The Recent Utopian/Dystopian/Armageddon/Zombie Apocalypse Book Fad

Over the past year, I have fallen prey to the book craze that followed the Hunger Games: flooding the market with novels filled with futuristic societies and their ensuing "Big Brother" problems. I think what draws me to these types of books is what draws me to books in general. We read books to escape our everyday lives.What is more of an escape than a society that does not exist, and what is more thrilling than the small possibility that it one day could? In these dystopian-type novels, the authors have to do a lot of "world-building", which is a great way to not only intrigue readers, but also a way to fill pages.  The success of Harry Potter was built on world-building. J.K. Rowling successfully created an entire wizarding world, complete with laws and history, that "existed" alongside the world we know today. 

In these futuristic novels, the world-building is highly concentrated on political and governmental structure. Usually there is some breaking point that occurred in America's past, that either caused the country to split up or a government crackdown to create order, for example: Hunger Games (government crackdown after rebellion), Divergent (people split into factions after too much fighting), Legend (country splits in two), Reboot (Texas secedes), and Taken (country splits in two). Matched might be the only one that is far enough in the future that a history of how we got there is not really given. 

In all of these books, the people in each of these imaginary societies are stifled in their decision-making regarding their own lives. Their jobs are decided for them. In Hunger Games, you are stuck in your district, and each district has one industry to work on (lumber, fishing, agriculture, coal). In Divergent, your faction leaves you with a specific and small amount of job choices (Abnegation is government, Dauntless is security, Amity is crop-growing). In Matched, you are given a test that determines what job you will have.  In some, their romantic relationships are decided for them. In Matched, you are given your life partner, and in Taken, you are told who to procreate with.

There is certainly a formula, and even though I easily recognize the formula just by reading the back of the book, I am still drawn in. Have you read any of these books? Are there any others you would recommend? I am always looking for new books to read. Add me on Good Reads here!