The Beggars Trilogy by Nancy Kress

These novels are fantastic. I LOVED them. I picked up the first novel, Beggars in Spain at a used book store and had to order the second-Beggars and Choosers and the third, Beggars Ride from Half.com, since the novels were out of print.
The first novel begins in the near future where parents are genetically modifying their children in vitro. Nothing new there-beauty, brains, strength, purple eyes-familiar stuff there. How about sleeplessness? Never in your entire life to EVER need to sleep. 24 hours a day, 7 days week you are able to work or learn or improve yourself. Leisha Camden-whose father is a multi-millionaire wants a child like that. He and his wife go in for in vitro and get more than they bargained for. They get twins, one genetically altered and sleepless and one home grown. Leisha and Alice. Sleeplessness has unexpected side effects-most of the early trials were done with lower or middle class parents who did not account for an infant that never naps or a child in the midst of the terrible twos that never sleeps-ever. Also, sleeplessness has side effects which increase intelligence-drastically-and prevent aging. The country goes through a sleepless boom, everyone wants perfect intelligent kids that live forever. Then there is the inevitable backlash as the first generation of sleepers hits adulthood and become famous and rich through their heightened intelligence and ability to work around the clock. The world becomes divided between the sleepers and the sleepless. The second half of the book takes place about 50 years later. Most of the sleepless have joined Sanctuary-a protected enclosed community where Sleepless can live amongst themselves in safety and isolation. In the meantime, the US has become a welfare state. Where the poor live on handouts from the government- 80% of the population called "livers" and the other 20% called donkeys-run the country and support them.
Sanctuary eventually moves to form a colony on a space station where genetic engineers begin a new population-the supersleepless. Supers are not attractive and they shake and stutter because their minds are moving at about 100 times the speed of everyone else, they have bigger brains, larger heads and can outsmart their parents.

The second book, Beggars and Choosers focuses on a group of livers in an enclave and an undercover "donkey" who lives amongst them. The sleepless and the supers are also in this novel. The Supers are lead by Miranda-who inexplicably wants to liberate the "livers" from their dependence on the "donkeys" for food, clothing and housing. Most livers do nothing all day, they can not read or write, cook, hunt, garden, have no skills and are totally dependent upon the government for everything. The system is based on high revenue from "Y energy" which is patented by a US inventor and sold exclusively in the US for 80 years. Y energy is a super cheap form of energy used by the world. Due to patent limitations it can only be manufactured and processed in the US for the first years, once the patent runs out, other countries are able to manufacture and produce it for themselves and there is no longer any money to support the millions of livers. The system in breaking down. People are starving and have no skills to acquire food or clothing. In a gesture of good will, Miranda and the super sleepless introduce "change" syringes. "Changed" people no longer need food-they can live on air, mud, clothing, wood, any natural fiber is simply absorbed through the pores of the skin, including clothes and shoes. The body has a super metabolism that destroys disease and facilitates massive healing quickly. No more cancer or heart attacks. No more drug addicts or alcoholics-the body absorbs and changes harmful substances too quickly for users to enjoy them.

The third book, Beggars Ride picks up 10 or so years after Beggars and Choosers. The "Change" syringes have run out and the new generation being born has no more life skills than previous generation of "livers" but has no change syringes either. Miranda has not liberated the livers, she has simply changed their servitude.

Fascinating novels, well written and interesting concepts and characters.
~~~~Where ever you go, There you are!