Three Dystopian Novels That You Must Read in 2026

A genre that I always find myself visiting over and over are dystopian novels. Something about these books makes me want to read them all. And we decided to share three dystopian novels that you must read in 2026. Keep reading to find out which ones made our list!

For this article, I wanted to spice things up and choose novels that readers aren’t familiar with. We all know the dystopian novels that everyone mentions. It wouldn’t be much of a recommendation if the list consisted of novels you already read.

Maybe in another article we might do that but for this one, I will be choosing dystopian novels I loved that are lesser known. Well, two of them might be because I am sure most avid readers will have heard of The Giver by Lois Lowry. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you have read it.

I am constantly searching for new dystopian novels to read because a good dystopian novel stays with you for a long time. I loved all three of these novels and I know you will too. You can see the full list below!

Three Dystopian Novels That You Must Read in 2026

• The Giver by Lois Lowry (1993)
• The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa
• The Girl with All the Gifts by M. R. Carey

The Giver

I read The Giver by Lois Lowry in school for the first time and it didn’t have much of an impact on me. But when I read it years later, I was taken away by how incredible this novel was. It is considered one of the best dystopian novels ever written and I can see why.

The books follows 12-year-old Jonas who lives in a community that is isolated and everyone is assigned a role. The annual Ceremony of Twelve is going to take place soon and has Jonas worried.

He will be assigned a job for the rest of his career by the elders and is nervous about it. But things take an unexpected turn and changes the course of Jonas’ life and everything he knew about the Community he grew up in.

The Giver is credited as being the novel that focused on young adult readers in the dystopian genre. It was the catalyst and inspiration for the change in direction and led to a surge in popularity that happened in the late 2000s. without this novel, we wouldn’t have gotten some of our beloved series as a result such as The Hunger Games.

The Memory Police

I am always reading sci-fi books and came across a fantastic novel that I really enjoyed. The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa is a Japanese novel written in 1994 but was translated to English in 2019. And I have to say, we were missing out on an amazing novel.

The story follows the protagonist who lives on an island where memories of items are erased from people’s minds. The Memory Police goes around enforcing them as well as rounding up people whose memories aren’t being erased and anyone hiding these people in their homes.

This novel will remind you of 1984 by George Orwell and has reminded many readers of Franz Kafka. The novel is fantastic and if it was released in English years ago, may have been considered a sci-fi classic. I can assure you this novel will make you read more dystopian novels as well as Japanese novels.

The Girl With All the Gifts

Finally, for the last pick, I decided to choose a novel that many readers might not be familiar with. As a fan of zombie novels, I knew I had to read The Girl with All the Gifts by M. R. Carey and see if the hype was real. And I am glad that I did because I really enjoyed this take on the zombie sub-genre.

Humanity is on the brink of extinction because of a zombie outbreak. The zombie outbreak wiped out most of civilization and has led to a breakdown in society. All the cities have collapsed and humans are mostly living in bases, hiding behind fences.

A military base houses children that are zombies but different. They can think and act normal until a person comes near them. One of these zombie children is Melissa. She, along with other zombie children are bound and wheel-chaired to classroom where they are tied to the desk and taught about the world. 

One day, Melissa is chosen to be a test subject. But before the doctor can experiment on her, the military base is invaded. A fight ensues and some of the people that work at the facility are injured. Because Melissa is half zombie, she is bound.

As the group makes their way through the desert, they form a bond (not all of them) and come to trust each other enough to survive. But two big discoveries force the group to face an enemy that won’t go down without a fight.

The novel is based on a short story by Carey and I am glad that he made it into a full length novel. it is a fresh take on a genre that can be feel stale at times. If you loved World War Z, then you will surely love this novel.

Conclusion

The dystopian genre imagines a world where the worst case scenario becomes a reality. If that sounds terrifying, that’s because it is. Often times, these novels are inspired by fear. All three of these novels imagine a future that would be intolerable for many.

Novels like these make me appreciate the world that we do live in. If you have read the news, then you know that not all is well. But it is also a reminder that it can always be worse. And while zombie apocalypse are fictional events, they are inspired by true fear.

I don’t consider dystopian novels to be horror novels but for many people, they might be. While they may be great works of literature, they are also warnings to whoever is reading them. And hopefully, the people in charge to heed these warnings before they become a reality.

How many of these dystopian novels have you read or plan to read? I did choose ones that many readers were less likely to have come across before. Even The Giver is a novel that is forgotten by many since it was released over three decades ago.

What other dystopian novels do you want us to cover in the future? Let us know in the comments below. Until next time, happy reading!

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