What to read next if you liked Don't Look Up on Netflix, and maybe even if you didn't

I watched Don’t Look Up on Netflix recently and was quite entertained. I enjoyed it, and while I’m sure you could read into things and really get into the subtle jabs at nearly every part of the culture we find ourselves in, I’m not here for that this time. I liked how smart it was, I enjoyed the obvious satire of current events, and thought it was fun to watch. I also, as I tend to do, thought of some books it reminded me of and that really deserve more readers. If you liked Don’t Look Up, and maybe if you didn’t, you might still want to try these books. The hit similar parts of the movie in interesting ways and all deserve more readers.

The Last Policeman trilogy, by Ben H. Winters - This is perhaps my very favorite of the apocalypse disaster books that have been written in the last two decades. The series of three books has an amazing arc to it, and the conclusion is unparalleled in all the media I’ve ever consumed in this somewhat dreary genre. I love it. Detective Hank Palace has just graduated. And there’s an asteroid slotted to hit earth in six months. Everyone knows, and there’s no getting out of it. Six months is all that is left. So, who cares about a little murder? He does. This series is fascinating, thrilling and contemplative in turn, asks what we owe to each other when we know when the world will end, and examines how society crumbles when extinction is near. If you liked (or didn’t like) the messy humorous disintegration of everything in Don’t Look Up that was prompted by the impending doom of the planet, but want something that’s not a comedy, you should give this series a try. The final scene of the final book wrecked me it is so good. One of the best things I’ve ever read. Writing this reminds me I should reread them.

Qualityland, by Marc-Uwe Kling - If your favorite part was the hilarious satire of the film, it’s mockery of media, government and the out of control and over the top portrayals of tech bros, you should really grab this one. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever read before or since and I loved it. Imagine a time when a certain brown smiling box company is nearly running everything. In this version of the world (a future version of our present timeline) that company has gotten so good at predicting what you want that they send it to you before you even know you need it, or have thought to order it. And they’re never wrong. Well, until they send something to Peter Jobless that he doesn’t need and very much doesn’t want. He sets about trying to return it, along with his ragtag group of somewhat broken robots, and ends up calling into question the very foundations of QualityLand and all that it stands for. Also, there is an election approaching and one side is trying to prove that the other candidate is maybe not entirely a human. It is one of the most creative things I’ve ever read.

Sweetness #9, by Stephan Erik Clark - This is a hilarious satire of how often what is promoted as New and Amazing and So Cool is just really really bad and not good at all, but because it’s new and cheap it’s a go. If the part of Don’t Look Up you enjoyed what the absolute disregard for truth and the way that ignoring the obvious was portrayed in a humorous, but alarming, way, you might really get a kick out of this. Except that it shines that humor into the eyes of big food chemicals instead of an extinction level event. The story follows a fellow who is a flavorist in training as the company he works for discovers and creates a new sweetener (sweetness #9) that is going to change everything. Years later, the effects of this sweetener are showing up and maybe, being totally ignored. The guy’s son has stopped using verbs and his daughter is expressing more than normal levels of emo angst. Is it just life and teenagers or is it maybe the sweetener that he himself helped to develop? It is funny, irreverent, and satirical and I enjoyed it. It has a vintage obscurity vibe that is a lot of fun.