Make Room! Make Room!

by Harry Harrison · 1966

In a sweltering, overcrowded New York City where 35 million people scramble for dwindling resources, detective Andy Rusch is tasked with solving a murder that everyone else has forgotten. The city runs on pedal‑powered TVs, riots for water, and subsists on lentil "steaks" and the synthetic food called Soylent. As Rusch follows a trail of clues through cramped boroughs, heat‑soaked streets, and a society where the rich grow richer while the poor are trampled, he must confront not only a ruthless killer but the very collapse of humanity itself. Harry Harrison’s prophetic, razor‑sharp novel blends gritty noir with a chilling vision of overpopulation, making "Make Room! Make Room!" a timeless cautionary tale about the limits of consumption and the resilience of the human spirit.