When it comes to dystopian novels, writers have written some of the best. from virtual reality universes to televised deathmatches, there are a plethora of great books in this genre. If you are looking for some of the best dystopian novels to read, then this list is for you!
dystopian novels have long been some of my favorite books to read. My obsession first started with one of the OG dystopian novels for teens, The Hunger Games, but soon grew to encompass many other shocking and disturbing dystopian universes.
You are reading: Young adult dystopian books
There are a ton of young adult dystopian novels on the market today, but which ones are the best? Below, I’ve compiled a list of the best young adult dystopian novels published in the last 20 years, as well as some classic dystopian books for teens to read.
the hunger games by suzanne collins
The Hunger Games is often the first young adult dystopian novel that comes to mind when considering this genre.
This famous trilogy by suzanne collins sparked a wave of other dystopian novels for teens, many of which are very good, but none of which measure up to the original. if you’re going to read only one dystopian novel, make sure it’s this one.
The Hunger Games takes place in a dystopian North America called Panem made up of twelve districts surrounding its capitol. The capitol maintains control by forcing each district to select one boy and one girl each year to compete in the hunger games.
The Hunger Games is a televised fight to the death. the twenty-four boys and girls are placed in an arena and forced to kill or be killed. pretty brutal, huh?
katniss everdeen and peeta mellark are the two district 12 tributes for the latest hunger games. Katniss is a skilled hunter with a strong survival instinct, so she fights hard to stay alive and return to her family who needs her.
but unexpectedly finds love in the sand, which takes her by surprise. How far is she willing to go to stay alive and win the hunger games?
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related: book review the hunger games
divergent by veronica roth
another dystopian book series like the hunger games is veronica roth’s divergent series.
Divergent takes place in a dystopian future where humanity has been divided into 5 different ‘factions’. each faction groups together people with similar personality traits to prevent the outbreak of war.
there is scholar, for the intelligent; friendship, for the peaceful; frankness, for the honest; self-sacrifice, for the selfless; and intrepid, for the brave.
Children grow up in whatever faction their parents belong to. then, at the age of 16, they undergo a kind of aptitude test that reveals which faction they belong to.
This is followed by a choosing ceremony where they must decide which path to choose for the rest of their lives. no problem
this series focuses on beatrice (tris) before. Though Tris was born Abnegation, at the choosing ceremony he chooses to leave his family and join Dauntless.
However, during the aptitude test, she discovered a secret about herself that could change her life forever. If she lets the secret slip, there could be dire consequences for her.
This is an excellent series of young adult dystopian books about a band of rebels who fight against the system and discover the truth about the strange and segregated world they live in.
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related: divergent book review | review of the divergent movie
i want for cindy pon
Cindy Pon’s
Want is a diverse, dystopian novel that you’ve probably never heard of. in fact i have never seen anyone post about this on bookstagram or their book blog. which is a real shame.
Set in a dystopian version of Taiwan, Want is a refreshing addition to the already dystopian genre with a unique story and current issues discussed. In this world, the earth is so polluted that you need to wear a special suit to protect yourself from the outside elements.
The problem is that these suits are incredibly expensive, so only the rich can afford them. these lucky souls are called yous. the poor suffer shorter and shorter lives and are often unable to pay for medical care when they get sick. these unfortunate souls are called meis.
jason zhou, a mei (meaning poor), conspires to infiltrate the jin corporation, the company responsible for manufacturing protective suits for the rich. But the closer Jason and his friends get to the company, the more sinister his actions reveal. Things get complicated when Jason begins to fall for Daiyu, the daughter of the CEO of Jin Corporation.
In Mandarin, méi yǒu, or 没有, means not to have. you are the ones who have everything and the meis are the ones who have nothing. As an average Chinese reader, I loved this.
There are references to Taiwanese culture and the Mandarin language, which only served to make me realize (again) how undiverse literature can be.
The references are subtle enough for non-Mandarin speakers to catch a glimpse of, but to someone who understands them, each one is like a little easter egg, a secret shared between author and reader.
This is an original take on the classic trope of young rebels battling wealthy corporations and I highly recommend it to fans of dystopian young adult novels.
if you’re bored reading about dystopian america (often not so dystopian and worryingly close to reality), pick up cindy pon’s want, which is set in taiwan. It’s refreshing to read a story that doesn’t repeat the typical Hunger Games tropes over and over again!
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james dashner’s maze runner
Maze Runner is another popular dystopian series that rose to fame through a series of film adaptations.
The story begins when Thomas arrives at the clearing in a box. he has absolutely no recollection of who he is or where he came from.
He is greeted by a group of teenagers (there are no adults or girls in the clearing!) and informed that there is only one way out of the clearing.
