The Year of the Flood

By Margaret Atwood,

Book cover of The Year of the Flood

Book description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the bestselling author of The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments—the second book of the internationally celebrated MaddAddam trilogy, set in the visionary world of Oryx and Crake, is at once a moving tale of lasting friendship and a landmark work of speculative fiction.

The long-feared waterless…

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Why read it?

3 authors picked The Year of the Flood as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This one’s actually the middle book of Attwood’s Maddaddam trilogy, which deals with the results of “the waterless flood,” a viral pandemic which has wiped out most of civilisation.

The Year of the Flood focuses on the lower classes, which again interests me in terms of the effect on “ordinary” people. There’s a dystopian element here, as Attwood explores the religious sect in which the protagonists find themselves.

From Phil's list on post-civilisation futures.

A novel that takes place following the extinction of most of the human species during a viral pandemic.

I decided to start reading this in March 2020, during the first lockdown. It was oddly soothing. It can’t get as bad as this, surely? Sinister corporations, marauding gangs, genetically engineered monsters.... I honestly don’t know anymore.

From Oliver's list on the weirdness and wildness of nature.

The second installment in Atwood’s MaddAddam trilogy, following the dystopian blockbuster Oryx and Crake, proved to be my favorite. Perhaps that’s because the story largely follows the travails of Toby, a fascinating, multi-faceted woman who’s holed up in an erstwhile luxury spa at the end of the world, musing on her recent past as a member of the hippie religious cult God’s Gardeners. Toby is a brilliant and wry guide through this thoroughly immersive ruined world, and Atwood keeps readers on the edge of their seats as we wait to find out what’s left to salvage for the survivors…

From Emma's list on women trying to survive cults.

Book cover of Edge of the Known World

Sheri T. Joseph Author Of Edge of the Known World

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Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Sheri's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

Edge of the Known World is a near-future love and adventure story about a brilliant young refugee caught in era when genetic screening tests like 23AndMe make it impossible to hide a secret identity. The novel is distributed by Simon & Schuster. It is a USA Today Bestseller and 2024 American Fiction Awards Winner in multiple categories, including Best New Fiction, Political Thriller, and Science Fiction: General.

Alexandra is a gifted student, adoring daughter, and exuberant prankster. She is also hiding in the open. After a blissful childhood, Alex learned she’s an illegal refugee from a brutal regime, smuggled into…

By Sheri T. Joseph,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Edge of the Known World as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Fans of Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake will be swept away by this riveting speculative fiction adventure and love story about family, genetic privacy, and the onrushing future of surveillance technology.

2024 American Fiction Awards Winner in multiple categories, including Best New Fiction, Political Thriller, and Science Fiction

Alexandra Tashen is a brilliant student, adoring daughter, merry wit, and exuberant prankster. After a blissful childhood on a Texas ranch, she learns the truth: She is a refusé, an illegal refugee smuggled into the Allied Nations as an infant. Everyone from her birth region carries a harmless but detectable bit of…


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