Posted on 05/23/2008 10:02:34 AM PDT by GSWarrior
There must be a lot of SF fans here. Who are you favorite authors or books? What are you currently reading?
I enjoy SF books that focus on character development over hard scifi themes. Robert Silverberg, IMO, is about the best there is. I also enjoy Gardner Duzois' short stories--some gut-wrenching stuff. Jack Vance's are also very entertaining. Orson Scott Card is pretty good too.
I am currently reading Altered Carbon, by Richard Morgan...it's kind of slow and hard to follow. Not likely to read his other novels.
I have enjoyed some, but not all, of Niven and Pournelle's works.
second that— Riverworld Series by Farmer is great!
on the SF front, Niven Ringworld series is also great...
For contemporary fare (I don’t think anyone today can hold a candle to the likes of JRR Tolkein, Edgar Rice Bourroughs, Jules Verne or HG Wells) I’ve really taken a liking to the “1632” series by Eric Flint (and a few others). Light-heartedly written, somewhat tongue-in-cheek but easy and enjoyable reads. The “1632 Technical Manual” discussion group on the Baen Bar is pretty impressive.
Turtledove wrote some truly excellent alternate history/historical sci-fi (Guns of the South, How Few Remain, the first few books of the World War series), but lately his material reads like he’s just churning stuff out in an ongoing quest for more advances ...
Philip K. Dick
IMHO, a writer without peer.
If you don’t believe me, read Ubik!
Agree with you about Silverberg. I think he was the best over all. I really like A. E. Van Vogt and Clifford Simack also.
Yes! Took over a hundred posts before anybody mentions Ellison.
Short and twisted, but a damn good writer.
Lois McMasters Bijorn - Start with Shards of Honor.
David Webber - I want a Treecat!
Lee & Miller - Best to start with Local Custom. Crystal Soldier is really the first book but it will make much more sense if you read the others first.
I’ve seen Ringo’s name come up a lot on this thread. Could you recommend a good place to start? Do his series books stand alone or should I really start at volume 1?
How could I have forgotton Colin Wilson's Spider World trilogy? Good stuff.
“Surprised you’re the only who to mention Alfred Bester. The Demolished Man was terrifying.”
Haven’t read that. Read “The Stars My Destination” more than once. Very good.
“While C. S. Lewis has been mentioned, his main Science Fiction (The Perelandra trilogy) has not been.”
Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and “That Hideous Strength” were very good. For Lewis the quality of their work qualifies him for the top ten of SF, but his quantity disqualifies him.
I think Bester is a notch below the other top ten SF writers we’ve mentioned.
I met him at my first Lunacon in Tarrytown, NY c. 1987. He was just milling around in the crowd. I happened to have a camera to take pictures of some of the costumes that I'd seen, so I worked up the nerve to ask him if I could take his picture.
He said, "Sure, sure, as long as I don't have to pose."
Oh, no, sir, you don't have to pose.
"I'll look at the pretty girls."
I have this great, statesman-like picture of Asimov in 3/4 profile, hands on his lapels ... ogling some half-naked (but adequately covered) young ladies.
I was actually quoting Martin from "The Simpsons".
Oddly enough, I've never read any of his work (except maybe for some old short story in an old magazine or anthology that I've forgotten about). I probably have something by he in one of the boxes in the basement.
ping
Jack Vance-The Dying Earth, et.al.
Gene Wolfe-Book of the New Sun, et. al.
Poul Anderson-Flandry of Terra, et. al.
R.E. Howard-Conan, et. al.
L. Sprague deCamp-Unbeheaded King, et. al.
Dan Simmons-Hyperion, et. al.
Larry Niven-Ringworld, et. al.
Clark Ashton Smith
Lin Carter
Theodore Sturgeon-Killdozer!, et. al.
Freegards
Who is that?
L Ron Hubbard placemarker
Bradbury
Pohl (my personal favorite!)
Asimov
I also love Greg Bear..... even if he's more of a hard-sciences writer...
Jordan is a master, and I am still crying in his waking from the dream.
Actually he said it might become a problem as far back as the 70s - unless the world moved to much greater use of nuclear power.