Outside the tall concrete walls of the clearing, there is a huge labyrinth that is riddled with mourners, violent and dangerous creatures. each day, a wall opens, giving the gladers a chance to escape through the maze.
Two years have passed, yet the gladers have never successfully exited the labyrinth. however, they have lost many small children in their escape attempts.
Young people continue to struggle to survive against what they assume is a system that adults created to test them. however, they have no idea why they are being tested.
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related: review of the book the maze runner
the 100 of kass morgan
the 100 is a dystopian young adult novel set in a future where the earth is fully habitable. After a catastrophic nuclear war, the planet is leaking toxic levels of radiation to all living things.
The rest of the human race lives in a large spaceship that floats around the earth, waiting for the day when it is safe to return home. resources are rapidly running out on the ship and the governors are forced to try to find a solution or return to earth as quickly as possible.
Since no one knows what state the earth is in or if the ground is still radioactive, the ship’s chancellor doesn’t want to risk bringing everyone back to earth. instead, he chooses to send in 100 teenage delinquents, whom he seems expendable.
Each of these teens is given a monitoring bracelet (ahem, cuff) that is designed to send their health status and vital signs to those on the spacecraft.
If it appears that the teens are still healthy after their return to earth, then the chancellor will bring the rest of the ship back to earth. if the teens’ health deteriorates or they know it, the ship will stay in space for a while longer.
The teens have a bumpy ride from the spaceship back to earth and their ship makes a crash landing. during the crash, all communication with the mothership is lost. teenagers are left to fend for themselves on earth with no idea what awaits them.
the 100 is a fairly short read, but packs a lot of action into its pages. you’ll zip through this dystopian young adult novel in no time and reach book two right away!
If you like the sound of this, I recommend you check out the TV adaptation of The 100, which is also excellent.
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See Also: A List of The Correct Order of the 11 Movies in The Love Comes Softly Series
related: the review of the 100 books
we set fire to the dark by tehlor kay mejia
If you’re looking for dystopian feminist novels for teens that don’t just repeat the tropes that books like The Hunger Games made popular, then this is the book for you.
Like other dystopian young adult novels, We Set Fire to the Dark still has underlying themes of class, privilege, and political revolution. however, the characters and story are a breath of fresh air.
In this dystopian world, upper-class girls are trained for one of only two possible roles in society: mothers or housewives.
Our protagonist, Daniela, is at the top of her class in the all-girls middle school and it looks like she will continue to be an exemplary woman.
However, he hides a secret about his identity that could end everything. Her parents falsified her birth certificate so that she could have a better life and her pedigree is a complete lie.
The night of her graduation, Daniela must make a decision. she can choose to continue on her path, marry well and have the privileged life her parents always wanted for her. she or she could become a spy for a resistance group fighting for equality in the middle.
if you liked katniss everdeen, then you’ll love daniela.
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rick yancey’s fifth wave
rick yancey’s fifth wave mixes science fiction and dystopia in this fantastical story about life on earth after four ‘waves’ of an alien invasion.
During the 1st wave, power was cut off and during the 2nd wave, a tsunami drowned most of the human population. During the third wave, a deadly disease wiped out most of the survivors, and during the fourth wave, the few remaining humans turned on each other.
The thing is, the extraterrestrial life inflicting these ills on the human race are not little green men who came down in spaceships. they resemble humans. and the 5th wave is coming.
The story follows Cassie, who is separated from her father and younger brother when soldiers discover the refugee camp they had been hiding in. the soldiers are only interested in children under the age of 15 and kill everyone else.
cassie is 16 years old but manages to survive and escape. her father is not so lucky.
alone and desperate to find her little brother, she embarks on a journey to find out where they took him. She meets another lonely person, Ella Evan Ella, but when friend and foe look alike, how does she know she can trust him?
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related: the fifth wave book review
red queen of victoria aveyard
red queen by victoria aveyard mixes fantasy and dystopia in a world where your blood defines your status in society.
“Reds” are lower class commoners, while “Silvers” make up the elite ruling class. what’s more, all silvers are endowed with some sort of ability that no reds could possess.
Mare Barrow is a poverty-stricken Red Stilt with no aspirations for an exciting or extraordinary life. then she finds herself working in the silver palace and surrounded by the people she hates the most, the silvers.
It is here that he discovers that even though his blood is red, he can wield lethal power. Reds with special powers are unheard of and their secret could completely destroy the balance of power in the world they live in.
When the silvers discover their talent, they are scared and decide to try and play this for their own benefit. they turn the mare into an icon and a puppet they can control. they are unaware that an illicit resistance group has approached mare to try to topple the silver regime from within.
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related: red queen book review
stephenie meyer’s presenter
the host is a cross between dystopian literature and science fiction from the author of twilight, stephenie meyer. It may surprise you to learn that Stephenie Meyer actually wrote another (much less popular) book for young adults. and personally I think the host is a much better job.
