Post by Gray Lensman on Aug 9, 2009 23:50:40 GMT
Submitted by request (okay, it was Elliot who requested ;D ), here's a list of SF books for your consumption. These may not necessarily all be personal favorites, and they're not listed in any sort of order... just some of the notables that I've read. Consider this to be a list of starting places if you're interested in trying SF.
So without further ado, here goes.
1. The Dune series by Frank Herbert: I finally read the first of these fairly recently, and it really is everything they say it is. Young Paul Atreides travels to the planet of Arrakis and gradually assumes his destiny over the course of the book. I couldn't possibly describe it adequately in a short synopsis, except to say it's a very deep and multilayered storyline.
2. The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov: A big, sweeping galactic epic. A psychohistorian named Hari Seldon predicts the ultimate downfall of the Galactic Empire, and forms a Foundation to plan for the ultimate collapse. The series spans thousands of years and generations of characters. It's been quite a long time since I've read this, but it's one of the majors.
3. Slan, by A.E. Van Vogt: The novel that was very likely the inspiration for Marvel Comics' X-Men, and deals with some of the same issues of prejudice. Actually, a lot of Van Vogt is quite good... War Against The Rull, Weapon Shops of Isher, the World of Null-A and such are all worth reading.
4. Dorsai, by Gordon Dickson: One of the defining works of military science fiction, standing alongside works like Heinlein's Starship Troopers.
5. The Widowmaker series, by Mike Resnick: Probably the best series I've seen deal with issues of cloning. A professional assassin finds out that he has a deadly disease, so he puts himself into cryogenic stasis until science can find a cure. To pay for the cryo-stasis, the company clones the assassin to perform high-paying, high-risk jobs. Although Widowmaker feels like a space western, the books actually explore what it means to be a clone, including issues of identity and spirituality and what makes a person an individual.
6. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert A. Heinlein. I could go into an entire thread on Heinlein alone; his work is very complicated (and at times, utterly bizarre). But this is a pretty decent starting point into his work. This book focuses on a revolution that takes place on the moon, made possible in large measure by the sentient AI that runs the colony's computer network.
7. Neuromancer, by William Gibson. The opening shot that started the entire cyberpunk movement in the 1980's. Eerily prescient in some respects, too.
8. The Lensmen series, by E.E. "Doc" Smith. Worth reading, mainly because of all the storytelling innovations this series made into cosmic science fiction and space opera. These books aren't the easiest to find, either. If you should get this series, though, word to the wise... start with Galactic Patrol (the real first book in the series, but billed as the third), not Triplanetary (a prequel book that was written after the last four, and IMO, not the easiest to follow without reading the main series).
9. Drakon, by S.M. Stirling. A very bleak novel, but also a very compelling book. An officer of a far-future "master race" travels back in time to conquer present-day Earth. Mainly worth it for the character of Gwen Ingolffson, who is a compelling villain for all of her depravity.
10. The Vorkosigan series, by Lois McMaster Bujold. The best I could describe it as would be as an espionage/military space opera. Bujold seems to have ended this series for a while to focus on other things, but it's a well thought out and complex series. Very easy to find nowadays, too.
There's quite a bit more, but hopefully that should work for a starting point.
So without further ado, here goes.
1. The Dune series by Frank Herbert: I finally read the first of these fairly recently, and it really is everything they say it is. Young Paul Atreides travels to the planet of Arrakis and gradually assumes his destiny over the course of the book. I couldn't possibly describe it adequately in a short synopsis, except to say it's a very deep and multilayered storyline.
2. The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov: A big, sweeping galactic epic. A psychohistorian named Hari Seldon predicts the ultimate downfall of the Galactic Empire, and forms a Foundation to plan for the ultimate collapse. The series spans thousands of years and generations of characters. It's been quite a long time since I've read this, but it's one of the majors.
3. Slan, by A.E. Van Vogt: The novel that was very likely the inspiration for Marvel Comics' X-Men, and deals with some of the same issues of prejudice. Actually, a lot of Van Vogt is quite good... War Against The Rull, Weapon Shops of Isher, the World of Null-A and such are all worth reading.
4. Dorsai, by Gordon Dickson: One of the defining works of military science fiction, standing alongside works like Heinlein's Starship Troopers.
5. The Widowmaker series, by Mike Resnick: Probably the best series I've seen deal with issues of cloning. A professional assassin finds out that he has a deadly disease, so he puts himself into cryogenic stasis until science can find a cure. To pay for the cryo-stasis, the company clones the assassin to perform high-paying, high-risk jobs. Although Widowmaker feels like a space western, the books actually explore what it means to be a clone, including issues of identity and spirituality and what makes a person an individual.
6. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert A. Heinlein. I could go into an entire thread on Heinlein alone; his work is very complicated (and at times, utterly bizarre). But this is a pretty decent starting point into his work. This book focuses on a revolution that takes place on the moon, made possible in large measure by the sentient AI that runs the colony's computer network.
7. Neuromancer, by William Gibson. The opening shot that started the entire cyberpunk movement in the 1980's. Eerily prescient in some respects, too.
8. The Lensmen series, by E.E. "Doc" Smith. Worth reading, mainly because of all the storytelling innovations this series made into cosmic science fiction and space opera. These books aren't the easiest to find, either. If you should get this series, though, word to the wise... start with Galactic Patrol (the real first book in the series, but billed as the third), not Triplanetary (a prequel book that was written after the last four, and IMO, not the easiest to follow without reading the main series).
9. Drakon, by S.M. Stirling. A very bleak novel, but also a very compelling book. An officer of a far-future "master race" travels back in time to conquer present-day Earth. Mainly worth it for the character of Gwen Ingolffson, who is a compelling villain for all of her depravity.
10. The Vorkosigan series, by Lois McMaster Bujold. The best I could describe it as would be as an espionage/military space opera. Bujold seems to have ended this series for a while to focus on other things, but it's a well thought out and complex series. Very easy to find nowadays, too.
There's quite a bit more, but hopefully that should work for a starting point.