10 Lesser-Known Anti-Totalitarian Novels

This spring, the president of the United States posted a picture depicting himself as Jesus Christ. That bizarre exercise in self-hagiography was only the latest in Trump’s decade-long campaign of anti-democratic actions and statements, including but not limited to blatant efforts to use the government to silence press critics, efforts to prosecute those the president sees as personal enemies, armed masked agents of the state kidnapping people off the street, and, of course, an attempted coup.

In this environment, people have turned to a small collection of dystopian anti-totalitarian novels to try to understand our current circumstances. George Orwell‘s 1984, Margaret Atwood‘s The Handmaid’s Tale, Octavia Butler‘s Parable duology, Suzanne Collins‘ Hunger Games series, Philip Roth‘s The Plot Against America and Philip K. Dick‘s The Man in the High Castle offer insights into how liberty falls to tyranny, and how people resist, or (often, alas) don’t.

I’d certainly recommend reading all of the texts above. They do, though, have some limitations. Most are written by white men, who are not generally the first people targeted by totalitarian regimes. And their canonical status and ubiquity can prevent readers from seeking out other, equally worthy, and sometimes maybe even more insightful texts. Below are 10 anti-totalitarian novels that are often passed over but shouldn’t be.