Looking Backward 2000-1887 (Oxford World's Classics)

Published in 1888 to wide popularity, the novel looks at a utopian future that has solved the problems of the day. The main character, Julian West, wakes up in the year 2000, falls in love and views all the improvements made in 113 years: crime, poverty, and warfare eliminated; great cultural strides forward; a system of state capitalism in place of economic chaos.

Booknews

First published in 1888, Bellamy's utopian novel concerns a 19th century Bostonian who awakes from a sleep to find himself in the year 2000 in a world of near-perfect cooperation and prosperity. Historian Daniel Borus adds a 28-page introduction, a chronology of Bellamy's life, a selected bibliography, and questions to consider when reading the novel. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)