# Recommend a Science Fiction Book - Any Genera **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 24, 2015, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416 "2015-04-24T04:56:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Kelevra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/97f17d/32.png) [@Kelevra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelevra)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2015, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/61 "2015-04-28T18:44:33Z")
If you liked _Neuormancer_ check out _Snow Crash_ by Neal Stephenson. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2015, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/62 "2015-04-29T17:24:10Z")
_2001_ and _2010_, by Arthur C. Clarke _Needle_ and _Through the Eye of the Needle_, by Hal Clement. A collection of short stories by Larry Niven: _N-Space_, or _Playgrounds of the Mind_. _Strange Wine_, a collection of short stories by Harlan Ellison. _The Past Through Tomorrow_, a collection of short stories by Robert Heinlein. Ray Bradbury: just about any collection of short stories will have some good ones in it. _Star Rangers_ and _Catseye_, by Andre Norton. (Though I tend to like her fantasy more than her science fiction.) > [@araminty](#): > > Some of my favourite genera include _Corvus_, _Rana_, _Macropus_, _Castor_, _Dacelo_… > > 🙂 > > Genera =/= genre. No Homo? I like Homo. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/63 "2015-07-19T12:40:25Z")
The Man In The High Castle - Dick, Philip K. [[1]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_in_the_High_Castle)[[2]](http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/216363.The_Man_in_the_High_Castle)[[3]](http://www.amazon.com/Man-High-Castle-Philip-Dick/dp/0547572484/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1437307166&sr=8-2&keywords=man+in+the+high+castle)[[4]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._Dick) A Quantum Murder - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Mindstar Rising - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Nano Flower - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Algebraist - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Mote In Gods Eye - Niven, & Pournelle, Jerry [1] [2] [3] [4] Starship Troopers - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Tunnel In The Sky - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] (Test Post) ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/64 "2015-07-19T12:43:53Z")
The Man In The High Castle - Dick, Philip K. [1] [2] [3] [4] A Quantum Murder - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Mindstar Rising - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Nano Flower - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Algebraist - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Mote In Gods Eye - Niven, & Pournelle, Jerry [1] [2] [3] [4] Starship Troopers - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Tunnel In The Sky - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] (Test 2) ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/65 "2015-07-19T13:04:29Z")
The City And The Stars - Clarke, Arthur C. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Stars Are My Destination - Bester, Alfred [1] [2] [3] [4] Clement, Hal, Mission Of Gravity [1] [2] [3] [4] The Man In The High Castle - Dick, Philip K. [1] [2] [3] [4] A Quantum Murder - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Mindstar Rising - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Nano Flower - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Paradox Men - Harness, Charles [1] [2] [3] [4] Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Algebraist - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] Beggars In Spain- Kress, Nancy [1] [2] [3] [4] The Mote In Gods Eye - Niven, & Pournelle, Jerry [1] [2] [3] [4] Star Soldiers - Norton, Andre [1] [2] [3] [4] Door Into Summer - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Starship Troopers - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Tunnel In The Sky - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Deepness In The Sky - Vinge, Vernor [1] [2] [3] [4] Fire Upon The Deep - Vinge, Vernor [1] [2] [3] [4] Spin - Wilson, Robert Charles [1] [2] [3] [4] (test 3) ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/66 "2015-07-19T13:11:09Z")
The City And The Stars - Clarke, Arthur C. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Stars Are My Destination - Bester, Alfred [1] [2] [3] [4] Clement, Hal, Mission Of Gravity [1] [2] [3] [4] The Man In The High Castle - Dick, Philip K. [1] [2] [3] [4] A Quantum Murder - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] Mindstar Rising - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Nano Flower - Hamilton, Peter F. [1] [2] [3] [4] The Paradox Men - Harness, Charles [1] [2] [3] [4] Consider Phlebas - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] The Algebraist - Iain M. Banks [1] [2] [3] [4] Beggars In Spain- Kress, Nancy [1] [2] [3] [4] The Mote In Gods Eye - Niven, & Pournelle, Jerry [1] [2] [3] [4] Star Soldiers - Norton, Andre [1] [2] [3] [4] Door Into Summer - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Starship Troopers - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Tunnel In The Sky - Heinlein, Robert [1] [2] [3] [4] Deepness In The Sky - Vinge, Vernor [1] [2] [3] [4] Fire Upon The Deep - Vinge, Vernor [1] [2] [3] [4] Spin - Wilson, Robert Charles [1] [2] [3] [4] (test 4) ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/67 "2015-07-19T13:12:55Z")
Voice of the Whirlwind Days of Atonement and Hardwired all by Walter Jon Williams Mastodonia by Clifford Simak A Sword into Darkness by Thomas A Mays The Sky People and In the Court of the Crimson King by SM Stirling Also, Birthright and the Duty, Honor, Planet trilogy by Rick Partlow ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/68 "2015-07-19T13:17:16Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > Voice of the Whirlwind > Days of Atonement > and Hardwired > all by Walter Jon Williams > > Mastodonia by Clifford Simak > > A Sword into Darkness by Thomas A Mays > > The Sky People and In the Court of the Crimson King by SM Stirling > > Also, Birthright and the Duty, Honor, Planet trilogy by Rick Partlow Thanks 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/69 "2015-07-19T16:42:12Z")
