Brainstorm 275: Dystopian survival stories

For this week’s Brainstorm I have some dystopian survival stories for you. If you thought dystopia died out when the Divergent series ended and Katniss hung up her bow, well, that isn’t quite the case. It is still alive, kicking, and has a steady stream of readers heading for those books. And there’s more books being added to those genres. Today I’m sharing some of the more recent dystopian books that are also survival stories (leaving out some of the societal upheaval ones that aren’t so much survival tales). Click on each title to see my full review for the book including any content notes/trigger warnings.

 

Alone by Megan E. Freeman

Maddie has hatched a scheme with her two best friends for a secret slumber party at her grandparents empty condo for the weekend, but she ends up the only one who makes it. She's told her mom she's at her dad's for the weekend and her dad that she's at her mom's. And in the middle of the first night the entire area is evacuated by the government in response to some vague threat. Maddie hears something going on, but doesn't want to be caught somewhere she isn't supposed to be so she goes back to bed and wakes to an entirely empty town. At first she is sure her mom and dad will soon figure out that she's been left behind, but as the days go by and no one shows up, Maddie has to figure out how to survive on her own and not go crazy as the only human in town with only her neighbor's Rottweiler, George, for company.

An excellently written novel in verse that focuses not just on a modern twelve year old figuring out food and water and such on her own, but also the psychological aspects of being alone for a long time (which was way longer than I first guessed it would be). There's some references to The Island of Blue Dolphins that help set up the book to naturally explore those psychological aspects and may also prompt readers to pick up that modern classic.

Target Readers:

 Survival Story Fans, Light Dystopia Fans, Dog Lovers, Novels in Verse Fans, Quick Read Fans, Upper Middle Grade/YA Readers

 

The Ark Plan (Edge of Extinction, #1) by Laura Martin

Scientists figured out how to bring back dinosaurs using DNA from fossils. For a while, things were really cool with new dinosaur pets and zoo attractions. But then the dinosaur flu hit. Thanks to an ancient microbe that got revived with the dinosaurs, there was a massive pandemic that wiped out a huge portion of the Earth's population. Now the dinosaurs rule most of the Earth, and the few people who survived the pandemic have retreated underground into one of the 4 Compounds set up by the Noah. The Noah is the ruler of the world now. Life is pretty good for most of the humans in the compounds, except for Sky. Sky's father disappeared above ground five years ago and was labeled a spy. Since then, Sky has been a ward of the compound but not treated very well. On her birthday, she discovers that her father did leave a note for her those five years ago. It was hidden in the compass he gave her. The note says that if he didn't come back within 4 years, she needs to get a data plug to a spot in Lake Michigan. Sky has been told all her life that going topside is suicide. But her dad's note says the survival of the planet depends on her taking this message North.

This duology is a great mix of action, survival, and great characters along with the dinosaur-invaded world. For those already wondering, Martin addresses the potential elephant in the room by having the characters in the story analyze the similarities and differences between Crichton's Jurassic Park and their actual history in a literature class at the beginning of the book which I thought was clever.

Target Readers:

Adrenaline Junkies/High-Action Fans, Dystopia Fans, Survival Fans, Scifi Fans, Mystery Fans, World Building Fans, Dinosaur Lovers, Illinois/Indiana Setting Fans, Duology Fans, Middle Grade Readers

 

The Barnabus Project by the Fan Brothers

Barnabus and his friends are failed pet projects. Perfect Pets sells the cutest and best pets designed in their secret lab. But failed projects will be recycled. Barnabus likes the way he and his friends are, but the men in green suits disagree. Barnabus' friend the cockroach tells them that there's a whole world above with stars and big buildings and Barnabus dreams of escaping and going there. But it seems impossible. Can Barnabus and his fellow rejects escape before they are recycled?

This sounds like it could be a very harrowing and scary tale, but the Fans tell it with tenderness and it comes off as a very cute and sweet light dystopian picture book. I love how Barnabus is comfortable in who he is, even though others tell him he's less than perfect, and how well the friends work together. And of course the illustrations are amazing (we wouldn’t expect anything less from the Fan brothers).

Target Readers:

Dystopian Fans, Scifi Fans, Daring Escape Story Fans, Art Lovers, Fans of Characters Comfortable in Their Selves, Friendship Story Fans, Teamwork Story Fans, Picture Book Readers

 

June's Wild Flight (The Last Kids on Earth, #5.5) by Max Brallier, ill. by Douglas Holgate

After a new shield testing session goes epically wrong, June learned that ogres, chains, and doom karts are not a good combo and finds herself way out of Wakefield. One of the friendly little monsters who lives at the pizza place, Globlet, has managed to follow June, but also doesn't know where they are or how to get home. As they set out, they come across some monster pirates trying to catch a baby Watcher. And though June has had bad experiences with Watchers, she can't just let it be harassed. Especially when she hears the pirate guys talking about taking it to Thrull! So now June and Globlet must figure out how to save the baby Watcher and get it home, while also getting info out of the pirate guys about what they know about Thrull's latest whereabouts.

This series is insanely popular with the middle grade crowd. I know this book is in the middle of the series, but it is my favorite book in the series thus far. Jack, Quint, and Dirk are fun to hang out with but June, Globlet, and the baby Watcher are even better to spend time with.

Target Readers:

Dystopia Fans, Adventure Fans, Survival Story Fans, Humor Fans, Suspense Fans, Mixed Full Text & Graphic Novel Book Fans, Upper Middle Grade Readers

 

The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera

Petra Peña shouldn't have made it onto one of the last ships off the planet before Haley's comet made one last journey a little too close to the Earth. Her degenerative visual disorder was kept a secret, and her parents doctorates were tickets for both of them and Petra and Javier to head off to humanity's new home. But when Petra awakes from stasis, she discovers that the Collective, a fringe group on Earth obsessed with eliminating all differences has seized control of the ship and purged those they couldn't reprogram. Petra quickly realizes she must keep the fact that she remembers who she really is and the ship's original mission a secret while she figures out what, if anything, she can do. She has no family members with her and no friends, only her abuela's stories.

