The Planiverse

The Planiverse (ISBN 0387989161) is a book by A. K. Dewdney, written in 1984. In the spirit of Edwin Abbott Abbott's Flatland, Dewdney and his students designed a vertical 2D world (ie E-W and up, no N-S) and considered the issues of biology and society for the inhabitants. Written as a travelogue, the protagonist Yendred crosses the world to reveal its features. The book has much more practical design and less social comment than Flatland.