In this story, the earth has been invaded by a species that takes over the minds and bodies of their human hosts. “wanderer” is the invader soul that has been put inside the human melanie stryder, but fights to completely control melanie’s mind and body.
wanderer hopes to find out what remains of the human resistance from melanie’s memories, but melanie is a fighter and instead brings her memories to the forefront of her collective mind. She fills the drifter’s thoughts with memories of Jared, a human man Melanie had a crush on, who is in hiding.
A chain of events forces Wanderer and Melanie to become allies and set off in search of the man they now love.
the host is a truly gripping story about a human woman’s struggle against an invading power and the persistence of love. explores what it means to be truly human through a unique lens, as the first-person perspective is distorted by the fact that there are two souls in one mind.
Honestly, you will be surprised that the author of twilight also wrote this book, since the style and content are very different.
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legend of marie lu
legend of marie lu is set in a dystopian america ruled by military constantly fighting to contain the rebels.
There is a clear divide in society between rich and poor, and your place in it is determined by a test you take as a child. If you are promising and pass the exam, you can continue your education with the best students who get places in the armed forces.
Meanwhile, children who fail the test become the property of the state and end up in labor camps. Plagues regularly plague the poorest areas of society where people cannot afford medical care or cures. if you’re rich, you get vaccinated every year.
This story centers on two teenagers, June and Day. while June is from one of the wealthiest districts in the republic and destined for great military success, Day is a wanted criminal.
Their paths cross when June’s brother is murdered and June is named the prime suspect. the teenagers hate each other at first, but together they begin to unravel the secrets of the society they live in and begin to work together instead of against each other. there are no prizes for guessing that a romance is starting to develop between the couple.
Finally, it’s worth mentioning that this dystopian novel is written by a diverse author and contains racially diverse characters. always a win!
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noughts and crosses by malorie blackman
noughts and crosses is arguably the most powerful book on the list and an incredibly topical read in light of the recent focus on the #blacklivesmatter movement.
What is perhaps most striking is the parallels between some events in this book and those that have taken place recently, despite the fact that ‘noughts and crosses’ was published 20 years ago, in 2001.
In this dystopian world, the “crosses” (black people) are privileged and the “zeros” (white people) are seen as inferior.
the two main characters are sephy and callum, who grew up playing together and are the best of friends. but sephy is a cross and callum is a zero.
Their relationship becomes increasingly complicated as they age and hints of a romance develop between them. the prejudiced world they live in and their wildly different social statuses means the odds are stacked against them as a couple.
To further complicate matters, Sephy’s father is a prominent politician, while Callum’s family is involved in an underground rebel movement.
With themes of love, rebellion, race, injustice, family, and more, this dystopian book for young adults will stay with me forever.
noughts and crosses is a thought-provoking, heart-wrenching read that will leave you reeling long after you turn the last page.
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ugly by scott westerfeld
Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies hit the scene years before The Hunger Games or Divergent and is one of the dystopian books for young adults.
See Also: 18 Popular Books Being Made Into Movies in 2017
In this world, society is divided into ugly and beautiful. everyone is born ugly, but at sixteen all teenagers have surgery to make them pretty.
and the account of the main character can’t wait.
He’s spent his whole life waiting for the moment when he can cross over to prettyville and take part in all the amazing parties he’s seen in the distance.
After Tally’s only friend comes of age and goes to Prettyville, Tally befriends a girl named Shay. unlike tally, shay is rebellious and doesn’t want to be pretty.
tells the story of a rebellious tribe that lives apart from the rest of society and never goes through the transformation to be pretty. there, the ugly live as they please. and Shay is determined to find and join them.
tally resists, so shay goes off on her own, leaving tally clues to help her find her if she changes her mind. The problem is Shay’s disappearance and her close relationship draws the attention of the authorities who refuse to account for her until she leads them to the rebels.
This story is slow, but once it started, I loved it. It’s a classic young adult dystopian series about rebels fighting an authoritarian state and the focus on aesthetics and beauty is a nice touch.
Please read this now, as a film adaptation is in the works starring Joey King (The Kissing Booth).
For a classic adult dystopian novel of this story, try L P Hartley’s Facial Justice.
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matched by ally condie
along with ally condie is one of the most popular dystopian romance novels with all the dystopian tropes you’d expect.
Like many others on this list, the story centers on a teenager living in a regimented society, only to later realize there might be another way to live.
In this world, the life of adolescents is totally planned or “matched” by society. their careers are chosen by society, their meals are prepared by society, and their partners are chosen by society.
There is very little free will, but society uses algorithms to determine the best path for each individual. fewer options, less conflict, right?
