Books, Part II: Dystopian Futures

I've read several books recently about future societies on Earth. Question: Why do most of them have a love triangle (one girl, two boy love interests)? Am I the only reader who likes to know from the beginning who 'gets the girl' and then enjoy how it unfolds? 

The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins:

I won't describe the premise of these books because they are so well known at the moment. My take: they are engrossing, and I will probably re-read them, but I still prefer Harry Potter.

The Selection series by Kiera Cass:

A future where a strict caste system dictates profession and wealth. The society has a selection process whereby the prince chooses his future wife. I'm not a huge fan of "The Bachelor" but I still enjoyed these books. The ubiquitous love triangle is more complicated here because the boy also has multiple love interests (that's fair, I guess?). 

Matched series by Ally Condie:

This series is about a future where everything is carefully controlled by the society, including who each person marries, when they die, what they eat, etc. I liked the heroine better than the girl in The Selection and the love triangle was slightly more bearable. 

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel:

Finally, no love triangle, just pandemic disease and the collapse of society as we know it. A mega-flu bug wipes out most of the earth's population. The story includes scenes from before the flu and from many years after. I read this quickly because I was so curious to see what the Earth was like after society falls apart. This story is aimed at an older audience, so it does feature a bit of swearing and "mature" themes. [Discussion for another day: why do books aimed at adults (and even teens) get called "mature"? If a book stays clean, is it immature? I don't think so!]

The Giver Quartet by Lois Lowry:

I read the first book in school (the other three books hadn't been written yet at that point). Jonas seems to live in a utopia where there is no disease or poverty or discontent, but there is also no color, no love, and no real choices. The second book, Gathering Blue, is set in a different society, where people with any disability or imperfection are not allowed to live. But Kira, a girl with a limp, has an amazing talent for embroidery that saves her. The third book, Messenger, mainly follows characters from Gathering Blue as they face an insidious evil. Then the fourth book, Son, circles back to the time of The Giver and includes the characters from the other books as well. 

The Giver series was my favorite dystopian future story. Not surprising, since I tend to like kid books more than teen books. 

Books, Part I: Perspective Changers

I've read 81 books over the last year. I know this because of my nerdy book spreadsheet, of course. 

This "Part I" will cover nonfiction books that changed my perspective on life/situations/stuff.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand: 
The story of runner Louis Zamperini during World War II. After his plane crashes, he floats in the Pacific for weeks before being captured and tortured by the Japanese. Afterwards, he deals with the repercussions of his experience – unhealthily at first, then gracefully after becoming a believer. I read this mainly while pumping in the middle of the night. Suddenly my lack-of-sleep problem didn’t seem so bad in comparison to the physical and emotional pain he had experienced. This is also a reminder of God's BIG grace. 

Money, Possessions, and Eternity by Randy Alcorn: 
This one took me awhile to finish, because like most of Alcorn's books, it's quite long. He also wrote the Heaven book I blogged about in 2013. In this book on money, he compares our attitudes and habits pertaining to money with what the Bible says it. It unpacks how to live in light of eternity.  

Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony:
"Now what if we as spiritual parents agreed to do something different than merely manage our children's behavior? What if we put our energy toward setting our children in the path of the Divine and watching them fall in love with Jesus?... One option warns, 'Don't fall in love with the world' while the other option offers, 'fall in love with Jesus and the world will look less attractive.'"

A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System of Professed Christians in the Higher and Middle Classes of This Country, Contrasted with Real Christianity by William Wilberforce:
How's that for a title? I read this book because I read Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce by John Piper. Wilberforce was an English politician during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He worked to abolish the slave trade within the British Empire, a goal which was finally achieved a few days before his death in 1833. In his book, Wilberforce points out the differences between most "Christians" and the Christianity described by the Bible. Talking about sin and morals, he said, "Religion is suffered to dwindle away into a mere matter of police. Hence the guilt of actions is estimated, not by the proportion in which according to Scripture, they are offensive to God, but by that in which they are injurious to society."

The best "perspective-changers" are the ones that point me back to God and His Word.