Apocalyptic Lit

Hey-
I've recently become addicted to apocalyptic YA lit. I'm looking for more! Stuff I've enjoyed: Life as We Knew It (Pfeiffer), Tomorrow Series (Marsden), Z for Zachariah (O'Brien), How I Live Now (Rosoff), you get the idea...

Suggestions, ideas? Let me know!

On the Beach is one that came to mind, but I am not sure that is specificly written for YAs. I read it when I was in high school.

Also, have you read any of the Left Behind Series? They have a Christian perspective on the end of the world. There is a teen series and an adult series. The students where I work have read both, however, we have the adult ones in our library. I think the teen ones are a bit easier in all respects.

There are two books that spring to mind here, although I'm not sure if they'd be as indepth as you'd like. One is a series called Everworld set in an alternate reality where the mythological pantheon exists, and four teenagers from this reality are conscripted to try and prevent the Everworld ending. It was written by K Applegate (but don't let that put you off) it's been some years since I re-read but I remember enjoying her characterisation and plot, not as lightweight a read as her other series stuff.

The other book that springs to mind definitely has a darker edge, Bloodtide by Melvin Burgess which is loosely based on the Nordic Sagas, again it has a strong vein of a world collapsing. Hope these aren't too far off course.

I loved the Everworld series right up until the end....It was a bit disappointing after reading all those books.

What about The Chrysalids by John Wyndham? Post-apocalypse, but still excellent.

i love post-apocalyptic books, though most that i've read in ya have a fantasy touch to them. have you looked at the tripods boxed set by john christopher? or the more recent the city of ember by jeanne duprau?

i know there's a bunch more.. but i tend to jumble up apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic and dystopian lit. i'll see what else i can find.

..
ok, here's two more:
alas, babylon by pat frank
the obernewtyn chronicles by isobelle carmody

Have you tried Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence?

I read this one more than a few years ago, when we were covering this topic in school (alongside the likes of Z for Zachariah. The story is divided into three sections, the first follows a girl named sarah through the immediate aftermath of nuclear war and is remarkably harrowing. The second follows a girl named ophelia, a child within a Government Bunker and the third, and to some extent the weakest section (mainly for reasons of feasability, but still quite a nice read) follows a man named Simon, a government agent exploring the world created by survivours outside.

I would have to hesitate from reccomending the Left Behind series, while they may be of some interest if you've a yen for one of the very literal interpretations of Revelations (or Christian Eschatology in general), they aren't actually very well written books at all. My friends and I described them as something along the lines of a literary car crash you just couldn't look away from. I'd reccomend borrowing the first couple, rather than buying until you know if you like them enough to persist. (They should be easy to borrow from someone if you or your family are members of a mainline Christian church, at least in my experience.)

This substantial amazon book list looked like it might be of interest too, though I've not read most of the titles on there, so can't comment personally.

John Christopher also wrote another trilogy; I don't remember the order of the books but they include The Prince in Waiting and Beyond the Burning Lands.

On Left Behind, I've read all the adult ones and definately found the quality to be lacking, however, that being said I found the first few in the series very interesting and have read the first one multiple times.

Victor Kelleher has some post-apocalyptic stories, such as Taronga, about a group of people sheltering in the Sydney Zoo, and using releasing the big cats into the grounds at night as security.

Peter Dickinson's Changes Trilogy is about an England where all electricity suddenly stops working.

Jean Ure wrote Plague and After the Plague.

Other John Christopher stand alones include The Guardians, The Death of Grass, Empty World, The World in Winter (US title The Long Winter) and Wild Jack.

Did Nicholas Fisk have any apocalyptic books?

And there's a New Zealand one called Quiet Earth that was made into a very good movie.

Oh, and how about Lord of the Flies by William Golding?

For other books that are about survival, though not apocalypses - try Gary Paulsen, and Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt.

Has Stephen King done some apocalyptic books? Exploring horror and zombie authors might find you more.