On the day of Cassia’s matchup, two strange things happen. The first is that she was paired with her best friend, Xander, whom she has known since she was born. it’s incredibly rare for a couple to be from the same district and even rarer for them to already know each other.
When you are matched, you are presented with a microcard containing all the information you need to know about your match. However, when Ella Cassia opens her microcard, she doesn’t see Xander’s face, but rather Ky, another boy from her neighborhood.
She was told that it was simply a technical problem and that xander is definitely the ideal match for her. but cassia can’t get ky out of her mind. she begins to question everything about the regimented world she has grown up in and starts her little rebellion.
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now some classic dystopian novels for teens. these are often studied in school.
george orwell’s 1984
when considering classic dystopian literature, 1984 is usually the first book that comes to mind. the story takes place in a dystopian surveillance state where people are constantly watched and scrutinized by the “big brother”, a symbolic head of state.
tells the story of winston smith, in charge of rewriting the past to adapt it to the dialogue that the ruling party wishes to present. However, Winston is tired of conforming and living under a totalitarian regime and begins to have rebellious thoughts. He begins an affair with another worker, Julia, but discovers that the price of freedom will be betrayal.
1984 is an incredibly thought-provoking novel and one of the best English classics to read. it’s an incredibly powerful book, and the fact that it’s been repeatedly banned over the years for its social and political commentary is proof of that.
As you study the dystopian world portrayed in Orwell’s masterpiece, you begin to see similarities to the world we live in today. and it’s worrying.
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lord of the flies by william golding
Lord of the Flies is a classic dystopian teen novel that is usually introduced to readers at school. begins when a plane crashes on an island leaving a group of young people as the only survivors.
With no adult to tell them how to live, the children try to create their own civilized society on the island while waiting to be rescued.
However, order and any sense of morality quickly crumbles and many of the children run wild, focused solely on hunting and meat rather than rescuing them. It is an interesting study of human nature and, according to Golding, what really lies in the heart of man.
This novel is unsettling, even graphic at times, but nothing is more unsettling than the end of this book when you realize that perhaps the man in “civilized” society is not so different from the boy on this island. his war-hungry actions are disguised differently.
if you loved books like the hunger games or maze runner, then you must read lord of the flies. Golding’s classic came decades before these new novels, but they share themes like the loss of humanity, the loss of innocence, the survival instinct, and more.
james dashner, the author of maze runner, has often cited lord of the flies for inspiration and the parallels are clear. both stories involve a group of teenagers, abandoned to their fate and struggling to survive. While Dashner’s novel is less nuanced, it is more entertaining.
lord of the flies is a quick read at only around 200 pages and well worth spending an afternoon digging into.
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george orwell’s animal farm
animal farm is one of the best and most famous allegorical tales to date. It is about a group of animals that take control of their farm from the human farmer in search of equality and freedom. instead, a dictatorship develops and one animal takes control of everyone.
orwell uses animals as an extended metaphor to lampoon humanity and this veiled story inspired by stalin’s russia is still relevant today. is a brutal and harsh dystopian story about fear, conformity, dehumanization and control.
The total freedom that the animals sought is short-lived, as animals must follow a set of seven commandments, including restrictions such as “no animal shall ever wear clothes” or “no animal shall kill another animal.”
this is one of og’s dystopian stories and a classic example of how trying to create a “good” society can result in creating an even worse and more restrictive one.
Many of the ruling powers in the dystopian young adult books on this list believe they are there to do good and that the society they have created is better when, in fact, it is much, much worse.
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related: books like the little prince for adults
the handmaid’s tale by margaret atwood
Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale has earned the title of modern classic and is becoming an increasingly popular title on school curricula. This classic dystopian novel has recently seen a resurgence in popularity due to the HBO TV adaptation of the story, but this book has captivated readers for decades.
The Handmaid’s Tale is set in the fictional Republic of Gilead, where birth rates have reached an all-time low. in fact, a successful pregnancy is so rare that only wealthy households have babies. these homes have “maids” whose sole purpose is to produce a healthy baby for the wealthy family they live with.
once a month, when she is most fertile, the maid will spread her legs for the master of the house, praying to get pregnant as it is only useful if she conceives a baby for the family.
related: books like the handmaid’s tale
The story focuses on Ofred, a servant in the commandant’s house. she often reminisces about what life was like before becoming a servant and being free to live a normal life.
She once had a husband, a daughter, a job, money of her own, things that most women today know about. but all of that is gone now and the only valuable part of it is the matrix of it.
The most disturbing thing about the Handmaid’s Tale, and one of the reasons it remains so popular, is that some elements of this dystopian existence are not that far removed from the world we live in today. this powerful book sparked a wave of feminist dystopia literature and is a must read.
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