aldous huxley’s 1932 brave new world dystopia set the stage for a whole genre of similar works, influencing many writers to put pen to paper and share their work with the world. vision of a dystopian future. brave new world is an important work that is said to have inspired writers like george orwell and ray bradbury. Consistently finding itself on lists of the best English-language novels of all time, Huxley’s seminal work is truly a masterpiece of dystopian literature. If she has read the novel and is looking for more books like Brave New World, there are numerous titles to choose from.
9 books like a brave new world
1984, by george orwell
Probably the most obvious addition to any Brave New World list is George Orwell’s 1949 masterpiece, 1984. Set in London in the year 1984, this seminal dystopian novel takes place in what is now present-day London, Airstrip One. The country, now called Oceania, is in a state of perpetual war and its citizens are under constant observation by the oppressive and totalitarian government.
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The novel follows Winston Smith, a mid-level government employee who begins a forbidden sexual relationship with Julia. Throughout this relationship, Winston begins to question the nature of the government, the party, and the role “big brother” has in their lives. his questioning of the government system results in his eventual incarceration where we learn the secrets of this oppressive regime.
The novel explores themes such as the questioning of authority, human conformity, and the power of individualism. emphasizes the dangers of totalitarian regimes while emphasizing the importance of free thought. akin to brave new world, take a strong stance against censorship and totalitarian regimes.
If you’ve already read this book, check out our list of more books like 1984.
fahrenheit 451, by ray bradbury
Ray Bradbury’s 1953 novel Fahrenheit 451 is an excellent addition to any list of books like Huxley’s Brave New World. Set in a futuristic America believed to be at least 50 to 100 years after its publication, the novel follows protagonist Guy Montag as he navigates the dystopian society that developed the United States.
Montag is what is known as a “fireman”, a person whose job is to burn books, which have been banned in society. instead, citizens are subject to a constant stream of surface media and have numerous screens in their homes and public spaces.
Throughout the novel, Montag begins to question the culture of censorship and its totalitarian society. Having been written during the McCarthy era, fahrenheit 451 is inherently critical of government censorship and is an attempt to warn of the dangers of suppressing free speech and thought.
As one of the most enduring dystopian novels of the 20th century, fahrenheit 451 is an absolutely excellent read that’s perfect if you’re looking for Brave New World-like novels.
if you’ve already read this book, check out our list of more books like fahrenheit 451.
the handmaid’s tale, by margaret atwood
Published in 1985, Margaret Atwood’s 1985 dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale is a truly unsettling addition to any Brave New World book list.
Perhaps best known for the recent Hulu television adaptation, The Handmaid’s Tale is set in the not-too-distant future where the United States government has been overthrown by a religious/political group. radical known as the sons of jacob. Since the overthrow, the United States has been dissolved and in its place, a tyrannical theocracy known as the Republic of Gilead has been established.
in gilead, women have been stripped of all their previous rights: they are not allowed to read, work, handle money or be free in any way. A hierarchical society has been established where each citizen of Gilead has his own role. set in a time when birth rates and fertility have declined, fertile women have been enslaved and used as “servants” to be raped and bear children for their masters.
The Handmaid’s Tale is told from the point of view of Offred, a maid who lives in what was once Cambridge, Massachusetts. As a work of speculative fiction, Margaret Atwood is clear that all the things she wrote about in the novel have happened somewhere in the world at some point in history. is a true cautionary tale about how totalitarian regimes get established and how we as a society can prevent them. It’s also a great read if you’re looking for books like Brave New World.
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If you’ve already read this book, check out our list of more books like The Handmaid’s Tale!
the power, by councilor naomi
If you’re looking for books like Brave New World, an interesting and thought-provoking option would be Naomi Alderman’s 2016 novel The Power.
set in a world where women have developed a power to send electric bolts through their fingers and, because of this, have become the dominant gender in the world.
however, this is not a work of “girl power” and “ladies in charge” that shows how much better the world would be if women were in charge of everything. instead, it examines the culture of abuse, domination, and authoritarianism that people in power use to their advantage.
A haunting and captivating work of fiction, The Power has been the subject of much critical acclaim, winning the Bailey’s Women’s Fiction Award, a place in the 10 Best Fiction Books of the new york times. 2017, and a mention as one of Barack Obama’s favorite books of 2016.
never let me go, by kazuo ishiguro
Published in 2005, Kazuo Ishiguro’s dystopian novel Never Let Me Go is an excellent choice if you’re looking for books similar to Brave New World.
