Tag: Dystopian Fiction

Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

I was gifted this book a little while ago by Tandem Collective UK; it was about the time that ‘Leave the World Behind’ had come to Netflix. However, I had not managed to read it or watch it, so this was a book that I had promised myself I would read this year, so I have.

I have a strange liking for ‘dystopian’ fiction; I am not sure why, as it is not something that I have ever read until recently, and now I am fascinated by it. Especially those novels where we do not know the whole story about why the situation is quite like it is. Although, I am not sure that this book fits into one clear genre – I think it could seem slightly different to every reader.

Two families are forced together over the weekend; one family has rented a house to escape the pressures of the city and have a break. However, a knock on the door brings visitors to disrupt their escape: the owners of the house, who have left the city as there appears to be a blackout. But that is all we really know…

This book is incredibly clever because, from the moment The Scotts appear on the doorstep, you feel the suffocation of these two families being forced together. But, at the same time, you also feel the isolation both families are feeling, despite having people around them. This is an impressive thing for an author to create and shows some talent in Alam’s writing. Alongside this, it is a White American family renting from a successful Black American family – leading to discussions about attitudes towards race and racism, as we see these families interact with each other and the events that unfold.

We never really know what has happened to create the situation, other than that there is a blackout and all the fear that comes with that. We know that nature appears to be behaving in weird and peculiar ways, which causes suspicions in the minds of our characters. Yet we see how different people react in different ways – and we see the impact of whatever is going on to our characters, how some will try to help but others will try to flee.

Overall, this is a fascinating read, one that I should probably have picked up sooner (is that not always the way?,) but it is definitely one that I am glad I have read now, and will encourage others to read, even if this is not their usual genre. After all, we should all read outside our comfort zones.

Last One at the Party by Bethany Clift

by Bookworm&TheatreMouse

This is a book that was chosen as Bookstagram made me do it. In fact, one of my good bookstabuddies had raved about it so much that I knew I had to pick it up.

This book really reminded me of ‘I Am Legend’: one person’s fight to survive in a world that has been destroyed, alone and scared. These are not the same book, and by no means is Bethany Clift trying to make it the same, but it was nice to read something that had some similar themes, but with a much higher chance of becoming reality – and that almost makes it a more terrifying read.

However, what is great about this book is that it is told from the point of a view of a woman and not a man in this dystopian world. Seeing how a woman finds the strength to survive alone in the destroyed world is brilliant. And, to be honest, I think she has more strength than I could manage. But I also loved how, throughout the book, there was the reflection on the life that came before and how, maybe, this horror is the making of her.

Yet, I think what really makes this book is the ending – this is a book that is left for you to draw your own conclusions (in fact, I noticed the other day that there are posts out there in the world offering explanations to the ending) which means this book is with you even after you have read the final word. You are left thinking about the ending and wondering if what you have read was really the truth of the protagonist or if it was their interpretation of events – maybe some of it the truth they have chosen to believe.

Or, maybe I am overthinking this ending…

This is a fantastically written novel, leaving you with so much to think about and possibly a little bit of fear about the world that we live in. I really recommend that you pick this book up, as I think it is story that everyone should be reading and discussing.