I’ve never read any of the sequels, and never really felt compelled to - Ender’s Game works so well as a standalone novel that I’ve always felt that any sequels would only cheapen the original story. It’s accessible enough for newcomers, but so steeped in the tennets of what makes Science Fiction so successful that it’s an instant classic that works equally successfully for both fans and non-fans of the genre. Does the list give me one or two novels that are definitively the starting point for Science Fiction? Nope, but it does populate a list that would keep voracious readers busy for a while.Īs for my own choice? Easily Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. I am proud to say I own copies of most of the mentioned novels, even if I haven’t read them. Lots of classics, several newer novels (published post-1990, say) and a well-rounded representation of male:female authors, a rather encouraging endorsement of the genre.

Card, Hamilton, LeGuin and Asimov show up a few times, but with several books from each author being recommended, indicating that even within the libraries of the genre’s best, there’s no obvious place to begin. Quite a list, huh? I was both thrilled (yay, variety!) and chagrined (but, where do I start?) to see such a broad range of authors and novels represented in the responses. ĭoomsday Book A Scanner Darkly The Year of the Flood Postsingular Life During Wartime Wild Seed Light 40K in Gehenna, The Sparrow, Passage & a book of Kelly Link shorts.Īnd, oddly, a recommendation for The - Great ? I got my start w/ The Hobbit

Hamilton or Neal - Left Hand of Darkness Ethan of Athos Triton The Wild Shore Neuromancer Cat’s Cradle Flowers for Algernon. Hyperion by Dan Simmons, anything by Peter F. Crazy alien - Hyperion by Dan Simmons or Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. And I’d want to recommend the Forbidden Planet film as - The first scifi book I read was The Reality Dysfunction, but I have a feeling most people wouldn’t start w/scifi - Short stories by Philip K Dick and Neuromancer, Foundation and Ringworld Left Hand of Darkness Beggars in Spain China Mountain Zhang Frankenstein Asimov. Never looked back - I, Robot and any Wyndham. The - Forge of God by Greg Bear is a favourite of - When I asked my housemate the same question a few years back, he said Pandora’s Star. Would we see a lot of recommendations for contemporary Science Fiction? Or aging classics? Space Opera or Dystopian Fiction? It’s an incredibly varied genre, and, predictably, the responses were just as broad, with a few authors/series popping up with some regularity. Rather, I was curious to see what people would consider the staples and foundations of the genre. I have read Science Fiction, but my experience in the genre is, well… lacking. Now, of course, that’s not entirely true.

Let’s pretend I’ve never read a Science Fiction novel.

The stories of ibis by hiroshi yamamoto