# Recommend some colonization-themed science fiction **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 29, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287 "2013-03-29T19:26:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/1 "2013-03-29T19:26:02Z")
So my new job has left me with a substantial amount of time that I’m basically at work and on call, but not too busy to read. I’ve recently been back through Niven and Pournelle’s _Legacy of Heorot_, and then on to Allen Steele’s _Coyote_ series, which I’m midway through right now. But I’ll be entirely through it in a week or two, so I’ll be needing more. What else to try? I’ve already read everything Heinlein wrote on the subject, and Scalzi too. Any recommendations? ---
**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:** [March 29, 2013, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/2 "2013-03-29T19:48:57Z")
JEM by Fred Pohl The Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/3 "2013-03-29T20:08:28Z")
Dammit. I saw the thread topic and was coming in here to recommend _Coyote_. ---
**Author:** ![iftheresaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecae2f/32.png) [@iftheresaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iftheresaway)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/4 "2013-03-29T20:26:29Z")
I was going to recommend Scalzi. I know I’ve read more - posting to remind myself to check my shelves one the baby has gone to bed. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/5 "2013-03-29T20:31:18Z")
I was going to recommend _The Legacy of Heorot_, but since you’ve already read that, there’s also a sequel, _Beowulf’s Children_. Then there’s _Destiny’s Road_, which isn’t precisely a sequel, but which appears to be set on a different planet in the same universe, a couple of generations after planetfall. ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/6 "2013-03-29T21:25:47Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I was going to recommend _The Legacy of Heorot_, but since you’ve already read that, there’s also a sequel, _Beowulf’s Children_. Then there’s _Destiny’s Road_, which isn’t precisely a sequel, but which appears to be set on a different planet in the same universe, a couple of generations after planetfall. I also enjoyed Destiny’s Road. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/7 "2013-03-29T21:44:02Z")
Well, it’s older and pretty sexist by today’s standards, but Bradley’s _Darkover Landfall_ is about the original colonization of Darkover by Earth people. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/8 "2013-03-29T22:11:52Z")
You know, I tried Robinsons’s _Mars_ stuff and never got anywhere. Maybe I’ll give it another shot. I also read _Beowulf’s Children_ and _The Secret of Black Ship Island_ (a novella set between the two) and enjoyed them, but they didn’t have the punch of the original. Recently I read Andy Weir’s _The Martian_, one of those $.99 Kindle books, and loved it. It’s not a colonization book, per se; it’s about a guy who gets left behind on an exploration mission and his frantic attempts to get the hell off the planet! Very hard SF, very good. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/9 "2013-03-30T00:06:27Z")
I really like Janet Kagen’s _Miribile_. It’s set some generations after the colonist’s landing. It’s very biology/ecology themed, thanks to job of the protagonist Mama Jason. I always liked Anne McCaffrey’s _Decision at Doona_ as well. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/10 "2013-03-30T00:42:52Z")
Ooh, and I’m not sure how I forgot Heinlein’s _Tunnel in the Sky_. It wasn’t originally intended as a colonization mission, but I think it ends up being all the better for that. ---
**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:** [March 30, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/11 "2013-03-30T03:49:23Z")
[Typhon’s Children](http://www.amazon.com/Typhons-Children-Toni-Anzetti/dp/0345418719) by Toni Anzetti. [The Sparrow](http://www.amazon.com/Sparrow-Mary-Doria-Russell/dp/0449912558) by Mary Doria Russell - actually about exploration and contact. [Remnant Population](http://www.amazon.com/Remnant-Population-Elizabeth-Moon/dp/034546219X) by Elizabeth Moon KSR’s Mars series is a little slow to start but ultimately (IMHO) worthy. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/12 "2013-03-30T03:49:33Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > Well, it’s older and pretty sexist by today’s standards, but Bradley’s _Darkover Landfall_ is about the original colonization of Darkover by Earth people. Similarly, McCaffrey’s _Dragonsdawn_ is about the original colonisation of Pern. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/13 "2013-03-30T04:03:56Z")
It’s YA, but I will make a pitch for Patrick Ness’s Chaos Walking trilogy. ---
**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:** [March 30, 2013, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/14 "2013-03-30T05:53:10Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Ooh, and I’m not sure how I forgot Heinlein’s _Tunnel in the Sky_. It wasn’t originally intended as a colonization mission, but I think it ends up being all the better for that. If you’re talking Heinlein, you want _Farmer in the Sky_. Yes, it’s an oldie (published in 1953) but it holds up okay and its central story is about developing a colony world. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/15 "2013-03-30T06:41:18Z")
As noted in the OP, I’ve read all of Heinlein already; my dad used the Boys Books to get me started on SF when I was about eight. They’re great suggestions and exactly what I’m looking for, except that I’ve long since read them all. _Destiny’s Road_ was fine, I guess, but I never like Niven much when he’s got no co-authors. Guy has some tremendous ideas, but his characters always fall flat to me. _Typhon’s Children_ looks good, I’ll check it out if I can find a copy. This is great, folks, keep 'em coming! ---
**Author:** ![Kuru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@Kuru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kuru)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/16 "2013-03-30T09:41:52Z")
There’s [Colony by Rob Grant](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colony_%28Rob_Grant_novel%29)(half of the Red Dwarf writing team). I don’t know if it really matches what you’re after though, as I think it’s 99% set on the colony ship. It’s not hard sci-fi but it is very funny. ---
**Author:** ![bmoak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@bmoak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bmoak)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/17 "2013-03-30T13:31:13Z")
Been a long time since I’ve read a lot of SF, but I always thought that C.J. Cherryh’s Forty-Thousand in Gehenna was a great example of this type of story. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/18 "2013-03-30T13:43:37Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Ooh, and I’m not sure how I forgot Heinlein’s _Tunnel in the Sky_. It wasn’t originally intended as a colonization mission, but I think it ends up being all the better for that. One of his better juveniles, almost the first Heinlein I ever read, when I was a tweener. Took me a while to realize Caroline was black. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2013, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-colonization-themed-science-fiction/654287/19 "2013-03-30T14:45:04Z")
> [@](#): > > Took me a while to realize Caroline was black. Did you notice that Rob Thomas himself was black, too? Apparently, Heinlein did that deliberately, to tweak off a racist editor. And _Farmer_ was also a colonization story; just not quite as good (in my opinion) as _Tunnel_.