Fellow Ringo Fan! YES!! I love rednecks playing with anti-matter!
The Screwtape Letters (2008)
Writer: C.S. Lewis (novel)
Release Date: 2008 (USA) more
Status: Pre-production
Douglas Gresham is involved with this production.
Bruce Sterling and David Zindell also wrote some good stuff, but I haven’t been reading much Sci Fi in recent years.
R. A. Heinlein, USNA class of ‘29
If you want Space Opera, start with "Through the Looking Glass".
If you tend towards semi-fantasy, go with "There Will Be Dragons".
And if you want the male equivalent of a Harlequin Novel, where the men are manly beyond belief, the women fey, the action over the top, and the good guys ALWAYS win, no matter how wierd it gets. . .try "Ghost".
A Warning on Ghost, however. IT is NOT family-friendly reading. John wrote it to basically get it out of his system. . .and it gets pretty sexual. If you can be considered, by anyone, uptight. . .pass "Ghost" by. It's a wild ride, but parts of it approach triple-x rated. . .
Google "Oh John Ringo NO!", and read the review from the Concrete Tomb of Hradska if you're not sure. . . "Hymn" and "Dragons" are available for free at the Baen Free Library. . .
Idoru was fabulous
Robert Jorden- You do not need more than the first 5 book in the series that never ends.
Dennis L. McKiernan- Tolkien lite but also 5 fairy tale
Stephen King- "The Stand"
Laurell K. Hamilton- only about the first 5 in the Anita Blake series then the author goes through a personality warp that would make for some great psychiatry study but make for some very disturbed reading.
JRR Tolkien- Loved the trilogy but could not stand the 100 pages of whining before Biblo ever got out his door and on his journey to ever really like the Hobbit.
Frank Herbert- Dune
Orson Scott Card- Ender's Game
Lary Niven- Ringworld
Allen Dean Foster-You would be surprised to see all his books made into movies, but my favorite series of his is his "Flinx" series
C.S. Lewis- Christian
Frank Peretti-Christian
I believe that he also wrote a (fantasy) book titled "The Dragon and the George." It's been at least 20 years since I read that book, but I recall it was terrific.
Mark
1.) Dune
2.) Lord of The Rings
3.) 1984
4.) Fareinheit 451
5.) 2001: A Space Odyssey
Heinlein, of course. I loved his Lazarus Long stories, and really loved both Job and Number of the Beast.
Stephen Donaldson's Thomas Convenant books: talk about an "anti-hero!", as well as Terry Brooks "Shanara" series are both fun fantasy.
I think that I read Asimov and Herbert while I was too young to really appreciate either the Foundation series or Dune. If I had more time, I'd try reading them again.
I was brought up on Edgar Rice Burroughs. I learned to read with Tarzan, but I really went nuts with the John Carter of Mars books! And Arthur Conan Doyle's "Pelucidar" books. And later, Robert Adams' "Horseclans" books, if you can find them. "Cat of a Silver Hue" is still one of my favorite books ever.
Damn, I could go on for hours and hours.
Mark
Hah. I saw the title of this thread earlier and thought of Piers Anthony. While there are many great authors and novels, my first thought was of his Incarnations series.
Gordan Dickson and his Dorsai series, to name just one!
Roger Zelazny to name another!
Bear’s Forge of God was great.
Here’s some of my favorites
Fantasy:
JRR Tolkien
Neil Gaiman
CS Lewis
Robert Jordan
Terry Brooks (easy reading, more aimed at teenagers)
Sci-fi:
Robert Heinlein
Orson Scott Card
Ray Bradbury
Arthur C. Clarke
HG Wells
Douglas Adams
Terry Pratchett
Isaac Asimov
HP Lovecraft (can’t believe nobody’s mentioned him yet)
Jules Verne
Cyberpunk:
Neil Stephenson
Cory Doctorow
Charles Stross
(The last two publish under some variation of Creative Commons licensing, so you can download their works in ebook format for free in all kinds of places)
On my to-read list:
Neuromancer
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Stardust
...and re-read:
Princess Bride
Flatland
Flatterland (heavy on the thoeretical and modern physics and cosmology. I HIGHLY recommend it for anyone interested in those topics, however)
This series contains some of the bet science fiction I have ever read, bar none. I can't recomend it enough.
