# Recommend a sci-fi book for someone who has never read science-fiction **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 23, 2008, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058 "2008-11-23T01:03:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Buran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Buran](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buran)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/1 "2008-11-23T01:03:04Z")
Specifically for my mum who has complained to me on several occasions that she’s getting tired of reading the same sorts of books. I need it to be something she’ll get into quickly because I know she’ll only start reading it as a favour to myself and will quickly drop it if she’s not interested right away. I was going to give her ‘The Sparrow’, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but I worry that it might be a bit brutal in places. ---
**Author:** ![Laudenum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Laudenum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laudenum)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/2 "2008-11-23T01:20:01Z")
Songs of Distant Earth. It’s light, fluffy, and is a good transition from normal romance to science fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/3 "2008-11-23T01:23:25Z")
My favorite science fiction book is The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlein. It grabbed me right away and felt like a very “fast” read, but my brother had the opposite reaction so YMMV. He hated the pidgin that the characters spoke in. ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/4 "2008-11-23T01:35:13Z")
_To Say Nothing of the Dog_, Connie Willis _The Time Traveler’s Wife_, Audrey Niffenegger _Replay_, Ken Grimwood ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/5 "2008-11-23T02:13:39Z")
My first, when I was about 10, was The Other Side of the Sky, by Arthur C Clarke. Easy to read (for a non-english native) and really captivating. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/6 "2008-11-23T02:20:08Z")
\*1984 \*or _Alas Babylon_. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Some\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ad7895/32.png) [@Just\_Some\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Some_Guy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/7 "2008-11-23T02:58:53Z")
It would help to have an idea of her tastes and interests. I could point to humorous (_The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy_) or introspective (_The Yiddish Policemen’s Union_), for the scientifically minded (_Spin_) or the technological fetishist (_Rainbows End_), with history (_Doomsday Book_) or with religion (_Lord of Light_). ---
**Author:** ![Ronald\_C.Semone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/cc9497/32.png) [@Ronald\_C.Semone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ronald_C.Semone)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/8 "2008-11-23T03:37:25Z")
I have long maintained that the best introduction to science fiction for someone who has never read any is one of the short story anthologies put together in the 1950s especially those edited by Groff Conklin. They introduce all of the concepts and story lines that later, more sophisticated, writers built upon. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/9 "2008-11-23T03:39:10Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > _Alas Babylon_. I read that one in high school. I read it again recently. It’s rather dated, but still a great read. I don’t know if I’d call it Science Fiction _per se_ though. I enjoyed _Ringworld_, and have been thinking of re-reading it again. The various Bradbury anthologies are also good. (e.g., _The Martian Chronicles_.) I bought Heinlein’s [_Friday_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_(novel)) and Foster’s [_Nor Crystal Tears_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nor_Crystal_Tears) because I liked the cover art. (_Friday_ had [this cover](http://www.eroticartvillage.com/cms/index.php?option=com_gallery2&Itemid=130&g2_itemId=5785).) I liked them both, with Heinlein’s being the better story IMO. For comedy, I’ll second **Just Some Guy** ’s THHGTTG suggestion. But as he said, it’s hard to make suggestions without knowing the mother’s tastes. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/10 "2008-11-23T03:41:31Z")
As mentioned above, _Spin_ is a good read. Lots of people go ga-ga for _Ender’s Game_ (I kinda hated it, but I’m in the minority). _A Wrinkle in Time_ is a beautiful book, and since it’s YA it’s very brisk and accessible. _Caves of Steel_ might be a good bet if she likes mysteries. Who are her current favorite authors? That would probably help. ---
**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:** [November 23, 2008, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/11 "2008-11-23T03:45:53Z")
Ray Bradbury’s _The Martian Chronicles_ (major themes: exploration and the clash of cultures), George R.R. Martin’s _Tuf Voyaging_ (ecology, power, overpopulation), Joe Haldeman’s _The Forever War_ (war, duty and enduring love) or _Tool of the Trade_ (the Cold War, technology as a shaper of destiny), and Arthur C. Clarke’s _Childhood’s End_ (the nature of humanity) are all, I’d say, good intros to SF for someone who’s never read any. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/12 "2008-11-23T03:47:39Z")
I forgot _In the Garden of Iden_. Historical sf with cyborgs! Much less silly than it sounds. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/13 "2008-11-23T03:48:46Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > _To Say Nothing of the Dog_, Connie Willis The Doomsday Book, speaking of brutal _and_ humor. This book was the first Willis I read, and hooked me. I see no reason to suggest the books that hooked me on science fiction, as I strongly believe that Heinlein’s juvenile fiction will not appeal to the OP’s mother. ---
**Author:** ![Alpine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpine/32/17813_2.png) [@Alpine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpine)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/14 "2008-11-23T03:50:24Z")
> [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](#): > > _To Say Nothing of the Dog_, Connie Willis Second this. It’s one of my faves. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/15 "2008-11-23T03:51:41Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Lots of people go ga-ga for _Ender’s Game_ (I kinda hated it, but I’m in the minority). For me the Big Flaw in _Ender’s Game_ is that you know the ending very early on. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/16 "2008-11-23T03:54:43Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > For me the Big Flaw in _Ender’s Game_ is that you know the ending very early on. For me the big flaw was Ender. And the game. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![JoeSki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b487fb/32.png) [@JoeSki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoeSki)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/17 "2008-11-23T04:13:19Z")
I’m going to second The Time Traveler’s Wife. It’s an enchanting read and a great love story with wonderful characters. I like to think I have a pretty thick skin, but there’s some moments in there that left me feeling like I’ve swallowed a boat anchor. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/18 "2008-11-23T05:01:29Z")
A Canticle for Leibowitz ---
**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:** [November 23, 2008, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/19 "2008-11-23T05:08:23Z")
To someone who just wants to stick her toe in the boundless waters of SF, a better place to start might be a short story. Some of my favorites are Isaac Asimov’s “The Bicentennial Man” (about a robot who wants to become human), Clarke’s “The Nine Billion Names of God” (humanity’s place in the cosmos, with a clever twist at the end), Haldeman’s “Summer’s Lease” (colonization and the loss of knowledge), and both Martin’s “The Way of Cross and Dragon” (religion and myth) and “Sandkings” (alien “pets” and the illusion of control). ---
**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:** [November 23, 2008, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058/20 "2008-11-23T05:35:08Z")
Another vote for Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451 is about censorship and loyalty more than anything else). I also echo that if you tell us what she does like, we can make better recommendations. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-sci-fi-book-for-someone-who-has-never-read-science-fiction/474058.md?page=2)