# Looking for SF recommendations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 9, 2014, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734 "2014-07-09T23:59:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ChrisM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@ChrisM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisM)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2014, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/1 "2014-07-09T23:59:59Z")
I’m in the mood for a specific kind of science fiction novel, but I’m having a hard time finding any titles that I have not already read. Basically, I would like to read a novel set on an alien planet and told from an alien perspective. One without any humans at all would be preferable. Something like the middle portion of Asimov’s _The Gods Themselves_, with a nice, interesting, well-worked-out alien culture. Does anyone have any suggestions? More recent books would probably be better, but older books would be welcome as well. Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![slowlearner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@slowlearner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slowlearner)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/2 "2014-07-10T00:55:20Z")
One good way to find sci-fi you’re interested in is to buy used anthologies and make note of the authors who get your interest, then cruise everything they have on Amazon. There’s at least 9 billion names of books out there… ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/3 "2014-07-10T01:17:07Z")
[Heliconia Spring](http://www.amazon.com/Helliconia-Spring-First-Book-Trilogy/dp/0743444728) by Brian Aldiss There are two sequels/companion novels, also good. [The Skinner](http://www.amazon.com/Skinner-Spatterjay-Book-1/dp/0765350483r) by Neal Asher (my husband read the sequel “The Voyage of the Sable Keech” and liked it pretty well, but not as much as the first) [Perdido Street Station](http://www.amazon.com/Perdido-Street-Station-China-Mieville-ebook/dp/B000FBFO8C) by China Mieville (sometimes considered a fantasy or a steampunk novel, kind of defies categorization). There are several sequels/ companion novels set in the same world. All include humanoid characters but no earth-as-we-know-it humans (in other words, they are set completely within their own alien setting) ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/4 "2014-07-10T01:20:51Z")
The Moties from Niven/Pournelle’s “The Mote In God’s Eye” are interesting nonhumans. There ARE humans in it, but there is an important Motie thread in it and they are a well developed nonhuman species. Cherryh’s Chanur are a well developed race of feline nonhumans, but once again, humans are present, and much of the story is set on spaceships and space stations, in the case of “Pride of the Chanur” the only one I’ve read. I believe that Vernor Vinge wrote a novel set almost entirely on the world of the Tines, canine-ish aliens that have group minds that are very interestng adn different. I didn’t read it because I don’t like retro-tech SF, and Tines tech is medieval, IIRC. I’ll see if I can think of a few others. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/5 "2014-07-10T02:29:07Z")
_The Crucible of Time_ by John Brunner ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/6 "2014-07-10T02:38:39Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > I believe that Vernor Vinge wrote a novel set almost entirely on the world of the Tines, canine-ish aliens that have group minds that are very interestng adn different. I didn’t read it because I don’t like retro-tech SF, and Tines tech is medieval, IIRC. That is the inestimable _A Fire Upon The Deep_. I’d also suggest Iain M. Banks’ Culture novels. There are a good number of aliens and alien perspectives and even the humans aren’t humans as we’d really understand them. Along those lines, I can highly recommend Hannu Rajaniemi’s books _The Quantum Thief_ and _The Fractal Prince_. Even the humans are no longer human, if you get me. Oh, and maybe _Golden Dream_ by Ardath Mayhar? It takes the Fuzzies from H. Beam Piper’s _Little Fuzzy_ and _Fuzzy Sapiens_ et. al. and tells a backstory and the events of the novels from the Fuzzy perspective instead of the human perspective. Kinda cool when the Fuzzies discover humans, instead of humans discovering Fuzzies. How about Jack Chalker’s _Well Of Souls_ novels? ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/7 "2014-07-10T03:38:06Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > That is the inestimable _A Fire Upon The Deep_. No, that was the novel where the Tines were introduced. [Children of the Sky](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Children_of_the_Sky)is a sequel, and set entirely on the Tines’ home world. Won some awards! ---
**Author:** ![ChrisM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@ChrisM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisM)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/8 "2014-07-10T03:38:57Z")
These are all great suggestions. The problem is that I have read many of them already, unfortunately. _The Crucible of Time_ is a good example of the kind of book I am looking for, though maybe something a bit less epic in scope. I haven’t read _Golden Dream_, though I have read Piper’s original Fuzzy books. That does sound interesting. A lot of books with interesting aliens still have the reader learn about them through the point of view of human characters, which I realize is an easier way to write a novel. I do like books like that, but at the moment I’m in the mood for something that just puts me in the middle of an alien society and expects me to figure things out. Greg Egan’s recent “Orthogonal” novels are also along the lines of what I am looking for, in a way. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/9 "2014-07-10T03:43:08Z")
