The world as you know it has come to an end: What’s your next move? The popular genre of post apocalyptic books will have you asking and answering this very question. Not to be confused with apocalyptic novels, the post clues readers into a disastrous event having already occurred.
Our picks for the best post apocalyptic books
We’ve selected some of the most-loved post apocalyptic books to feature in this list. Here you’ll recognize generational classics (hello, Mary Shelley) and modern-day Netflix hits (like Bird Box) alike. These books will have you flipping through your eReader to figure out what will happen next!
Post Apocalyptic Books: Check Out Our Selection
1. The Stand
by Stephen King
Published in 1978, The Stand would go on to be known as one of King’s most beloved titles. In a world ruined by plague and divided over the struggle between good and evil, a small group of panicked survivors must choose sides. Randall Flagg, the story’s antagonist, is the stuff of your worst nightmares.
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2. The Road
by Cormac McCarthy
Find out why this book won the Pulitzer Prize. McCarthy’s novel tells the tale of a father and son walking across a ravaged America with only a pistol for protection. In a world with no hope left, the love this father and son duo have for one another must be enough to sustain them.
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3. Station Eleven
by Emily St. John Mandel
Eerie. Darkly glittering. Spellbinding. Station Eleven revolves around a Hollywood celebrity, his almost savior, and a group of roaming actors who are in the early days following civilization’s collapse. This troupe of performers is dedicated to not only staying alive but preserving the humanities at the same time. This bestselling book is now a tv show on HBO Max.
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4. One Second After
by William R. Forstchen
When a horrifying terrorist attack destroys the United States through the use of electromagnetic pulse weapons, a group of citizens in North Carolina must make sense of their new world. Praised by members of Congress and the Pentagon for being truly realistic, One Second After offers a serious warning for what may be our future and our ending.
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5. The Last Man
by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Set in Europe in the late 21st century, this post apocalytpic and dystopian novel focuses on a mysterious illness that has led to the near-extinction of civilization. This story was publicly ridiculed at the time of its publication; not until the 1960s did it come to be praised as a work of fiction and one of the first post apocalyptic books ever published.
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6. Oryx and Crake
by Margaret Atwood
All at once a love story and vision of what’s to come in the future, Atwood’s novel (the first in a trilogy) discusses a version of humanity nearly destroyed by a plague. Snowman, formerly known as Jimmy, believes he may be the last human alive and is struggling to survive. Snowman sets off on a search for answers, aided by the Children of Crake.
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7. METRO 2034
by Dmitry Glukhovsky
METRO 2034 is the highly praised sequel to METRO 2033. We recommend checking out the entire METRO trilogy, which unfolds in the Moscow metro system following World War III. In 2034, humans are unable to go to the surface of the earth after it’s been destroyed by the pollution of nuclear fallout. A strange civilization must be rebuilt – underground.
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8. Parable of the Sower
by Octavia E. Butler
Lauren Olamina is a hyperempath, meaning that she is ultra-aware of the pain of other people. When her family is killed and her compound is destroyed by fire, Lauren must work with her condition to bring a group of refugees to safety in the north. On the way, she considers a revolutionary concept that could help save all of mankind.
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9. Bird Box
by Josh Malerman
Now a Netflix film, Bird Box will have you on the edge of your seat as you flip the pages in horror. Something mysterious and absolutely terrifying means that citizens around the world cannot take a single glimpse of the outdoors. If they do, they’ll be driven to commit deadly violence. The book’s main character Malorie and her two children must rely on their wits to float twenty miles downstream – blindfolded – to find safety.
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