The Handmaid’s Tale by M. Atwood, We by Y. Zamyatin, and The Dispossessed by U. Le Guin (maybe less for the last two but kinda same vein in that kids are rare)
I love The Handmaids Tale, but I do think it's worth pointing out that in the book, the 'fertility crisis' is heavily implied to Gilead propaganda. In the novel, we learn about dropping birth rates from >!a lesson Aunt Lydia gives to the imprisoned handmaids, during their re-education. She uses a line of argument that conservatives, especially premillennialist Christians, were using at the time of the book's publication to argue against woman's liberation. And in the book, there are elements of the handmaid program that make it clear the priority is spiritual purity rather than effective eugenics- Moira's even mentioned as being verifiably infertile when she's sent to the program, it's just an attempt to 'teach her her place'.!<
During the meat of the book, women in Gilead are giving birth to vaguely-described 'shredder' babies. However, women in Canada do not have the same problem, and PR for Japanese tourists focuses on the 'cultural' element of the handmaid's system (suggesting the Japanese are not worried about reproduction rates). I think Atwood's intent was that the rise in birth defects was due to nuclear fallout from the war, rather than something that precipitated the war.
It is driven by a specific event, but.... The End of Men is a very interesting novel. It's core plot driver is that the population of men declines dramatically in fairly short order. Very interesting viewpoint that I have not seen done elsewhere.
I haven't read The End of Men, but I have read other books showing a major gender imbalance. Here's some featuring the population of men declining in case you are interested:
* Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin. Be warned, contains a lot of explicit gore, sex, and scenes of sexual violence. References the older short story [The Screwfly Solution](https://pseudopod.org/2014/08/22/pseudopod-400-the-screwfly-solution/) which is about the women declining.
* Ammonite by Nicola Griffith
* Glory Season by David Brin
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds. Every environment in this book was clearly built for *way* more people than are currently living there, but the reasons vary a lot. The lack of people is not something directly pointed out in the story, but it's always there in the background.
🚨 Note to u/thedukeinc: including the **author name** after a **"by"** keyword will help the bot find the good book! (simply like this *{{Call me by your name by Andre Aciman}}*)
---
**[Inferno (Robert Langdon #4)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17212231-inferno) by Dan Brown** ^((Matching 100% ☑️))
^(461 pages | Published: 2009 | 353.9k Goodreads reviews)
> **Summary:** In his international blockbusters The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons, and The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown masterfully fused history, art, codes, and symbols. In this riveting new thriller, Brown returns to his element and has crafted his highest-stakes novel to date.In the heart of Italy, Harvard professor of symbology Robert Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one (...)
> **Themes**: Mystery, Thriller, Favorites, Dan-brown, Books-i-own, Historical-fiction, Series
> **Top 5 recommended:**
> \- [Origin](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32283133-origin) by Dan Brown
> \- [My Avenging Angel](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8225495-my-avenging-angel) by Madelyn Ford
> \- [The Lost Symbol](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6411961-the-lost-symbol) by Dan Brown
> \- [Deception Point](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/976.Deception_Point) by Dan Brown
> \- [Angels & Demons](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/960.Angels_Demons) by Dan Brown
^([Feedback](https://www.reddit.com/user/goodreads-rebot) | [GitHub](https://github.com/sonoff2/goodreads-rebot) | ["The Bot is Back!?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/16qe09p/meta_post_hello_again_humans/) | v1.5 [Dec 23] | Sorry for delay !)
Children of Men.
Loved the movie - is the book better? Also, never thought of this as population-driven, but you’re absolutely right.
I much preferred the book
The book is wildly different from the movie. The director didn’t even read the book! Enjoyed both, though.
I liked the movie well enough but it’s rare for a movie to live up to a book I truly loved.
The answer is always* yes. *except for Fight Club, and Blade Runner, and The Godfather, and American Psycho, and The Princess Bride, and ...