> [@](#): > > That is the inestimable _A Fire Upon The Deep._ Seconded. And the Tines novel is probably the 3rd in that series. Also, David Brin’s Uplift series has nicely alien viewpoints. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/10 "2014-07-10T05:37:24Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > That is the inestimable _A Fire Upon The Deep_. While there is a lot more human action than alien action, the sequel _A Deepness in the Sky_ also has weird aliens that you have to figure out “from the inside.” ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/11 "2014-07-10T11:42:54Z")
Robert Sawyer’s “Quintaglio” trilogy? (Far-Seer, Fossil Hunter and Foreigner.) The “Quintaglios” are basically uplifted dinosaurs (uplifted by an unseen alien race). No humans anywhere to be found. [Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quintaglio_Ascension_Trilogy) ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/12 "2014-07-10T12:17:13Z")
There are fascinating aliens in [A Darkling Sea](http://us.macmillan.com/adarklingsea/JamesCambias) by **James L. Cambias**. Some of the main characters are humans but the viewpoint switches between human and two different species of aliens, one with space travel, one without. I really enjoyed it back in January when it came out. ---
**Author:** ![ChrisM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/47e85d/32.png) [@ChrisM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisM)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/13 "2014-07-10T12:23:54Z")
> [@Meurglys](#): > > There are fascinating aliens in [A Darkling Sea](http://us.macmillan.com/adarklingsea/JamesCambias) by **James L. Cambias**. Some of the main characters are humans but the viewpoint switches between human and two different species of aliens, one with space travel, one without. > I really enjoyed it back in January when it came out. I saw that at the library and thought it looked interesting, but I haven’t read it yet. Maybe I’ll pick it up if I see it today. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/14 "2014-07-10T12:27:01Z")
Iceworld, by Hal Clement, might fit the bill. It’s told from the point of view of an alien. ---
**Author:** ![Swamp\_Adder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@Swamp\_Adder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swamp_Adder)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/15 "2014-07-10T12:28:58Z")
You could try looking through the TV Tropes entry on [Xenofiction](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Xenofiction). Not all of the examples there are SF, but some of them may be what you’re looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/16 "2014-07-10T12:43:10Z")
Another Hal Clement, Mission of Gravity is the first one I thought of. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/17 "2014-07-10T14:11:06Z")
Thought the question was interesting, so looked for a bit. Didn’t turn up anything all that recent. L. Neil Smith’s _Their Majesties’ Bucketeers_ has no humans, just aliens playing Sherlock Holmes. Judging from the Goodreads reviews, it’s marred by libertarian rants, or at least political asides by the author. [Their Majesties' Bucketeers by L. Neil Smith | Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1127037.Their_Majesties_Bucketeers) Deborah Chester’s _LucasFilm’s Alien Chronicles_ series doesn’t actually have to do with Star Wars, but appears to appeal to women and may be better-written than you might think. Still, it’s a space opera, just one with no humans. > **[The Golden One (LucasFilm's Alien Chronicles, #1)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58436.The_Golden_One)** > > Here is an epic set in a far distant universe--a saga o… Robert L. Forward’s _Dragon’s Egg_ is one you’ve likely read, seeing how it was published in 1980 and Wikipedia says it’s a landmark in hard science fiction. Thought I’d mention it anyway. It has humans, but looks like the aliens are the center of the story. > **[Dragon's Egg (Cheela, #1)](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/263466.Dragon_s_Egg)** > > "In science fiction there is only a handful of books th… ---
**Author:** ![Swamp\_Adder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@Swamp\_Adder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swamp_Adder)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/18 "2014-07-10T14:32:31Z")
I thought of _Their Majesties’ Bucketeers_, but though it has a fun premise it isn’t that good IMO. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/19 "2014-07-10T16:14:50Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Iceworld, by Hal Clement, might fit the bill. It’s told from the point of view of an alien. > [@Bill\_Door](#): > > Another Hal Clement, Mission of Gravity is the first one I thought of. _Close to Critical_ was what came to mind for me. Although he does have humans in his stories, I think we all agree Clement _rules_ at the alien perspective thing. Brin, also mentioned, also rules. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2014, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734/20 "2014-07-10T20:34:43Z")
I second Niven and Pournelle’s _The Mote in God’s Eye_, a very good first-contact novel; likewise their later novel _Footfall_. See also _Icerigger_ by Alan Dean Foster and _Doctor’s Orders_ (a _Star Trek_ novel) by Diane Duane, which both focus on human characters, but also have some very intriguing, well-crafted alien characters and cultures. And of course you can’t go wrong with the native chapters of _The Martian Chronicles_ by Ray Bradbury. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-sf-recommendations/692734.md?page=2)