More post- apocalyptic, but A Rag, a Bone, and a Hank of Hair, as well as the previously mentioned The Chrysalids had a very strong impact on me when I read them as a child, and I still enjoy reading them today. Also haunting (and possibly not YA) was Earth Abides.

I recently read The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld which was a sequel to Peeps. Although I didn't consider Peeps to be apocalyptic I think The Last Days definately falls into that catagory. I also don't think it's completely necessary to read Peeps first, but it is a great book which I would highly recommend.

Have you read Armageddons Children by Terry Brooks? It is in the Adult section, but the protagonists are mostly teens and children. It got me hooked on post apocalyptic lit.

The Warrior by Donald E. McQuinn is a pretty good book. There are two more books in the series but the first one is best.

Also The Rift by Walter John Williams was hard to put down.

Oh, and Cell if you read Stephen King -- and it goes without saying, The Stand.

I agree with the reader above's comment on the pootr quality of the writing in the Left Behind series. The only reason I even looked at them is that a teacher suggested I buy ALL of them for our school library! (We're an Episcoapl school, but not the strict evangelical kidn, and our teachers have a wide range of beliefs.) I looked at one, read a bit, and thought, this is terrible prose! Plus I've read some pretty condemning reviews. I guess if you like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing you'll like, as a wise man is said to have said.

On the OTHER hand, I found The City of Ember an enchanting and fascinating delight. It's a bit young for YA, I think, but I try to push it at my school. Your reading experience of it is so inductive, as the hints of what's going on are revealed only as Lina and Doon expererience the event. It's a great puzzle to very slowly figure out the situation, the sticks with red stuff on the end of them, and everything else. It's one of my favorites of the decade. The sequel isn't nearly as intriguing and is much more of a conventional tale of conflict, without the huge mystery of the darkness. I haven't yet read the third.

The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

The Giver by Louis Lowry

And I'll second City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

I haven't read it, but House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer is also supposed to be good.

House of the Scorpion is great, but I wouldn't call it apocalyptic.

I've just finished The City of Ember. I'd been prompted to read it since I'd seen it mentioned here, and really quite liked it. Post-apocalyptic YA books are quite the guilty pleasure of mine. Not that I actually feel too guilty about liking them, though; they're usually a lot of fun!

The FIRE-US Trilogy by Jennifer Armstrong and Nancy Butcher. "The world has been wiped out by a plague that killed all adults...." (from back cover.)

I've read about twenty pages of The Secret under My Skin by Janet McNaughton, which I picked up at the library the other day, and it opens at a 'Model Social Welfare Program' (where orphans mine a landfill for styrofoam) after the 'technocost.' It seems thoughtful and promising.

Does anyone consider Whisper of Death by Christopher Pike an apocalyptic book?

I know this is going to sound hopelessly vague but I'll give it a try anyway. Years ago I read this wonderful post-apocalyptic book where everyone over 14 has been killed by a devastating plague. The book focused on a young girl who led her neighbors and friends to safety by setting up a "fort" of sorts in a school.

Sound familiar anyone? Because I've been dying to find it again for the past few years. Its one of those books that just gets stuck in the back of your mind.

Well, if anyone knows what it is, I would definitely recommend it.

Is it The Girl Who Owned a City?

I think it is! I'll have to get it and see, but thank you so much. Seriously been bugging me for ages.

I've recently acquired a copy ofThe Sixth Seal by Mary Wesley. I loved this when I was about 15 but will have to wait and see whether it has stood the test of time.
Also, more dystopian than apocalyptic, I've recently re-read The Guardians by John Christopher and thoroughly enjoyed it, although I felt the ending was a little hurried.

These aren't YA books, but they fall into the category.

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, and The Road by Cormac McCarthy.

I've read the first, but not the second, which is just out on hardback. All of the reviews say it's very affecting, though it sounded a bit grim to me.

Atwood's book is great - not specifically written for YAs, but her writing style is very clean and uncomplicated.

