Dystopian Challenge Completed

I have successfully completed my 3rd challenge. I really enjoyed this challenge as 4 out of the 5 books I read I rated with an 8 or higher.

I have signed up for my third challenge over at Lisa's blog at Books. Lists. Life called the Dystopian Challenge. The rules are as follows:

1. Pick any number of books you wish to read that fall into the Utopia/Dystopia genre.
2. They do not have to be books you've never read, but hopefully they aren't books you read last week.
3. Challenge opened March 31st and will last until November 6th.
   

Lisa provides a list of examples of books in her blog that would fall into each genre which makes it easy to pick books for the challenge. I am very excited about this challenge as I love this genre for movies but haven't really read this genre before.

The books I have chosen for this challenge are:

1. 1984 by George Orwell [completed May 18th, 2007]
2. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley [completed August 26th, 2007]
3. The Giver by Lois Lowry [completed April 28th, 2007]
4. The Road by Cormac McCarthy [completed July 4th, 2007]
5. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood [completed September 17th, 2007]

Oryx and Crake

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

Finished September 17th, 2007

Rating: 8/10

Dystopian Challenge Book #5


I am ashamed to say I have never read any books by Margaret Atwood before and I am a Canadian. I have to say I really enjoyed her writing style and will definately be reading more from her.

It was difficult to summarize the book but I will try to touch on the main points.

The book is told by Jimmy (aka Snowman) as he unravels the story of how and why the world is as it is as he shifts between flashbacks from the past and the present. He describes his relationships with his two close friends Oryx and Crake. It isn't until the end of the book that the reader finds out what has happened to these two friends of Snowman as it is evident they are not around in the present time.

The only interaction Snowman has in the new world is with the Crakers, a genetically engineered species created by his friend Crake. The Crakers are very different from Snowman as they are programmed to: not be jealous, not have territorial tendencies which would lead to war, die at 30 years old, etc.

Atwood's description of the future is thought provoking and she manages to paint a realistic future in some aspects.

My only disappointment was the abrupt ending as the reader is left to envision the future for Snowman and the Crakers.

Brave New World

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Finished August 26th, 2007

Rating: 4/10

Dystopian Challenge Book #4



I had high expectations for this book as I have really enjoyed all of the other books I have read for the Dystopian Challenge. I was disappointed as I felt that something was missing for me in this book.

The book takes place in the seventh century A.F. (after Ford) and depicts a futuristic society where humans are genetically designed in laboratories. They are conditioned to be in a specific social order by physical and mental conditioning. The society uses drugs to keep the masses happy and encourages sexual promiscuity as the thought is that a person belongs to everyone.

Many people find this book very thought-provoking however it really didn't provoke much thought in me as the other books I have read for the Dystopian Challenge.

I also read Brave New World Revisited which Huxley wrote about 25 years after he originally wrote Brave New World and found his thoughts and insights were more thought provoking than Brave New World. However my rating is based on Brave New World alone.

The Road

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Finished July 4th, 2007

Rating: 9/10

Dystopian Challenge Book #3

Book Awards Reading Challenge Book #1



I wasn't sure what to expect from this book as I have heard you either love it or hate it. It was hard for me to get into this book at the beginning however after about 75 pages into the book it was hard for me to put it down.

The book describes the journey of a Father and Son through postapocalyptic America and is bleak and haunting.

I was very curious about what happened to make America this way and whether it was restricted to the US or whether it happened to the whole world? You never do find out what happened and perhaps that is the point. I also found it interesting that the characters were not given names.

After finishing the book I was a little disappointed about certain aspects about the book such as the ending and no real plot however I now realize that these are the things that made the book. It was more about the journey rather than the destination and not about finding out how certain things came to be but about how the Father and Son dealt with them.

It is a book that lingers with you after you have finished reading it.

1984

1984 by George Orwell

Finished May 18th, 2007

Rating: 8/10

Dystopian Challenge Book #2



I know a lot of people were required to read this book in school but this was not required reading at my school so this was the first time I had read this book. This book had less dialogue than I typically like but despite the little dialogue I still really enjoyed this book.

What a very sad and hopeless place Oceania is which is where the book takes place. How sad is it that books/magazines/newspapers are updated and changed and therefore the only thing that you can trust about the past is your memory and in the end even that could be taken away.

I was a bit confused about the fact that some citizens called proles did not have the same rules applied to them as "the Party Members" and found myself wondering how is it decided whether you are a Party Member or a prole, I never did figure it out.

I found this to be a very good book but was a little disappointed that there wasn't a happier ending, I guess I am just a sucker for happy endings.

The Giver

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Finished April 28th, 2007

Rating: 9/10

Dystopian Challenge Book #1




This is the first book I read for the Dystopian Challenge and I am so glad I signed up for this Challenge or I probably would never have come across this book.

I won't go into too many details as there are a number of people who will be reading this book for this challenge. The book is about a utopian society but as the book progesses the reader quickly learns that although there is no hunger, pain or war the matter of choice is missing. Every aspect of these people's lives are planned, from what jobs they will be assigned to who their spouses will be to the number of children they will be given.

It was a very easy read and I think the author did a good job of explaining the good and the bad of the utopian society in this book, such as the climate is controlled so one does not need to worry about getting too cold or too hot or have to deal with the rain. However at the same time they miss out on the good things that come with the weather such as the ability to make a snowman, the warmth of the sunshine on our faces or the pleasure of curling up inside a house and listening to the pitter patter of the rain.

This book makes a great choice for a book club as there are so many topics within it to explore and discuss. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

Dystopian Challenge

I have signed up for my third challenge over at Lisa's blog at Books. Lists. Life called the Dystopian Challenge. The rules are as follows:

1. Pick any number of books you wish to read that fall into the Utopia/Dystopia genre.
2. They do not have to be books you've never read, but hopefully they aren't books you read last week.
3. Challenge opened March 31st and will last until November 6th.
   

Lisa provides a list of examples of books in her blog that would fall into each genre which makes it easy to pick books for the challenge. I am very excited about this challenge as I love this genre for movies but haven't really read this genre before.

The books I have chosen for this challenge are:

1. 1984 by George Orwell [completed May 18th, 2007]
2. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
3. The Giver by Lois Lowry [completed April 28th, 2007]
4. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
5. Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood