Your Favorite S.F.

[jim1961]

Believe it or not, im 45 years old and just in the last few years ive started reading alot of S.F. Anyway, as with most people, id like the opinions of those that have much more knowledge on the subject than I. My favorites so far are:

Roger Zelazny (Amber Series)
Dan Simmons (Hyperion)

I especially like stories concerning time, but are not limited to those. Fantasy overtones I find quite acceptable if not preferable. Im not into horror or stories that rely too much on pure violence.

Thank You for your suggestions :)

[PeterL]

While Zelazny wrote some excellent SF, the latter parts of the Amber series are not his best; redaLord of Light, perhaps his best. Simmons writes fine development, but the development doesn't lead very far, and the details get in the way of the story.

Try reading almost anything by Poul Anderson, L. Sprague de Camp, G.C. Edmundson, or Larry Niven. All of those were very good writers, although not all of their stories are all that good.

In particular, look for Tau Zero and The Boat of a Million Years, both by Poul Anderson. Both of those relate to time.

[Video Drone]

I think you may like Philip Joseph Farmer, his "The World of Tiers" and "Riverworld" series. It's kind of a mix of sci-fi and fantasy, I found it very original and entertaining. Unfortunately, both series go down after the first 3-4 books. Not to mention that they are hard to find.

[jim1961]

I think you may like Philip Joseph Farmer, his "The World of Tiers" and "Riverworld" series. It's kind of a mix of sci-fi and fantasy, I found it very original and entertaining. Unfortunately, both series go down after the first 3-4 books. Not to mention that they are hard to find.

Just got through reading Riverworld. Your right about about it going a bit down hill after the first few books. Actually, I thought the first two books were the best, the third and fourth books decent, and "Gods of Riverworld" being a bit better than books 3 and 4.

[Video Drone]

You can certainly try The World of Tiers, then, same situation. The first 3 books are really good, and I never got across the series farther, nor did I want to. If I know it is bad, I just prefer not to read further and fantasize on my own accord.

[jim1961]

While Zelazny wrote some excellent SF, the latter parts of the Amber series are not his best; redaLord of Light, perhaps his best. Simmons writes fine development, but the development doesn't lead very far, and the details get in the way of the story.

Try reading almost anything by Poul Anderson, L. Sprague de Camp, G.C. Edmundson, or Larry Niven. All of those were very good writers, although not all of their stories are all that good.

In particular, look for Tau Zero and The Boat of a Million Years, both by Poul Anderson. Both of those relate to time.

Lord of Light is sitting here waiting for me to get to it. Ive heard a lot of good about it. A good starting point for L. Sprague de Camp, G.C. Edmundson, and Larry Niven would be helpful. I have read Ringworld, but thats it by those listed.

[PeterL]

Lord of Light is sitting here waiting for me to get to it. Ive heard a lot of good about it. A good starting point for L. Sprague de Camp, G.C. Edmundson, and Larry Niven would be helpful. I have read Ringworld, but thats it by those listed.

Lest Darkness Fall by de Camp is a great story. He wrote SF, fantasy, sword and sorcery, historical fiction, and non-fiction. I have enjoyed everything that I have read by him. Like Fritz Leiber, de Camp was important in the development of modern fantasy and sword and sorcery. Look at the Wikipedia article about him for more detail: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L._Sprague_De_Camp

The Ship that Sailed the Time Stream by Edmundson is unique, beautifully written and of greater philosophical depth than most fiction. The Aluminum Man is one of the greatest pieces of literature of the 20th century, in addition to being one of the funniest.

Ringworld is OK, but Niven's short stories were better, and of his novels Protector is certaily better, as is World of Ptavvs. If you read nothing else by him, read Inconstant Moon a novella. I can't think of all of his short stories that were truly great, but some, like Convergent Series are unforgettable.

[tudwell]

Phillip K. Dick is the only real science fiction that I read. He's good, though. You should check him out, especially A Scanner Darkly.

[Unbeliever]

I read a lot of sci-fi, I find it stimulating. I've just finished rereading Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land. I read it about 30 years ago, but I think I enjoyed it more this time, because I was able to understand it a bit better.

[jim1961]

I read a lot of sci-fi, I find it stimulating. I've just finished rereading Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land. I read it about 30 years ago, but I think I enjoyed it more this time, because I was able to understand it a bit better.

Yes, that is an excellent one. For some reason, I dont remember it when I make lists of favorites (probably because I dont own it anymore and tend to look at my shelf when trying to remember favorites).

Is anything else by Heinlein nearly as good?

[Unbeliever]

I greatly enjoyed all of the Lazarus Long novels. I recall reading The Number of the Beast. It was very entertaining.

[EAP]

Mission of Gravity - Hal Clement
Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks
China Mountain Zhang - Maureen McHugh
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
The Dispossessed - Ursula Le Guin
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula Le Guin
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Orbital Resonance - John Barnes
2001: A Space Odyssey - Arthur C. Clarke
Windhaven - George R. R. Martin & Lisa Tuttle
The Chrysalids - John Wyndham
Beggars in Spain - Nancy Kress
Breakthrough - Ken Grimwood

Regarding time-travel sci-fi, check out,

The Man Who Folded Himself - David Gerrold
Time and Again - Jack Finney
Timescape - Gregory Benford
Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut

Iain M. Banks' work also contains time travel in an epic, pan-galactic setting.


But the best one by far is Replay by Ken Grimwood.

[EAP]

Arthur C. Clarke, Issac Asimov and to a certain extent Heinlein were brilliant but limited writers. Their best work was done, almost invariably, in the short story format. Niven, Benford and Forward were conceptually brilliant but couldn't tell a story to save their lives. I disagree with Peter L about Lord of Light (gimmicky as hell) and L. Sprague De Camp (makes Niven look like a master of characterization). Clement is one of my favourites but he knew his limitations and usually didn't try to exceed them. I am probably one of the few people who consider Philip K. Dick's mainstream novels to be better than his sci-fi works (which are, nonetheless, brilliant in themself). Delany alternated between pulpy nonsense (Neveryon) and unreadable nonsense (Dhalgren). Among old school and new-wave (western) sci-fi writers, IMO, three stand heads and shoulders above the rest: Ursula Le Guin, Cordwainer Smith and Theodore Sturgeon. Aldiss (Hothouse - Helliconia), Bester (The Stars, My Destination - The Demolished Man) and Wyndham (Trouble With Lichen - The Day of the Triffids) are also worth checking out.

As far as post 1970 sci-fi is concerned, it's pretty difficult to ignore the contributions of Simmons, Banks, Willis and Kress. There are thousands of sci-fi authors writing some awesome stories out there, a lot of them have deviated significantly from the mode popularized initially in United States by the pulp magzines, the prosiac stoics of the 50's, the new wave of the late sixties, the techno-thrillers of the eighties/nineties etc.; even cyberpunk is old news now. Sci-fi as a publishing genre has become almost impossible to keep track off.

[BlueSkyGB]

Any Heinlein...

recently discovered Allen Steele....his earlier works...in my humble opinion!

@Jim1961.....
try the new novel
The Plot to Save Socrates...time travel...good read.

[Unbeliever]

I really like any story or novel that deals with time travel. It's such a verstile genre!

[ClaesGefvenberg]

Believe it or not, im 45 years old and just in the last few years ive started reading alot of S.F. Anyway, as with most people, id like the opinions of those that have much more knowledge on the subject than I. I don't know about knowledge, but i can certainly suggest a few of my own favourites:

Douglas Adams - The Hitchhikers series.
Isaac asimov - The foundation trilogy and his early Robot stories.
Larry Niven - The Ringworld series.Mote in God's Eye, Lucifer's Hammer.
Arthur C Clark - 2001, rendevouz with Rama and it's sequels.
Greg Bear - Eon, Darwins Radio.
Frank Herbert - The Dune series
Robert A. Heinlein - But not everything he wrote. I suggest "The Moon is a harsh Mistress"
Jules Verne - Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea and From the Earth to the Moon must count as SciFi.

/Claes

[Ethrin]

I've just recently become interested in Sci-Fi myself, I'm usually a fantasy only reader but I read Ender's Game in my American Lit class and it was absolutely wonderful, as are the next two books in the series.

[jim1961]

Mission of Gravity - Hal Clement
Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks
China Mountain Zhang - Maureen McHugh
Hyperion - Dan Simmons
The Dispossessed - Ursula Le Guin
The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula Le Guin
Gateway - Frederik Pohl
Orbital Resonance - John Barnes
2001: A Space Odyssey - Arthur C. Clarke
Windhaven - George R. R. Martin & Lisa Tuttle
The Chrysalids - John Wyndham
Beggars in Spain - Nancy Kress
Breakthrough - Ken Grimwood

Regarding time-travel sci-fi, check out,

The Man Who Folded Himself - David Gerrold
Time and Again - Jack Finney
Timescape - Gregory Benford
Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut

Iain M. Banks' work also contains time travel in an epic, pan-galactic setting.