I second Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, and would also suggest her book The Handmaid's Tale, which is arguably more dystopic than apocalyptic. Similar in some ways to The Giver by Lois Lowry - the repressed society, specific people performing specific tasks, the dangers of non-conformity - but for an older audience.

As said earlier, the Fire-Us trilogy is an awesome choice by Jennifer Armstrong. Did you guys recommend Armageddeon Summer, by Yolen yet? The one I would like to recommend for sure is Green Angel by Alice Hoffman. It takes place in a world after a September 11th-like-disaster happens. There is a small element of fantasy in it, if you perceive it that way. The writing is beautiful.

Thanks for all the suggestions! City of Ember is definitely one of my favorites, and I think I'll have to check out the John Christopher. Also just got a suggestion for Day of the Triffids (Wyndham), not YA but worth a look.

I rediscovered an old favorite post-apocalyptic book from my childhood called Winter of Magic's Return by Pamela F. Service.

The setting is a post-nuclear-war Wales, and the main kids are two boys and a girl in a boarding school who explore the hidden nooks in and around the school (sound like Harry Potter to anyone else?). There's also Arthurian legend thrown into the mix. I really enjoyed it - and I'm just rereading it. :-)

-Jen

I think you'd enjoy Waiting for the End of the World, by Lee Harding, going by the list of works you enjoy. I've read and liked most of those too:) Kerry Greenwood has some good YA stuff in that field too, the only ones springing to mind is the recent series starting with The Rat and The Raven, but I know some of her earlier ones might also be of interest.

I echo the recommendations for the Fire-us trilogy. Another apocalyptically themed book, although perhaps not really YA even though the main character is 12 years old, is Riddley Walker by Russell Hoban. That is a book I have to read again every few years and it still haunts me. A recent YA read I enjoyed that was not truly apocalyptic, but certainly gave a dim view of humanity's future, is Surviving Antarctica: Reality TV 2083.

Try Brother in the Land by Robert Swindells. Written quite a while ago, in 1984 or thereabouts. Bleak but good.

Another vote, deargreenplace, for The Road.

How about World War Z by Max Brooks?

The nostalgia of remembering old reads:-)
I think the Day of the Triffids recommendations is a good one. It may not be YA, but I remember reading it in my early teens, and I really liked it. On the Beach is also an adult book that could be read by teens, but I am not sure it will be properly appreciated. The melancholy and haunting ambience of the story seems more 'grown up'
Another one that isn't YA, but which is really great is A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr..
Of recent YA post apocalyptic novels, I'll second Green Angel by Alice Hoffman it is more poetic than most other of the kind.
River Rats by Caroline Stevermer is a bit of a feel good read, but still taking place in a post apocalyptic world.
Shade's Children by Garth Nix is a good, although not great read, in the same vein as The Tripods by John Christopher and Children of the dust by Louise Lawrence. Just more modern.

So is apocalyptic lit always stories after the destruction of civilization? I have read some where the drastic ends were averted.

Mortal Engines and the other Hungry City Chronicles by Philip Reeve are apocalyptic literature as far as I can tell.

how about

"feed" by m.t. anderson
"it can't happen here" by sinclair lewis
"brave new world" by aldous huxley
"1984" by george orwell

and i have to second...third...or whatever "the road" by cormac mccarthy it was mind and life altering...

>36 yareader2: I'd say post-apocalyptic lit has to be after the destruction of civilization, but if we're just talking about apocalyptic lit I guess the disaster can be averted.

I don't think Atwood is for YA. The Handmaid's Tale would be too disturbing IMO. Books like The Giver are great successes in middle school. I think this genre is interesting to kids because they want to imagine how they would handle being thrown into an impossible situation. It does bring out the hero in people.

i don't know if anyone has mentioned it yet, it's not over in the touchstones that i can see but i just finished "life as we knew it" by susan beth pfeffer and it just absolutly blew. me. away.

Looks good. I added it to my list, thanks

Scott Westerfield's Uglies hasn't been mentioned yet -- it does have two sequels, Pretties and Specials. I liked Uglies a lot, but haven't had a chance to read the other two yet. I'd also suggestGreen Angel by Alice Hoffman.