Set in a world where humans live the longest lives in history, where once deadly diseases like cancer and heart disease have been eradicated, never let me go is told from the perspective of the protagonist, kathy h.
Starting off as something of a Bildungsroman, the novel follows Kathy as she grows up and forms friendships and relationships at her seemingly idyllic English boarding school and contains the usual trials and tribulations of childhood and adulthood. however, it becomes clear that kathy and her companions are not normal and that something more sinister is at play throughout the text.
Although Never Let Me Go is not necessarily a warning about a totalitarian regime, it is a beautiful piece of speculative fiction about how we treat the human condition and, above all, what it means to be human. It’s also a fantastic read for those looking for books like Brave New World.
If you’ve already read this book, check out our list of more books like never let me go.
infinite joke, by david foster wallace
David Foster Wallace’s 1996 encyclopedic novel Infinite Jest is a massive undertaking, but nonetheless an excellent choice for those seeking books like Brave New World.
set in the not too distant future where the united states is now a huge country made up of canada and mexico, the president is a former pop star who ran on a “clean america” platform and there is a feature film on so addictive that those who watch it can never take their eyes off their screens, the infinity joke made some startlingly accurate observations about what life might look like in the future.
This novel is over 1000 pages long and is known for its generous use of footnotes; however, it is also one of the most critically acclaimed dystopias to come out in recent decades. covers complex topics including the psychology of addiction and human behavior, family relationships, and the effects that absolute capitalism has on society.
If you’re looking for some books that are similar to Brave New World, then Infinity Jest might be a good option if you have the time and energy.
the man in the high castle, by phillip k dick
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Phillip K Dick’s 1962 novel The Man in the High Castle is an excellent work of speculative fiction and an excellent choice for Brave New World readers.
Set in the year 1962, The Man in the High Castle takes place in a world where the Axis Powers won World War II and the West Coast of the former United States is occupied by the Japanese. while the east coast is occupied by the Nazis.
The novel explores what life might have been like if the Allies hadn’t won the war, and how different the world would be if they had. Having received much critical acclaim since its publication, the novel was also adapted for television by Amazon Prime in 2015.
Although considered more speculative fiction than dystopia, The Man in the High Castle is still an excellent choice for you if you’re looking for a Brave New World-like book.
anthem, by ayn rand
While this 1937 novel isn’t one of Rand’s most notable works (you’ll have to read Atlas Shrugged or The Fountainhead for that), it’s an obvious addition to this list of Brave New World books.
Set in a distant future where man has plunged into another dark age, the novel is told from the perspective of the equal protagonist 7-2521. in this world, there is no sense of the individual and only a sense of the collective self, as indicated by the protagonist only using pronouns like “us” and “us” instead of singular pronouns like “me”.
Although brief, anthem is a fascinating story that examines the importance of the human ego and the power of individual thought, theories that rand would later expand on in his best-known published works. .
If you liked Brave New World because you were intrigued by Huxley’s idea of what the distant future might look like, then Ayn Rand’s Hymn is a great book choice for you.
us, by yevgeny zamyatin
Yevgeny Zamyatin’s 1922 dystopian novel Us is one of the most obvious additions to this list of books such as Brave New World, as it is believed to have significantly inspired Huxley’s writing. It has also inspired other writers on this list, such as George Orwell and Ayn Rand.
us is set in a dystopian police state set in the distant future. citizens in this society are under total and perpetual surveillance and there is very little individual freedom. the novel explores many themes, including life in a totalitarian state, while also making many biblical allusions.
Although the writer originally hailed from the soviet union, we was not published in zamyatin’s home country of russia until 1988, more than 65 years after it was written. There are many similarities between Brave New World and Us although Huxley denied having read the novel before writing his work. Speaking of his own dystopia, player piano , author Kurt Vonnegut said that he “happily tore the fabric from a brave new world, the fabric of which had been happily torn from us .”
So if you’re looking for books like Brave New World, why not read the original and get a copy from us?
There are numerous books such as Brave New World that examine what life might look like in the future in a dystopian society.
Are you looking for books like Brave New World? Do you have any incorporation that is not on the list? tell us in the comments!
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