My twenty favorite science fiction works longer than 25,000 words: 1. Olaf Stapledon _First and Last Men_ and _Starmaker_ 2. Philip Jose Farmer _The Riverworld Series_ 3. Frank Herbert _Dune_ 4. Walter Miller _A Canticle for Leibowitz_ 5. Alfred Bester _The Stars My Destination_ 6. Ursula K. LeGuin _The Left Hand of Darkness_ 7. H. G. Wells _The Time Machine_ 8. Philip K. Dick _The Man in the High Castle_ 9. Frederik Pohl and C. M. Kornbluth _The Space Merchants_ 10. Theodore Sturgeon _More than Human_ 11. Roger Zelazny _Lord of Light_ 12. Arthur C. Clarke _Against the Fall of Night_ 13. Stanislaw Lem _Solaris_ 14. Ken Grimwood _Replay_ 15. Joe Haldeman _The Forever War_ 16. Clifford Simak _City_ 17. Michael Frayn _The Tin Men_ 18. Samuel R. Delany _The Einstein Intersection_ 19. Isaac Asimov _The End of Eternity_ 20. Robert Heinlein _Stranger in a Strange Land_ ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/70 "2015-07-19T16:50:47Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > 1. Stanislaw Lem _Solaris_ did you see the original Solaris movie? how was it? i mean how was the book. this made me think of the movie stalker. did you read Roadside Picnic? ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/71 "2015-07-19T19:36:11Z")
Yes, I saw the 1972 movie _Solaris_. I don’t have anything useful to say about it. In general, I don’t like the idea of treating a novel and the movie made from it as a single unit. There’s no real connection between the quality of one and the quality of the other. I haven’t read _Roadside Picnic_ by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky yet, although I have it on my shelves. I don’t remember if I’ve seen _Stalker_ or not. ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/72 "2015-07-20T14:44:38Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Emergence, by David R. Palmer. And the sequel, Tracking, if you can find it. (Serialized; Never published as a book) The ending of Tracking implies a third story, which is not written to my knowledge. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/73 "2015-07-20T15:00:43Z")
Surprised that this thread has gone this far without mention of H. Beam Piper (Little Fuzzy and a number of others; First Cycle, found as a manuscript and finalized and published posthumously) and Tom Godwin (Space Prison/The Survivors, and the short story The Cold Equations, both of which are in the eponymous collection recently published.) One can make a reasonable argument that Scooby-Doo was (probably unconsciously) patterned after the Altairans in some of Godwin’s short stories. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/74 "2015-07-20T15:04:52Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Yes, I saw the 1972 movie _Solaris_. I don’t have anything useful to say about it. In general, I don’t like the idea of treating a novel and the movie made from it as a single unit. There’s no real connection between the quality of one and the quality of the other. I haven’t read _Roadside Picnic_ by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky yet, although I have it on my shelves. I don’t remember if I’ve seen _Stalker_ or not. Stalker was impressive. Gripping and compelling but not loud or harsh. > [@MacLir](#): > > Surprised that this thread has gone this far without mention of H. Beam Piper (Little Fuzzy and a number of others; First Cycle, found as a manuscript and finalized and published posthumously) and Tom Godwin (Space Prison/The Survivors, and the short story The Cold Equations, both of which are in the eponymous collection recently published.) > > One can make a reasonable argument that Scooby-Doo was (probably unconsciously) patterned after the Altairans in some of Godwin’s short stories. What a cool piece of trivia ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/75 "2015-07-20T15:07:46Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > My twenty favorite science fiction works longer than 25,000 words: > > … > 2. Philip Jose Farmer _The Riverworld Series_… No no no, gotta stop you there. The first couple of books were great, and then the slide started. If you really mean the first book or two, then I’m with you, but the series as a whole only rates 1 Donkey Ball. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/76 "2015-07-20T15:17:16Z")
Robert Silverberg’s _Dying Inside_. ---
**Author:** ![MacLir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@MacLir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacLir)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/77 "2015-07-20T16:24:07Z")
Here’s a really obscure one that I think is worthwhile: Forests of the Night, by Marti Steussy Humans colonizing a planet bump up against creatures that physically resemble Siberian tigers, with feathers instead of fur. The scout team thinks they’re intelligent, but they don’t use fire, or have possessions, or even live in fixed locations, so the colonists think they are animals and want to kill them for their pelts, as an export. Bad Idea. [Spoiler]The main character takes off into the woods with a tiger she has developed a rapport with and gradually learns their culture and language and is able to prove their intelligence. They have a purely intellectual “economy” where you have a “small-name” for everyday use, and a “big-name” that’s more like a Norse saga, and your status is determined by what you’ve seen and done, and how well you can tell about it. [/spoiler] ---
**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 20, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/78 "2015-07-20T19:36:54Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > _Rendesvous With Rama_ by Arthur C Clarke. Or you could just wait for the movie to come out. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/79 "2015-07-20T23:46:12Z")
Boyo Jim writes: \> No no no, gotta stop you there. The first couple of books were great, and then the \> slide started. If you really mean the first book or two, then I’m with you, but the \> series as a whole only rates 1 Donkey Ball. Well, yes . . . and no. I agree that the series goes downhill. I don’t think it goes downhill as fast you think it does. I think that the overall idea of the series is so good that it makes up for the fact that it isn’t entirely well executed. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2015, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416/80 "2015-07-20T23:58:16Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Or you could just wait for the movie to come out. I’m 62 and it seems like I have been waiting half my life for that movie. I hope to make it to 90, so I haven’t lost hope yet…guess I’ll have to settle for “The Martian” later this year. Someone above mentioned the Baen Free Library; it’s not quite as large as it used to be, but it’s still there. My two recommendations would be Eric Flint’s ‘1632’ and David Weber’s “On Basilisk Station” and “The Honor of the Queen”. Be warned, they are the starting points for _very_ long series, but they can be read as a stand-alone book to. Not at the literary levels of some of the above, but if you want to get lost in a good tale well-told…IMHO as always. And you can beat the price. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-science-fiction-book-any-genera/718416.md?page=5)