I’ve only just discovered Thrutopia, so this blog highlights the books I’ve read which broadly fit this category. In fact, the term Thrutopian was coined recently, by Rupert Read of the Climate Majority Project, to denote books which explore how humanity might get through the climate crisis. Here are my tips:
- The Ministry for the Future, by Kim Stanley Robinson. Often seen as the definitive example of the genre. It’s a plausible illustration of how positive progress could evolve from difficult sources, such as major climate disasters. Very illuminating: see my dedicated blog on it. 4.5/5
- A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers. Subtitled A Monk and Robot Book, this is a delightful story, set in a fairly benign, post-apocalyptic land where the robots have decided to withdraw from human society, and live entirely apart. Our human hero meets a robot by chance, and they form a friendship. It’s really thought-provoking about how humans and ’empathic’ robots can relate. 4/5
- The Ecotechnic Future, by John Michael Greer. Whilst this is non-fiction, it fits the Thrutopian genre as a convincing picture of how humanity may face decades of chaos before emerging into a tolerable future, and it has good, practical pointers of what we could do now to lay foundations for such a future. See my blog here. 4/5
- Hum, by Helen Phillips. It’s debatable if this is a Thrutopian novel: there are definite dystopian aspects, but alongside hopeful ones. Hum won the 2026 Climate Fiction Award, and its anticipation of how AI may invade our lives is very perceptive, including:
- Bunnies: every child has an AI wristband, enabling constant monitoring, by parents and big business. The bunny can deliver therapy if the child is upset, and other products…Hums: these are quasi-human robots, who have displaced actual humans in many jobs. They are funded by big business, and their apparently friendly ‘conversations’ with humans have sales messages too.
- Wooms: every home has an egg-shaped capsule, and you climb into it to receive comfort and relaxation. But every 8 minutes there’s a commercial break. 3.5/5
- Orbital, by Samantha Harvey. Set on an orbiting space station, this book offers us a novel view of how our planet, with its beauties, pollution, and complexities, looks when seen as a whole from outer space. 3/5
- Habitat Man by D A Baden. I read this because my AI told me it’s a top-rated Thrutopian novel. It differs from many, as it’s not about a fictional future, but a slightly better version of current-day Britain. Our hero brightens people’s lives and helps the ecology by creating wildlife-friendly gardens. I found it okay, but slow-moving and self-important. 3/5