But the best one by far is Replay by Ken Grimwood.

Some excellent ideas, Thanks!

[Scharphedin2]

I have not actually read any science fiction in a long time, but I second the recommendations of Heinlein and Dick. I do not think anyone mentioned Dune by Frank Herbert, which is surely a classic.

My other contribution would be William Gibson's "Sprawl" Trilogy (Neuromancer, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive), which envisoned the whole virtual reality/internet era apx. 5 minutes before these concepts began to become reality. His later novel The Difference Engine may also interest you. It is not about time travel as such, but it depicts a 19th century wherein Babbit's difference engine has brought about the invention of the computer. Good reads.

[hannah_arendt]

Believe it or not, im 45 years old and just in the last few years ive started reading alot of S.F. Anyway, as with most people, id like the opinions of those that have much more knowledge on the subject than I. My favorites so far are:

Roger Zelazny (Amber Series)
Dan Simmons (Hyperion)

I especially like stories concerning time, but are not limited to those. Fantasy overtones I find quite acceptable if not preferable. Im not into horror or stories that rely too much on pure violence.

Thank You for your suggestions :)

To tell you the truth I have never been a fan of sci-fi. However, I like Ursula Le Guin and I recommend you almost everything written by her. Yesterday I read "The Lathe of Heaven". Have you seen " Inception"? If you have, and like this film, you will like this book too.

[kev67]

When I used to read SF, Larry Niven was my favourite author. However, I thought the books he wrote with Jerry Pournelle were even better. My favourite was The Mote in God's Eye.

[Anacharsis]

My favorite science fiction is that which talks about the potential social consequences of new scientific developments, especially when the science is treated rigorously. This is the type of science fiction that Isaac Asimov thought was most useful, as he described in his very interesting speech, "Science Fiction and Utopian Change" -- which is available from the Science Fiction Oral History Association (www.spacedogpodcast.com/space-dog-podcast-episode-four-isaac-asimov-speech/), for those who are curious.

Unfortunately, I have a lot of trouble finding that type of science fiction: too many authors are stuck in outer space, and no longer seem to read the science mags. New technology is right under their noses! Where are the stories involving it? (Any advice?)

[mal4mac]

Fantasy and time? Try the time travelling dragons of Anne McCaffrey, start at the beginning as the first two books are the best.

[WyattGwyon]

China Mieville's Perdido Street Station is amazing, though it doesn't fit neatly or fully in the sci-fi category.

A second vote for William A. Gibson's Sprawl series.

Neil Stephenson — Anathem

[ashulman]

I can't really be objective about things like Asimov's Foundation and Robot Series since I was so taken with them as a teenager. But I think if you can get past the dated nature of the writing, these books have such fun twists and turns along with really though provoking questions about human nature.

Some books I encountered as an adult include A Canticle for Liebowitz, Leguinn's Dispossessed and Left Hand of Darkness, and Camp Concentration by Disch are some I can highly recommend.

[mal4mac]

I can't really be objective about things like Asimov's Foundation and Robot Series since I was so taken with them as a teenager. But I think if you can get past the dated nature of the writing, these books have such fun twists and turns along with really though provoking questions about human nature.


Why not? Just read them again and see if they 'hold up'.

A few people are mentioning "Left Hand of Darkness", which I read recently, but found rather tedious. Some good ideas, here and there, but I found it neither amusing nor exciting. McCaffrey's best dragon books have good ideas and are exciting. Much of SF is seriously lacking in humour, I find. Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett are obvious exceptions, and I think both are well worth dipping into. I find one Pratchett a year is enough, though. He is funny, and full of good, if zany, ideas, but he's so silly that I just can't justify a steady diet.

Ones I read recently that I liked:

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by R.L. Stevenson. This is an excellent horror thriller, that also straddles literature and sf, and is written with lots of verve and some style.

Dracula - Bram Stoker. A great pot boiler. The style is somewhat lacking, but if you like SF you'll be used to clunky style :)

[ashulman]

Why not? Just read them again and see if they 'hold up'.