This is the most recent Newbery Medal winner, and the complexity of the story definitely deserves the shiny sticker. It includes great messages about even “imperfect” members of society having value and things to contribute and the power of stories to get through to people when other methods fail.

Target Readers:

Dystopia Fans, Scifi Fans, Suspense Fans, Survival Story Fans, Space Travel & Exploration Story Fans, Power of Story Fans, Fans of Characters with Disabilities, Fans of Characters of Mexican Heritage, Award Winner Readers, Human Rights Story Fans, Middle Grade & YA Readers

 

The Mother Code by Carole Stivers

In an effort to cripple a troublesome terrorist group isolated in a certain locale in the Middle East, the US developed a bioweapon that combines viruses and nanotechnology that hijacks the respiratory system but cannot spread from human to human. The scientists who worked on the tech thought it was a hypothetical idea and cautioned the government not to release the weapon ever. Their warning came too late. The disease is spreading, and if they can't figure out a way to stop it, all human life is going to be wiped out in a matter of months. Fast forward several years into the future and watch a very sophisticated robot act as mother to a young child in a remote part of the desert. But the robot mothers were released in a rush and some of their programming has potential glitches. As readers turn the pages they will learn how the robot mothers were developed, what went wrong, and whether these robot mothers are the best hope for the future of humanity or their greatest danger.

I went into this very wary that it was just a rip-off of the WondLa series by DiTerlizzi rewritten for adults because the premise sounded VERY similar, but this is definitely its own story. I was pleasantly surprised by the smart scientific base to the story, how much it makes you think, and how clean it is for an adult scifi novel. I also like the role the Hopi play in the plot. The story goes back and forth between the present and the past, but it is done in such a way to get you turning the pages even faster to see how things went from point A to point B.

Target Readers:

Dystopia Fans, Smart Scifi Fans, Survival Story Fans, Thriller Fans, Fans of Stories to Chew On, Hopi Character Fans, Robot Story Fans, Adult Readers (though approachable to Young Adults)

 

Secrets in the Mist (Skyworld, #1) by Morgan L. Busse

Ever since the Plague Wars the Mist has covered the valleys and is slowly eating up more and more land as it inches upward, killing any humans that stray into its tendrils with spores that take over the body. The upper echelons of society have it fairly well, but the lower crust are constantly being sacrificed in Purges to make sure there's enough land for those they deem deserving. Cass's parents sacrificed themselves so she could survive a Purge and ever since she's been on her own on the streets. That is until the day she tries to steal food from an airship and is caught. But the Captain gives Cass a job opportunity instead of throwing her to the authorities. He offers to train her as a diver on his ship. It's a dangerous job, but to not be constantly hungry or on the run is a very tantalizing offer. Elsewhere Theo is sure there must be a cure for the Mist, but most tells him his research is pointless while a few others point out that all who go looking for a cure end up suddenly dead.

A steampunk/zombie/dystopia adventure that gallivants around in airships and gliders definitely doesn’t sound like your typical Christian fiction offering, and I love how far Christian YA fiction has come in the variety of stories offered. It is a very engaging world with one of the most scientifically plausible zombie apocalypses I’ve come across (don't worry, it isn't THAT plausible, but there is a solid science base). The Christian parallels were worked in well and questions of faith came naturally with the situations faced. I can’t wait until our copy of book 2 arrives.

Target Readers:

Steampunk Fans, Dystopia Fans, Survival Story Fans, Mystery/Thriller Fans, Fans of Airships and Floating Islands, Zombie Story Fans, Adventure Story Fans, Christian Fiction Fans, Young Adult & Adult Readers

Wolf by Wolf (Wolf by Wolf, #1) by Ryan Graudin

What if the Japanese joined the Nazis in attacking Russia instead of attacking Pearl Harbor? And what if the USA's isolationists won the day and they never entered WWII? Then you end up with Europe and Asia divided between the winning Axis powers, and Hitler still in charge in the 1950s. Each year there is a motorcycle race for teens from Germany to Japan to celebrate the Third Reich's and Imperial Japan's victory. Yael was once a Jewish prisoner in Auschwitz and experimental subject of the Angel of Death. The experiments were horrific but spared her life, and gave her abilities that allowed her to escape Auschwitz as a child. Now a teen operative, she is the underground Resistance's best hope of assassinating Hitler. The paranoid ruler never goes in public any more, but last year he danced with Adele Wolfe, the first female winner of the motorcycle race (she entered as her twin brother and only revealed her true identity upon winning). Yael is going to take Adele's spot in this year's race. But she has to pull off pretending to be Adele throughout the race and also beat the 13 other competitors to have a chance at ending Hitler's evil reign. The race is brutal and anything goes when the cameras aren't filming the competitors.

As you read about Yael's prep for the race and then the race itself, you get interspersed sections of her backstory, the people she lost in the concentration camps, how she escaped, and her training with the Resistance. The other racers have unexpected depths, and you really don't know how much Yael is fooling them and/or how much she can trust them. The locations they visit as they race take you across the world from Europe to Asia, so the settings are adventurous and exotic, and of course, dangerous. There’s just touches of survival sections in this one (mostly during Yael’s past and on the race), and a lot more in book 2 of the duology.

Target Readers:

Dystopia Fans, WWII Story Fans, Reimagined History Fans, Adventure Fans, High Stakes Competition Fans, Thriller Fans, Superhero Story Fans, Travel Story Fans, Young Adult & Adult Readers