer gave us a somewhat happy ending. I was preparing myself for an emotionally damaging ending, like the ones in 1984 and Animal Farm, so I appreciate that Farmer ended the novel on a hopeful note. I think writing happy endings for dystopian novels is such an important thing, because the point of dystopian novels is, often, “if we don’t fix this issue in the present then a terrible thing will happen.” But giving all of these books terribly hopeless endings really doesn’t do much to inspire people to act. Seeing my favorite characters rise back up stronger and more determined than before, despite all of the awful things they endured, gave me hope for humanity.
Overall, just go read The House of the Scorpion. It’s such a good piece of writing, and a combination of all the things I love most in books: a dystopian setting, slightly twisted characters, commentary on the world, and well-done suspense. I would recommend this book for people who are looking for thought-provoking, complex ideas and who don’t mind mild violence and fear. I guarantee that if you finish it, even if you don’t like it, you will have learned something profound about the world or about yourself. 
~Tania
2 notes · View notes
oracleofmadness · 1 year
Text
Tumblr media
Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!
This was such a fun read! A perfect post-apocalyptic dystopian that had me turning those pages as fast as I could!
I loved the idea of a generation that has grown up on board of a giant cruise ship that has been afloat for the 40 years since an epidemic ravaged Europe. I was a little confused and wished there was more information about where everyone was from. The ship set sail from London but often on Cruise ships there are people from all over the world so I was wanting some diversity? Maybe attention to different languages, accents?
The storyline kept me interested and I mostly liked the characters. I did love that all the characters were able to show different aspects of their personalities. The only one I didn't enjoy was Hadley because he was just all bad. No redeeming qualities whatsoever.
If you love dystopian reads as much as I do, I'd definitely say check this one out!
Out January 3, 2023!
5 notes · View notes
bookishchef · 11 months
Text
Tumblr media
It is unfortunately not "I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki" but it is my current read + my dinner!
6 notes · View notes
minorbookblog · 2 years
Text
The absolute unhinged anger I feel when a series has a “love triangle” but really its two people are in love with Person A and Person A is only in love with Person B This is not a love triangle this is a situation where Person C is hot and the Person B is the perfect match. 
11 notes · View notes
yabooks · 1 year
Text
I’m currently reading cruel prince rn and cardan-
6 notes · View notes
Text
Tumblr media
Rebel by Marie Lu
"I may not have my brother's charisma or cool factor or resilience. I may not be able to find my footing at my university. But in this--in making things, in finding a way to create something that works--I know I'm good. I know I can win."
Year Read: 2022
Rating: 2/5
About: There are spoilers ahead for Legend, Prodigy, and Champion. A decade has passed since Day Wing and June Iparis helped bring down the Republic. Day and his younger brother Eden have moved to Antarctica, where Day works for the government and Eden attends college, but they both have doubts about Antarctica's morality-based Level system. Eden finds himself drawn to the Undercity, where illegal drone races take place and people struggle to scrape up enough points to pay for medicine or go to college. They might be the only ones in the city to see how close it is to revolution, and when a powerful crime lord takes an interest in Eden, he realizes just how easy it would be to destroy the Level system once and for all. Trigger warnings: parent/sibling death, abduction, captivity, explosions, violence/injury, broken bones, classism, threats, survivor's guilt.
Thoughts: Okay, real talk: I didn't like the ending of the Legend trilogy. Not only do I dislike endings that are unnecessarily sad, it employs one of my least favorite plot devices in wiping a character's memory. Why did I read it if it's like it never happened? I'm less sure if I picked this up because I was hoping to see that undone or because I like to finish things I've started, which would be easier if everything and its mother didn't have a companion novel. And that's pretty much how I think of Rebel, as a companion novel that doesn't bring a lot to the original trilogy, and is hardly necessary to feel like you've finished it.
