It is the season of spending quality time with family and catching up with relatives you don’t normally see. Served alongside dinner comes the strained conversation about your family members’ lives, as well as news events and politics. Whether you mean it to or not, politics always makes its way to the dinner table. What starts as a general chitchat about elections and the government is bound to turn into a match between opposing sides, spoiling the family meal.
Instead, this year, bring up the conversation of politics through books. Books can help you tackle discussions about current events and politics in a way that allows opposing sides to share insights and foster a conversation. Books give us a view of what may be going on in our world, but separate us from the problem in our actual day and age, allowing discussion rather than a debate of both sides. To help kickstart the dinner conversation this year, try these 10 books that highlight or satirize our current politics.
Trigger Warning: The books in the article contain mentions of sexism, mental health, harassment, sexual assault, racism, murder, police brutality, and slavery. Please exercise personal care while reading.
Highlights Our Politics
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games is a series that almost everyone grows up reading and never expects to be true to reality. However, with the tense political conversations we have in our world right now, along with new measures in our system coming to fruition, it is becoming closer to our world. While we are not in a world of games where we are tested upon each other, it connects with our world in more aspects than not. What connects our world to this book are the depictions of extreme wealth inequality, government oppression, and the power of media and entertainment. This book highlights these issues in our world and presents them in a dystopian setting. In doing so, it allows people to comment on and discuss the realities presented in the book without relating them to our world wholeheartedly. Bringing this book up at dinner will enable you to talk about wealth inequality without resorting to our world’s terms and bringing in opposing side views. It lets an intellectual conversation play out, with everyone’s voices heard, not a tense debate.
The Children of Men by P. D. James
Tackling another political issue and highlighting it is the book The Children of Men by P. D. James. The Children of Men is a novel known for its effective portrayal of these tense social conditions, and it conveys the truth about what will actually occur. This book is a modern science fiction classic that speaks about declining birth rates, government control over refugees, and political polarization. The story highlights our own issues of a lack of future generations, as well as conversations over immigration. It brings up vital dialogues about the future, rights, and politics in a way that allows us to talk about current events in our world, while also seeing what could happen if they continue. P. D. James crafts an inquisitive and instructive narrative that captivates readers and sparks meaningful discussion.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
For an engaging dystopian with a strong plot that flows well, Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler should be your next book to chat about. This book is produced through provoking content that gives readers food for thought in our own current challenging times. The world depicted in the novel is realistic and frighteningly plausible, evoking emotions we don’t always come to terms with. Themes presented in the book that are like our current world politics are the climate-related collapse, racism, and religion. The events described in the novel are not so far-fetched and definitely hit home in our society. With it being an apocalyptic scenario, it helps people come to reality with some of the similar events, but they will most likely not be so severe. If you are looking for something more apocalyptic, with themes that resonate with our current political climate, then this book is a perfect read.
Vox by Christina Dalcher
Similar to the well-beloved The Handmaid’s Tale, Vox by Christina Dalcher sets itself in a recognizable near-future reality. Vox is a captivating sci-fi novel with real-life parallels that evokes suspense and carries a powerful message about rights in society. This story places itself as a timely reminder of the power and dominance of language. Themes inside the novel that connect with our current political climate include religion, women’s rights, and the importance of language. This book presents our current issues in what seems an extreme way, but in reality, it brings to life what could happen. Like any good dystopian novel, it raises the question of what would happen if you left an issue unchecked and offers ideas on how to change fate. The story itself allows you to speak on our political climate without resorting to current events. Vox is one of those books guaranteed to make you think and spark compelling conversations to get everyone involved.
The Circle by Dave Eggers
To introduce the repercussions and harsh realities of the digital age, The Circle by Dave Eggers explores this eye-opening theme. This book is thought-provoking and engaging, with powerful ideas about the advancement of technology. Ideas discussed in the book align with our current politics of AI use and with technology itself. The fictional future in the novel is an extension of everything that is going on today and offers insight into what the future would be like if the path is taken, much like the one in the story. The Circle by Dave Eggers makes you think about real life and its complex issues, which may not have been present in books like this. While it confronts a big issue in our current political climate, it does so in a way that lets you discuss a timely matter.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Set in a bleak, dystopian future, the acclaimed novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is more relevant than ever. The story brings to life the power of language and of taking away books that set ideas free. In recent years, banning books has become a significant topic in our political climate, one that everyone talks about. With both sides set across from each other, a conversation between them rarely goes as planned. Fahrenheit 451 resembles our own world and provides an outlet to discuss the issue of book banning, allowing a discussion to take place without directly addressing our exact political situation. In a timeless storytelling style, it offers insights into human society and sparks discussion among readers, young and old.
Satirizes Our Politics
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
A classic in the world of literature, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, is essential to read now more than ever. This story is a vision of an unequal, technologically-advanced future where humans are socially indoctrinated to uphold an authoritarian ruling order. Considered a foreshadowing dystopian work that compares to our actual world, this work has a satirical tone to it. Huxley’s work is a satirical prediction of the future that has become a harsh reality for us and allows us to get a grasp of our reality in a more light-hearted sense. The story remains relevant to our day and age, serving as both a warning to be heeded and a crucial discussion topic. Set down your phones and create an important dialogue on the future we are heading into.
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Put into different curricula as well as now a banned book, Animal Farm by George Orwell is a book that can break the conversation ice at dinner. This story takes a satirical look at political issues and systems and makes the conversation that needs to be talked about easier to approach. Placing animals in the picture allows one to still focus on the content that is being addressed, but in a way that people will listen to both sides of the discussion instead of jumping to conclusions. It separates the reader, allowing for an easier transition to the topic of discussion. Animal Farm relates to our world with the manipulation of language and class struggle that remain true in our political climate today. Instead of broaching the topics head-on, this book allows the topic to be brought about in a way that people can separate and understand themselves before speaking about it.
Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone
Looking for a modern fantasy book that takes on our political climate and places a satirical look upon it, then Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone is for you. This story introduces readers to a fresh and new fantasy world that is so similar to our own that it allows you to view our world in a different light. The novel itself uses satire to comment on real-world issues and highlights the absurdity of modern society. It uses concepts that are set to be similar to our world, with a critique of corporate power and socioeconomic issues. In light of recent issues that have arisen in our political society, the book allows for an exchange through the use of satire and comments to be made, with opinions and ideas to be heard.
Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
To finish off the list of books to speak about at Thanksgiving, rather than typical politics, is the book Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde. This story satirizes real-world social issues like class systems, systems of power, and social structures. Shades of Grey presents commentary on our relationship with technology and our perception of reality, which comes into question with our use of technology in our world. This book balances the amount of humor with a story that hits close to home in our digital age. With satirical language paired with a serious storyline, it produces an engaging story that can be brought about through a well-developed discussion. Talk about the digital age and classes, and the repercussions in the future through Shades of Grey.
So change the way that you approach Thanksgiving Dinner with your family. Have a chat about books dealing with our politics, and let the discussion begin. Separate yourself from our current politics and place yourself in a different world that faces the same issues. Allow yourself and your family the grace to discuss timely and tense subjects in the neutral territory of books. Invite your family into a new experience of dinner and take the political debate off the table for at least this season.
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Find these books and more on our Dystopian Worlds, Technology, and the Universe in Science Fiction on Bookshop.org.
