Sales of dystopias have jumped in the United States since Donald Trump's victory

Would Donald Trump's victory inspire fascism, repression or mass surveillance? This is what the thousands of Americans who have rushed to buy dystopian books in recent days seem to think. This literary genre is, in fact, very successful in Amazon sales, reports Associated Press .

Chez Barnes & Noble, “Fiction and non-fiction books that deal with fascism, feminism, dystopian worlds, and politics of both right and left have skyrocketed in our sales rankings with the election results”also informs Shannon DeVito, director of books at the chain. This phenomenon had already been observed during the first election of the Republican billionaire.

Among the most popular works, The Scarlet Maid by Margaret Atwood, published in 1985. This book, adapted into a film and series, is one of the great classics of the genre. It depicts a society in which women are repressed by the dictatorial regime in place. The majority of them are sterile, but those who can still give birth, the Handmaids, are reduced to the rank of sexual slaves.

Resistance Guide

The futuristic and dark story of George Orwell, 1984is also very popular. The book tells how human beings are monitored night and day by Big Brother, the dictator who benefits from a cult of personality, imposed by the Thought Police. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, which describes a world in which books are banned and must be burned, was also among Amazon's best sellers last Thursday.

A final book, published more recently, in 2017, is also selling very well: On tyranny, Twenty lessons from the 20th centuryby Timothy Snyder. Written the day after Trump's first election, “this work presents itself as a guide to resistance, offering Americans – but also Europe – a brief catalog of ideas for preserving freedoms in the years to come”summarizes Gallimard, the publisher of the book.

Trump's election also boosted sales of books favorable to him. The memoirs of his wife, Melania Trump, Melaniahave enjoyed undeniable success. The new president had also promoted it during the campaign and during his speech on election day. The book sales of his right-hand man and vice-president, JD Vance, Hillbilly Elegy – which tells the story of the white and poor America from which it comes – are also progressing rapidly.