Comments on: MIND MELD: Post-Apocalyptic Fiction and Why We Love It

By: Vardan Partamyan

Vardan Partamyan — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 11:39:52 +0000

Hey Tony, if you liked Wool and especially if you loved Fallout, check out The After/Life – a post-apocalyptic adventure novel that I think you will very much enjoy. All the proceeds from the sale of the novel are being donated to an orphanage in Gyumri town of Armenia so you will also be supporting a good cause while reading the book! Here’s the link:
http://www.amazon.com/The-After-Life-Saga-ebook/dp/B00AYUOCAA

By: Vardan Partamyan

Vardan Partamyan — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 11:39:21 +0000

By: Bob

Bob — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 17:23:42 +0000

I totally agree with Chelsea Mueller. I have been obsessed with post apocalyptic novels since reading Z For Zachiariah, and being forced to watch the Christian Tribulation movies “Thief in the Night” in elementary school. Sure, I get a buzz out of all the destruction and mayhem, but what really gets to me is the underlining message of hope in many of these tales. That despite what happens to us, and what we do to ourselves, a segment of humanity will do what it takes to survive.

These past few years have had some great PA fiction. I have read much from the authors above and am looking forward to more to come.

By: bdrube

bdrube — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 22:43:56 +0000

Sez you. The past decade or so has been a new golden age for such novels. Here is my Top 12, all of which are great stories:

World War Z by Max Brooks) (2006)
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood (2003)
The Road by Cormac McCarthy (2006)
Sleepless by Charlie Huston (2010)
Wool (Omnibus Edition) by Hugh Howey (2012)
The Passage by Justin Cronin (2010)
The Last Policeman by Ben R. Winters (2012)
Summer of the Apocalypse by James Van Pelt (2006)
Zone One by Colson Whitehead (2012)
The Postmortal by Drew Magary (2009)
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi (2010)
Liminal States by Jack Parsons (2012)

By: John H. Stevens

John H. Stevens — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 20:24:38 +0000

I don’t have my fingers on it right now but Paul is on the right track. Look at the myths and prophecies of ancient religions up to the Rapture today. Look at the proliferation of stories from oral traditions to contemporary literature tackling the end of the world; what’s odd are not periods where it is ascendant, but periods where there seems less of it.

By: Tony

Tony — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:28:59 +0000

I’m almost finished with the Wool Omnibus and it’s really good. But I’ve always been a sucker for these kinds of stories, ever since becoming hooked on Fallout (PC game) over a decade ago.

By: Paul (@princejvstin)

Paul (@princejvstin) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 15:53:40 +0000

Its a topic I’ve discussed on podcasts and elsewhere. It’s my (minority) opinion that humans are hardwired for such stories. There will always be such fiction, to one level or another.

By: John DeNardo

John DeNardo — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:32:27 +0000

Burned out on it, are you?

Which post-apocalyptic stories would you consider must-reads?

By: JD

JD — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:48:24 +0000

I hate post-apocalyptic fiction.
I will not read it now or in the future.
It has been so overdone in the last decade.

Truly, time to move on.