Publisher's Synopsis
Of the pioneering dystopian novels, one of the finest is City of Endless Night. This unusual work, filled with uncanny prescience about impending events, was born out of the experience of World War I and the impact on Americans of imperial Germany's statist creed, which believed in the subjugation of the individual for the sake of the nation. On all counts of inventiveness, social significance, narrative flow and intrinsic worth, it ranks with H. G. Wells and We by Eugene Zimiatin. City of Endless Night was the original inspiration for the Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927 film). Dystopian Classic Editions publishes works of dystopian literature that have survived through the generations and been recognized as classic works of literature. A dystopian society is an imagined society in which the people are oppressed, however the government propagandizes the society as being a utopia or a perfect society. Typical themes in dystopian literature include public mistrust, police states, and overall unpleasantness for the citizens. Authors of dystopian works strive to present a worst-case scenario and negative depiction of the way things are in the story so as to make a criticism about a current situation in society and to call for a change. Each Dystopian Classic Edition selected for publication presents such a story.