Out of 350+ pages, there's maybe half that of actual story here. For a novel about bringing down a government, it's incredibly slow-moving, given over to splashing around in characters' feelings, reflecting on past books, and repeating the same things over and over instead of advancing the plot. It's almost completely absent of the kind of action we're used to with Day and June. Half the book is in Eden's perspective, and his weapon is his mind, the plot mostly a mystery that we uncover alongside him as he navigates the inner workings of the Undercity. I struggled to get into it every step of the way, and while I was initially curious about Antarctica's merit system, I don't know that we needed to see more of it. There's a pretty heavy-handed message that any system based on work is always going to be unfair to its sick, disabled, elderly, children, and minorities. It's a good message, but I didn't need almost four hundred pages to grasp it.
The book suffers from not having June's perspective. She's a main character in it (I guess), but she doesn't really shine here, and neither does Day, which is understandable to an extent. This is largely Eden's book. I just don't find him anywhere near as compelling as those two, and let's be honest, his problems are a lot more trivial. I never found Hann to be a compelling villain either. Have you ever seen the movie Little Monsters (1989)? I loved it when I was a kid (naturally--it has monsters in it). For some reason, I got it into my head that Hann looked like Boy, and I was incapable of taking him seriously from that point on. If, like me, you're persisting with this book hoping that it will get better: it doesn't. It’s as boring at the end as it is at the beginning, and it has basically the same message as the rest of the trilogy without the elements that made those fun.
6 notes · View notes
yaworldchallenge · 2 years
Text
🇮🇸 Iceland
Region: Western Europe / Scandinavia
The Casket of Time
Author: Andri Snær Magnason
Tumblr media
259 pages, published 2019
Original language: Icelandic
Native author? Yes
Age: Teen
Blurb:
Teenage Sigrun is sick of all the apocalyptic news about the "situation" and, worse, her parents' obsession with it. Sigrun's family--along with everyone else--decides to hibernate in their TimeBoxes(R), hoping for someone else to fix the world's problems . But when Sigrun's TimeBox(R) opens too early, she discovers an abandoned city overrun by wilderness and joins a band of kids who are helping a researcher named Grace solve the "situation."
The world, according to Grace, is under an ancient curse. There once was a princess named Obsidiana, who was trapped in time by the greedy king of Pangea. To protect Obsidiana from dark and gloomy days, the king put her in a crystal casket made of spider silk woven so tightly that time itself couldn't penetrate. The king's greed for power doomed his kingdom and the trapped princess. Sigrun sees eerie parallels between the tale of Obsidiana and the present-day crisis, and realizes it's up to her and her friends to break the ancient curse and fix the world.      
Other reps:
Genres: #dystopian #climate #adventure #fairy tale
My thoughts:
Kids save the world while the adults are asleep! I’m interested in the fairy tale aspect of this book.
Review to come.
Bookshop.org link | Kindle link
2 notes · View notes
Hot take: Divergent isn’t a dystopian novel
Okay, that may sound weird. Let me explain. The dystopian genre is typically accepted to mean a specific type of futuristic sci-fi dealing with a corrupt or decaying society. It’s almost always some form of social commentary, exaggerating trends in the current world to a hypothetical future. People always say Divergent is a copy of The Hunger Games, that it’s just hopping on the YA dystopian trend without an understanding of the genre.
I disagree. I don’t think Divergent is a dystopian novel at all. I think it’s a futuristic sci-fi action novel. Because in Divergent, unlike in typical dystopias, society isn’t the problem. The faction system isn’t portrayed as bad or oppressive, it’s actually quite efficient and works well, and people become like family with their faction members. Society itself in the world of Divergent isn’t bad.
The problem in Divergent isn’t systemic, it’s individual. The main villain isn’t a government or a corporation or some other form of The Powers That Be, it’s one evil woman conducting unethical research on her own, secretly. Four’s issue with Abnegation isn’t an issue with the faction system, it’s an issue with his own abusive father. And the problems with Dauntless aren’t inherent or systemic, they’re the result of (one might argue) individuals with toxic masculinity.
Of course, I’m just talking about the first book in the series, because the second and third one are kind of bleh. But I think that Divergent is constantly mislabeled as “dystopian” when it’s actually plain old futuristic sci-fi and it bugs me. Anyway, bye.
32 notes · View notes
in-betweenpages · 2 years
Text
Tumblr media
Happy weekend🌈
.
.
.