A few people are mentioning "Left Hand of Darkness", which I read recently, but found rather tedious. Some good ideas, here and there, but I found it neither amusing nor exciting. McCaffrey's best dragon books have good ideas and are exciting. Much of SF is seriously lacking in humour, I find. Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett are obvious exceptions, and I think both are well worth dipping into. I find one Pratchett a year is enough, though. He is funny, and full of good, if zany, ideas, but he's so silly that I just can't justify a steady diet.

Ones I read recently that I liked:

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by R.L. Stevenson. This is an excellent horror thriller, that also straddles literature and sf, and is written with lots of verve and some style.

Dracula - Bram Stoker. A great pot boiler. The style is somewhat lacking, but if you like SF you'll be used to clunky style :)

I have read them again and as my caveated recommendation reveals, I recognize the dated nature of the attitudes and the writing, which is 40s-50s pulp. I think someone like Samuel Delaney is a better writer of SF prose, for instance. But for me the fun is still there, so I would hope that would be somewhat universal.

Oh, and we forgot to mention Stanislaw Lem, who has many wonderful books and stories. I'd start with Solaris and The Star Diaries.

[Ser Nevarc]

Having read most of the books discussed here, I'd cast my vote for favorite science fiction to two writers: Rad Bradbury and Arthur Clarke. Bradbury for his touching, almost primal sensitivity to human nature, and Clarke for his mindblowing ideas on assisted human evolution through science. Check out Bradbury's Martian Chronicles and Illustrated Manas well as Clarke's Childhood's End and of course 2001: A Space Odyssey. Oh, and Ursula K. LeGuin derserves a mention as well (especially since I'll be meeting her this spring!). Happy reading all.

[ashulman]

Having read most of the books discussed here, I'd cast my vote for favorite science fiction to two writers: Rad Bradbury and Arthur Clarke. Bradbury for his touching, almost primal sensitivity to human nature, and Clarke for his mindblowing ideas on assisted human evolution through science. Check out Bradbury's Martian Chronicles and Illustrated Manas well as Clarke's Childhood's End and of course 2001: A Space Odyssey. Oh, and Ursula K. LeGuin derserves a mention as well (especially since I'll be meeting her this spring!). Happy reading all.

I second all of that. I'd add Clarke's Rendezvous with Rama.

[ladderandbucket]

My favorite science fiction is that which talks about the potential social consequences of new scientific developments, especially when the science is treated rigorously. This is the type of science fiction that Isaac Asimov thought was most useful, as he described in his very interesting speech, "Science Fiction and Utopian Change" -- which is available from the Science Fiction Oral History Association, for those who are curious.

Unfortunately, I have a lot of trouble finding that type of science fiction: too many authors are stuck in outer space, and no longer seem to read the science mags. New technology is right under their noses! Where are the stories involving it? (Any advice?)

Greg Egan, maybe?

I'm not that keen on space-opera books either. I read one by Iain M Banks recently, who I have heard great things about, but it left me cold. My personal favourites are JG Ballard and Christopher Priest, although they might be pushing the limits of what is considered sci-fi.

[ashulman]

When I used to read SF, Larry Niven was my favourite author. However, I thought the books he wrote with Jerry Pournelle were even better. My favourite was The Mote in God's Eye.

Very good book.

[Calidore]

Hard for me to pick favorites, especially with so many of my books being out of sight and mind, but pretty much any installment of Iain M. Banks' Culture series and John Varley's Eight Worlds series (especially the latter's short stories) are both deep and very entertaining.

[islandclimber]

Stanislaw Lem is certainly one of the best writers of Literary Sci-Fi. I don't read much sci-fi or genre lit, but Lem is quite a talented writer. Memoirs Found in a Bathtub is one of my favourite books.

[mal4mac]

Other ones I enjoyed recently, that shouldn't be embarrassing for a 45 year old to admit reading, were:

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
The Handmaids Tale Atwood

I have a science degree and 90% of my reading in my teenage years was science fiction & fact. But these days I prefer mainstream literature, not heavy stuff (like Ulysses) but writers in the tradition of Dickens & Tolstoy. I'm reading "Goodbye to Berlin" by Isherwood at the moment and I think it's better than any science fiction I've mentioned in this thread, perhaps better than any I've ever read, although Isherwood is "only" second rank. The style is wonderful, the adventures exciting and 'real'. Still, just as one should experience junk food once in a while, and one might even enjoy it, there's a place for time-travelling dragons.

[Bibliophile79]

how is Dracula considered science fiction? If anything, I would consider horror to lean more into fantasy