Fans pick 100 books like Little Brother

This book resonated with me on so many levels. I first read it in 2015 while working at a tech company, and the novel gave me the language to express the unease I felt about Big Tech’s relentless push for “transparency” and “sharing,” often at the expense of privacy. In many ways, the book is an argument about trade-offs—the perks of working for a Google-like company versus the torture of being overly connected.

Eggers also offers one of the most accurate portrayals of life as a Silicon Valley tech worker. The overwhelming barrage of pings and constant demands for feedback felt all too familiar. Ultimately, it is both a compelling dystopian thriller and a thought-provoking critique of the tech-driven world we inhabit, raising critical questions about privacy and the cost of innovation.

In Bumped, a worldwide pandemic of the Human Progressive Sterility Virus renders the adult population sterile. About three-quarters of teenagers are infected and will go irreversibly sterile sometime between their eighteenth and twentieth birthdays. This changes attitudes about teen pregnancy. The survival of humanity depends on it.

The situation spurs a variety of responses. Trendy stores at the mall sell provocative clothing and “fun bumps,” strap-on bellies that show the girls how sexy they’ll look when pregnant. School clubs put the focus on procreation. The main character’s parents are determined to cash in on their daughter’s great genes and virginity and broker her first child to the highest bidder.

I read this book when my daughter was a teenager. Yikes! I know how much teenagers are influenced by social media, advertising, and their peers. It was horrifying how the government tried to manipulate the teens into having as much… show more.

In Missing Pieces, marriage partners are matched by science to produce healthy children. There's no room for personal choice or alternative lifestyles. Best friends Piran and Tracy are matched to other people, yet they know in their hearts they’re meant to be together. Are they brave enough to leave everything behind to live the life they want? Missing Pieces depicts a clinical approach to marriage and family and uncompromising attitudes about love and sex. 

I was so engrossed in this book I stayed up all night to finish it! I was completely swept up in the story of Tracy and Piran’s forbidden friendship that ripened into forbidden love. Their whole society was constructed to keep them apart. Matched partners were desperately unhappy, but no one dared speak up for fear of ostracism, disfigurement, and banishment from the community. It seemed like it could never happen—and yet repression and coersion… show more.

I read this novella in one sitting, and I firmly believe it is the most efficient introduction to the dystopian genre. The theme of individuality, emphasized by the lack of the word “I” throughout most of the book, underscores many other pieces of dystopian literature.

As the protagonist learns how to express himself as an individual rather than part of a collective, readers are exposed to the importance of discovering their own identities–something that I take to heart as I navigate my twenties!

This book was my childhood favorite, by far. The Girl Who Owned a City is an exploration of life after adults: when every adult suddenly dies, the world is left to their kids… and not everyone will survive. Determined to keep her younger brother alive and the memory of their parents close, Lisa somehow creates a community that becomes a safe haven for miles around. As a main character, Lisa absolutely steals the show; her resourcefulness and grit are unmatched, and stuck with me for years after reading this book. There’s also a graphic novel version, for anyone who prefers that format! 

While this book doesn’t depict today’s internet culture directly, it’s easy to imagine a dystopian future where most people spend their lives in a virtual reality world like the Oasis. As the main character navigates the challenges of this massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), he encounters dilemmas that resonate with today’s internet users: Can you truly trust someone you’ve only met online? How do you compete when others have far more resources?

Though the book is geared toward a young adult audience, its themes hit home for readers of all ages. I’m glad we have stories showing that tech isn’t always a neutral force in society and that retreating into an online space doesn’t solve the larger systemic problems in the world.

I walked into this expecting dinosaur horror and came away with science and intelligent social commentary. Dr. Malcolm has significantly more space on the written page to delight us with Chaos theory and criticisms of human arrogance, and I am here for it!

While Jurassic Park delivers on horror, death, and danger, it also manages to deliver some thoughtful themes that go deeper than “science is dangerous.” We explore the responsibility we have to keep the power of scientific advancement with experts operating with the temperance that expertise confers.

Thoughtful sci-fi like Jurassic Park must always come with a dose of how we maintain our humanity and navigate our relationship with the natural world as technological advancements flood in.

Ah, Dan Brown. Love him or hate him, he’s a paragon of the modern thriller. Let’s go way back to 1998. It was pre-DaVinci Code, and he released his first novel, Digital Fortress. For the time period, it was a unique idea. A woman cryptologist at the NSA gets embroiled in a high-stakes murder mystery and the only way through is to solve the code. There are a lot of issues with this book, primarily that the author couldn’t be bothered to check his work and misuses bits and bytes throughout the whole novel which makes the code-breaking premise ridiculous. But to be fair, this was 1998 and for a first novel, it’s still a fun ride. So, if you’re a Dan Brown fan or love a fast-paced easy read give it a try. If you have even a basic understanding of how encryption works you may… show more.

I love an all-action plot that does not rely on the action to sell the story. This is about artificial intelligence creation and a race to unlock its secret about a murder. There is lots of tech detail and the plot is well thought out.

I loved the fast pace of the story and the main character who is not so much a hero but an ex bad guy who O’Reilly creates beautifully. I do rate this very interesting story about Ai.

Hands up who wasn’t in a play of Oliver Twist at school! This is such a classic and theatre favourite which I remember starring in twice. But this is a truly modern and interesting reimagining of a Dicken’s masterpiece. Olivia is an orphan, strong and independent but with wounds from her many years within the care system. When her computer skills are noticed she is recruited to Syke’s hacker gang of cyber thieves which masquerades as a home for unwanted children. Each chapter starts with a quote from the original which foreshadows the events to come and provides a nice correlation between this version and the original. I really love how endearing the characters can be despite their flaws. This adds a really nice dimension to the story.