And I just remembered Caroline Stevermeyer's River Rats.

41: That book is amazing! I've recommended it for our next purchase order.
I think the best part is that it's not preachy in terms of the *cause* of the disaster. So many books that I like in this genre have a message about, for instance, nuclear war (Alas, Babylon). Global warming will likely be the cause of the disaster in more and more upcoming books since it is a hot topic. I agree that it is important to show the consequences of war and environmental devastation and so forth. However, I have a coworker here who does not believe that global warming is real, so I was especially glad to be able to recommend this title that doesn't have a message about the cause so much as how people handled the situation.

Alas, Babylon
Malevil
Lucifers Hammer
Hiero's Journey

Some of these are older and might be harder to find. The first deal with the aftermath of a nuclear war but there is a dozen years of technology seperating the two. The third is a natural desaster and the last is so long after the fall no one really knows what happened. all are good reads.

The only as-yet-unmentioned book that comes to my mind is After the Bomb by Gloria D. Miklowitz. I don't know whether the story or science would hold up to modern standards, as I haven't read this since I was in the 7th grade (which was around 1986 or so).

Is Asimov to traditional for this list? The Foundation Trilogy comes to mind. To sci-fi or other-worldly?

I love the Tomorrow Series. I just came across Scott Westerfield and have been reading his books (Peeps, Last Days and Ugly series). I tried the Left Behind Series, didn't get very far, not my thing. But I'm also like you and enjoy apocalyptic novels.

I picked up a new one today, not particularly ya, but a book of short stories by amazing writers. It is named The Apocalypse Reader by Justin Taylor. It includes Neil Gaiman, Kelly Link, Edgar Allan Poe, and so many more.

Memory Boy by Will Weaver is fast read about life after a cataclysmic volcano eruption in the Pacific Northwest. Not the greatest literature, but a page turner enjoyed by multiple ages in my family.

Richard Reeve's Hungry City Chronicles are defn. post apocalyptic. Garth Nix's - Shade's Children and the Isobelle Carmody's Obernewtyn sequence - all in a post-ap. Australia.
I will say of the books mentioned here, i would have a hard time recommending Gary Paulson...virtually every kid i know who's had to read his books in school (including our son) was heartily sick of them.

Hmm..while it doesn't carry religious overtones with it the Grey Griffins series by Derek Benz is excellent. The kids end up in charge of saving the world on a number of levels but only they (and a few select others) know that it's in danger of ending.

The Hermit Thrush Sings by Susan Butler is pretty good about a girl who draws pictures of things to come in a distopian society.

Whoa, yesterday I was completely about to ask the "Name That Book" group about The Hermit Thrush Sings, since I had just remembered when I went to the library but I couldn't think of the title. But I never got around to asking. Thanks, selkie_girl!!

(Okay, sorry everyone else for the random post which relates very little to the topic at hand.)

I reviewed The Declaration by Gemma Malley on my blog not too long ago.

Read it here: http://presentinglenore.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-review-declaration-by-gemma-ma...

And I've heard about a new release called Neptune's Children by Bonnie Dobkin where all adults die of something and the kids are left to themselves in a theme park. Now that sounds spooky!

I also read and reviewed Uglies and its sequels and loved them!

http://presentinglenore.blogspot.com/2008/04/book-review-uglies-series-by-scott....

I read Neptune's Children and liked it very much. Very Animal Farm with a bit of Lord of the Flies.
I just posted my review here on Library Thing.

I don't think anyone has listed Exodus by Julie Bertagna here yet. It is set in the years 2099-2100, when the glaciers have all but melted.

While not technically a YA book, The White Plague by Frank Herbert is an apocalypse genre story. It is very well written and knocked my socks off the first time I read it.

Julie Bertagna has a sequel to Exodus, called Zenith, which is just as good. Another suggestion is Fearless by Tim Lott. John Marsden has continued the 'Tomorrow series' with the Ellie Chronicles, rounding off the series nicely.