Posted by Racer on June 5, 2008, at 11:57:24
In reply to Re: Obsessive -- SciFi book, can't remember which., posted by TexasChic on June 4, 2008, at 19:46:14
>... but I've always been a bit intimidated by the Scifi section of the book store. I never can figure out where to start. I don't want to get something stupid.
Ah, yes -- but my answer is to pick up anything that sounds interesting. That's why I've read so many of the Something Stupids... ;-)
>
> But I was wanting to ask if you could recommend some to me. Or a favorite author - you're obviously much more knowledgeable than I am about it.Only because I've had more experience, probably because I'm older -- and because I binge on Potato Chip Books...
Sure, here are some recommendations, in no particular order:
Orson Scott Card is probably my favorite SciFi writer, although I've had some problems with some of his books. He's a Saint, and many of his books reflect this quite strongly. Here are some solid recommendations from me -- if you like these, try the others, but keep in mind what I just wrote.
"Ender's Game"
"Speaker for the Dead"
"Xenocide"
"Children of the Mind"
"Lost Boys" -- this one comes with a trigger warning, if you try it
"Treason"Larry Niven/Jerry Pournelle co-write a lot of really excellent books. I'd say "any by," but let me offer some of my favorites:
"Inferno"
"The Mote in God's Eye"
"The Gripping Hand"
"Legacy of Heorot"
"Children of Beowolf"
"Protector"C. J. Cherryh, who I think I recall was a Latin teacher before she started writing most excellent books.
"The Pride of Chanur"
"Chanur's Venture"
"The Kif Strike Back"
"Chanur's Homecoming"
"Chanur's Legacy"
"Cuckoo's Egg" -- which I most highly recommend
Pretty much any of her books will be good. I can't remember all the titles, but I've enjoyed them all.Zenna Henderson, if you can find anything, was quite good. A bit of religion to it, but that's actually quite common in SciFi
"Pilgrimage"
"The People: No Different Flesh"
"The Anything Box"
"Holding Wonder"
The last two are short stories, and are great.Phillip Pullman
"His Dark Materials" -- this is the trilogy The Golden Compass comes from.
John Christopher, who is now known primarily for his childrens books, wrote some great stuff for adults, too. I'm including both sorts. (Note: I have not read all of these, and some I haven't read since childhood. I still feel safe recommending them.)
"The White Mountains"
"The City of Gold and Lead"
"The Pool of Fire"
"No Blade of Grass"
"Sword of the Spirits"
"The Guardians"
"The Possessers"
"Lotus Caves"
"The Year of the Comet"
"The Prince in Waiting"
"Beyond the Burning Lands"
"A Dusk of Demons"
"Bad Dream"For a short list of childrens books, I also recommend Robert C. O'Brien:
"Z For Zachariah"
"The Silver Crown"
"Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH"For a list of books that you might like, I'd suggest checking out http://www.lostbooks.org/ Somewhere on that site there is a list of the best speculative fiction which might help point you in a good direction.
I hope that helps, and that you enjoy anything you read from my list. Otherwise, I'll wonder what that says about my taste... ;-)
poster:Racer
thread:832869
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20080601/msgs/833103.html