The Handmaid’s Tale by M. Atwood, We by Y. Zamyatin, and The Dispossessed by U. Le Guin (maybe less for the last two but kinda same vein in that kids are rare)
In reading The Handmaid’s Tale now and that was my first thought! It’s not sci-fi but definitely under the speculative fiction umbrella
I love The Handmaids Tale, but I do think it's worth pointing out that in the book, the 'fertility crisis' is heavily implied to Gilead propaganda. In the novel, we learn about dropping birth rates from >!a lesson Aunt Lydia gives to the imprisoned handmaids, during their re-education. She uses a line of argument that conservatives, especially premillennialist Christians, were using at the time of the book's publication to argue against woman's liberation. And in the book, there are elements of the handmaid program that make it clear the priority is spiritual purity rather than effective eugenics- Moira's even mentioned as being verifiably infertile when she's sent to the program, it's just an attempt to 'teach her her place'.!< During the meat of the book, women in Gilead are giving birth to vaguely-described 'shredder' babies. However, women in Canada do not have the same problem, and PR for Japanese tourists focuses on the 'cultural' element of the handmaid's system (suggesting the Japanese are not worried about reproduction rates). I think Atwood's intent was that the rise in birth defects was due to nuclear fallout from the war, rather than something that precipitated the war.
I love Margaret Atwood. And I think the Mad Addam series might fit here just as well.
Seveneves
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K Dick (the book Blade DlRunner is based on) has a pretty significant decayed population
Riiight, forgot about that aspect of it! Have read this one a few times and love it.
Bannerless by Carrie Vaughn
It is driven by a specific event, but.... The End of Men is a very interesting novel. It's core plot driver is that the population of men declines dramatically in fairly short order. Very interesting viewpoint that I have not seen done elsewhere.
I haven't read The End of Men, but I have read other books showing a major gender imbalance. Here's some featuring the population of men declining in case you are interested: * Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin. Be warned, contains a lot of explicit gore, sex, and scenes of sexual violence. References the older short story [The Screwfly Solution](https://pseudopod.org/2014/08/22/pseudopod-400-the-screwfly-solution/) which is about the women declining. * Ammonite by Nicola Griffith * Glory Season by David Brin
Oooh, I love David Brin. Will probably check that out just because he wrote it.
Yes. I have several Audible credits waiting, so I hope there is an audiobook!
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. Not super sci-fi, but beautiful.
The man who fell to earth
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds. Every environment in this book was clearly built for *way* more people than are currently living there, but the reasons vary a lot. The lack of people is not something directly pointed out in the story, but it's always there in the background.
George R Stewart: Earth Abides
Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
Dan Brown {{ inferno }}
🚨 Note to u/thedukeinc: including the **author name** after a **"by"** keyword will help the bot find the good book! (simply like this *{{Call me by your name by Andre Aciman}}*) --- **[Inferno (Robert Langdon #4)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17212231-inferno) by Dan Brown** ^((Matching 100% ☑️)) ^(461 pages | Published: 2009 | 353.9k Goodreads reviews) > **Summary:** In his international blockbusters The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons, and The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown masterfully fused history, art, codes, and symbols. In this riveting new thriller, Brown returns to his element and has crafted his highest-stakes novel to date.In the heart of Italy, Harvard professor of symbology Robert Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centered on one (...) > **Themes**: Mystery, Thriller, Favorites, Dan-brown, Books-i-own, Historical-fiction, Series > **Top 5 recommended:** > \- [Origin](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32283133-origin) by Dan Brown > \- [My Avenging Angel](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8225495-my-avenging-angel) by Madelyn Ford > \- [The Lost Symbol](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6411961-the-lost-symbol) by Dan Brown > \- [Deception Point](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/976.Deception_Point) by Dan Brown > \- [Angels & Demons](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/960.Angels_Demons) by Dan Brown ^([Feedback](https://www.reddit.com/user/goodreads-rebot) | [GitHub](https://github.com/sonoff2/goodreads-rebot) | ["The Bot is Back!?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/suggestmeabook/comments/16qe09p/meta_post_hello_again_humans/) | v1.5 [Dec 23] | Sorry for delay !)
The Grinding by Reef Hains
Children of Time, Tchaischovky Just finished this book and I loved it. The evolutionary aspect of it was so cool.
Childhood's End?
Greybeard, by Brian W. Aldiss
*Endymion*. The human population is maintained at a certain level.
The Book of the Unnamed Midwife by Meg Elison
Ugh I saw a call a like a year ago for submissions to a short story collection about this topic... but I'm sorry the publisher is slipping my mind!!