Ditto.
After Heinlein, Niven and Pournelle are the best of the best.
To your (very good) list I would add Dr. Robert L. Forward, Jack Vance and Fritz Lieber (last two more fantasy than science).
bump for later
I remember it as an excellent book, although I can't recall anything about it. I read it in my senior year in high school, which is some 28 years ago. Another terrific distopian book is Ira Levin's "This Perfect Day." Levin is best known for Rosemary's Baby. I believe that This Perfect Day has been out of print for some time now.
Mark
The best part of that movie was at the very beginning, where you see text on a black screen. I can't remember it verbatim but it was something like: "In the late 20th century, politicians finally found a cure to urban blight." The next thing you see is a mushroom cloud. As I recall, it went downhill from there.
Ellison's short story was great, and the movie was OK, but it didn't compare to his story.
For a long time, I was something of a fan of his writing, but I've since decided that I really like his editing better. I'm eternally thankful to Harlan Ellison for his "Dangerous Visions" anthologies, for introducing me to many authors I probably would never have read otherwise, including Piers Anthony, Theodore Sturgeon, and Fritz Leiber.
Mark
Short and twisted, but a damn good writer.
In one of my favorite bits from a book, the end of Heinlein's "Number of the Beast" has a gathering of writers, both historical and fictional, as well has Heinlein's contemporaries. And he's even invited critics to this gathering as well. Harlan Ellison's been put in charge of their accommodations! LOL
Mark
I believe that he also wrote a (fantasy) book titled "The Dragon and the George." It's been at least 20 years since I read that book, but I recall it was terrific.
DAMN!!!! "The Dragon and the George" was by Gordon Dickson, not Zelazny!
Thanks for reminding me, GBS!
Mark
I hope this thread gives me some reading ideas, because I haven’t read a NEW science fiction novel in, literally, decades.
While I admire Gene Wolfe, Harlan Ellison, Delaney, Zelany, some Herbert, Silverberg, Bester and Clarke, I have to say I’ve been disappointed with so much science fiction...and I WANT to love it.
I think the bloom came off the rose with me when, first, I grew up and tired of the cynicism of the Ellison crowd, and second, Cyberpunk came into being. That youthful unearned cynicism I just grew out of, but I’ve never gotten tired of the “sense of wonder” SF—some Clarke and Andre Norton, especially.
But while I’m a more sophisticated reader now, “sophisticated” too often means “cynical” to these writers. I can’t tell you how many “new classics” I’ve picked up and then bailed on after a hundred pages. I just don’t give a DAMN about “cybercowboys” and their silly posing ways—characters who look cool as their killing people, tough-talking characters who haven’t a shred of humanity to interest me and, especially, boring plots which don’t activate my imagination.
Alfred Bester’s The Stars My Destination is a favorite, as is Clarke’s Songs of Distant Earth. I love Bradbury’s non-sf stuff, too. But these days when I want some good SF, I have to reread something, or write something.
I LOVED Ligotti until I read that long, bizarre essay of his about how the universe is meaningless and there is no god. Even if you are an atheist, you’ll be put to sleep by his endless rehashing of high school-level cliches about meaninglessness.
Hey MarkL, Pellucidar is by ERB, if I recall. But you win the thread by mentioning Fritz Leiber. Have you ever read Gene Wolfe?
Freegards
Wow... You're right. I haven't read them since high school, which is roughly 3 decades, so it's a miracle that I can remember it at all. But didn't Doyle also have a "primitive world" book or series?
I don't recall ever having read Gene Wolfe.
Mark
Do think the new author will pull of Book 12? Maybe the editing will be a little tighter, but than I think RJ’s wife is still the editor.
I run into the same problem. I reckon the “newest” author I can get into is Dan Simmons’ Hyperion/Fall of Hyperion. And that was written in the late 80s-early 90s if I recall. He’s also the cat who wrote the essay “Message from a Time Traveler” that shows up on FR now and then. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1610142/posts
Freegards
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