Follow @in-betweenpages for more book quotes, reviews and recommendations.
.
.
.
.
🔖
5 notes · View notes
elliepassmore · 2 years
Text
Ophelia Scale: Der Himmel wird beben Rezension
Tumblr media
5/5 Sternen Wenn du magst: Dystopie, Sci-Fi, Feinder der Liebenden, Missverständnisse, starke weibliche Leads, geheime Missionen Ophelia Scale 1 Rezension hier Ich war sehr gespannt, wo das nach dem Ende von Ophelia Scale 1 anfangen würde. Ophelia war tatsächlich in besserer Verfassung als ich erwartet hatte (und ich hatte Folter erwartet). Ich habe dieses Buch tatsächlich sehr schnell gelesen (schneller als jedes andere deutsche Buch bisher!) Ich liebe noch Ophelia. Sie fühlt sich ihrer Rolle verpflichtet, ist aber dennoch bestrebt, die Sicherheit aller zu gewährleisten, die ihr am Herzen liegen. Sie ist auch in der Lage, aus ihren Fehlern zu lernen und verstehen, wie etwas schief gelaufen ist, und Verantwortung dafür zu übernehmen. Das 'Ultimatum' war verrückt und ich frage mich ernsthaft, wie Ophelia so ruhig umgehen konnte. Ich denke, sie macht sich zu viel Vorwürfe und sollte sich etwas Spielraum lassen. Wir sehen Lucien auch in diesem Buch wieder. Wie Ophelia war ich SEHR unzufrieden mit seinen Handlungen. Aber wir lernen seine Seite der Dinge ein wenige kennen und er ist bestimmt immer noch ein guter Figur. Wir bekommen auch sie besseres Verständnis für seine Rolle bei den Schakalen und seinen familiären Hintergrund. Ophelia und Lucien sind fantastisch zusammen. Sie und Knox haben bestimmt eine Vorgeschichte, aber Lucien gefällt mir definitiv besser. Ich war anfangs besorgt dass Knox' Verhalten offensichtlich ein Vorstoß um Lucien zu bevorzugen seine würde, aber es macht tatsächlich Sinn (auch wenn es etwas offensichtlich WAR). Ich mochte es, mehr von Jye zu sehen. Er ist ein guter Freund von Ophelia and und hat ihr wirklich einen sicheren Ort gegeben (eigentlich liebe ich ihre Freundschaft). Er wirkt auch als etwas neutraler Charakter. Er ist mit ReVerse im Ziel aber gleichzeitig nicht annähernd so radikal wie einige der anderen Charaktere, die hier ins Spiel kommen. Er ist ganz bestimmt einziger meiner Lieblingscharaktere und ich hoffe er ist im Buch 3. Die OmnI-Handlung war interessant und es gefällt mir. Es gab viele Ebenen, die alle ziemlich komplex waren. Es ist klar dass sie 'reinen Rationalität' zu viel gibt, und für eine KI, die sicherlich zu Gefühle haben scheint, berücksichtigt sie die Gefühle anderer nicht in ihrer Gesamtheit. Es wird interessant sein zu sehen, wo das in Buch 3 hinführt. Ich bin ein wenig enttäuscht, dass Lucien und Ophelie wieder getrennt sind, aber das hält hoffentlicht nicht an.
2 notes · View notes
cassjackson-22 · 1 year
Text
About Evading the Draft without giving too much away
Very potential content warnings (just don’t know what yet)
YA dystopian novel about what happens when the government and politicians have a war and they end up almost destroying the world. The scientists decide to go underground (quite literally) and so for 1000 years there’s peace. But then the scientists want to take over the world and so they start to collect children to make into a child army because who wants to kill kids. One girl(our main character) realizes what’s happening and tries to stop it with the help of her three best friends.
But I like to make it complicated because this will be a story with a past and present pov that are connected where two different plot lines make one giant cohesive plot line.
I will take questions about this because I know that’s not much to go on, but it’s something so here we go. There will be more to come!
2 notes · View notes
Text
It's usually when they've left your mind completely that answers finally come.
- James Frey and Jobie Hughes, The Power Of Six
2 notes · View notes