What are some must-read science fiction books and series?

[Tail]

Well?

I'll tell you mine a bit later...

 

[Phobos]

Personally, I prefer non-fiction, but...

books...
Neuromancer by William Gibson ("cyberpunk" genre)
Snowcrash by Neal Stephenson ("cyberpunk" genre)
Contact by Carl Sagan

movies...
Matrix
some Star Trek/Wars

don't know if you want to get into "science fantasy"...
The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman
Lord of the Rings

...a few others I'll think of later

 

[Zero]

I'm confused that this thread isn't more popular...


I like almost all science fiction, from Heinlein's juvie books, to the cyberpunk stuff, hard SF, space opera, whatever...

 

[HBar]

The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov are without a doubt my favorite sci-fi books. lately I've been steering more toward fantasy books (LOTR, etc) but i suppose sci-fi could be concidered fantasy also.
-HBar

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Books:
Subterranean - James Rollins
Amazonia - James Rollins

Movies:
Donnie Darko
Cube
Starship Troopers
Blade Runner

 

[Sunfist]

What confuses me more than the lack of posts is some of the combinations. How could anyone enjoy the quality of Donnie Darko and also like Starship Troopers? I don't get it.

For me I think my favorite S-F would be either Alfred Bestor or Phillip K. Dick. I am also a big fan of Jack McDevitt.

Af far as movies go, I think I would have to say Imposter, The Matrix, Donnie Darko, and Vanilla Skies.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

How could anyone enjoy the quality of Donnie Darko and also like Starship Troopers?

I'm a sucker for blowing up milions of bug aliens.

 

[Zero]

Starship Troopers was brilliant, dammit!

 

[Sunfist]

The novel by Robert A. Heinlein was, I'll gladly agree.

The travesty that they made of the theatrical presentation of said novel was horrid. Had it been some movie called "Killer Bugs From Space" or something, I might have loved it. You attach the name of one of Heinlein's works and I'm going to expect quality, moral delemas, philosophy, etc.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

You know they are making Starship Troopers 2, but going straight to video. I'll still rent it. Btw, either of you see the roughnecks animation series based on starship troopers?

 

[Chemicalsuperfreak]

For pure space opera fun, Vernor Vinge can do no wrong.

 

[Zero]

Originally posted by Sunfist
The novel by Robert A. Heinlein was, I'll gladly agree.

The travesty that they made of the theatrical presentation of said novel was horrid. Had it been some movie called "Killer Bugs From Space" or something, I might have loved it. You attach the name of one of Heinlein's works and I'm going to expect quality, moral delemas, philosophy, etc.

No, the movie was even MORE brilliant, dammit! Look at it as a satire of fascism and patriotism, and you begin to realize its hidden depths...

 

[Sunfist]

Originally posted by Greg Bernhardt
You know they are making Starship Troopers 2, but going straight to video. I'll still rent it. Btw, either of you see the roughnecks animation series based on starship troopers?

Actually, yes, and it wasn't that bad. It was based a little more off of the books than the movie, what with the large suits and all.

 

[Sunfist]

Originally posted by Zero
No, the movie was even MORE brilliant, dammit! Look at it as a satire of fascism and patriotism, and you begin to realize its hidden depths...

Those were just hand-me-downs from the novel, IMO.

 

[Zero]

Originally posted by Sunfist
Those were just hand-me-downs from the novel, IMO.

I always thought the book celebrated those things, and the moivie tears those concepts down by showing the logical outcome. Some people thought the film was shallow and 2-dimentional...I thought that was an intentional move by the director and screenwriter, to show how militarism is shallow...and looking at America today, I think they were right!

 

[Sunfist]

Maybe, I just didn't see it. I also didn't think the book celebrated those things, but it certainly did have some radical ideas.

Yes, I think that America is failing as well. Of course, who is going to stop America? The UN says, "Don't do this" then America does it. What other unified force is there?

Wait, don't respond to that here. That's hijacking this thread. Let's talk about it elsewhere, if you want to.

 

[hypnagogue]

I'm not all that up on science fiction books, but I do have to throw my lot in with sunfist and say Phillip K. Dick is great. If you like Blade Runner, try reading 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' I read the book first, and found the movie to be a big disappointment comparatively. I'm also very fond of 'The Martian Time Slip,' just a fantastic book. No one describes and delves into madness quite like Dick.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Anyone else enjoy the classic "Forbidden Planet"?

 

[Sunfist]

Originally posted by hypnagogue
I'm not all that up on science fiction books, but I do have to throw my lot in with sunfist and say Phillip K. Dick is great. If you like Blade Runner, try reading 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' I read the book first, and found the movie to be a big disappointment comparatively. I'm also very fond of 'The Martian Time Slip,' just a fantastic book. No one describes and delves into madness quite like Dick.

Absolutely. Have you tried "Ubik" or even better "A Scanner Darkly"? Fantastico.

 

[hypnagogue]

I have read Ubik and liked it a lot, though not quite as much as Martian Time Slip and Do Androids...? One thing I enjoyed about it was that it had a sort of comic book feel to it without being cheesy, what with the rag tag group of inertials and all. It had a sort of Matrix-y feel to it, way ahead of its time. I wouldn't be surprised if the third Matrix winds up having a similar ending to Ubik, though I would be disappointed on account of lack of originality.

I haven't read A Scanner Darkly yet, so I'll keep your recommendation in mind. For the moment my girlfriend is highly recommending The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, which she just finished reading, so that's also high up on the 'to read' queue. I also want to get around to Time Out of Joint eventually... so many books, so little time.

 

[Mentat]

I've got so many favorites, I don't really know where to start.

Well, I guess I should start with some of my most recent: Darwin's Radio and Darwin's Children, both by Greg Bear, are excellent.

The "Ender" series (including the "Bean" spin-off) has been one of my favorites for a long time now.

I read Jules Verne and H.G. Wells when I was in the 3rd and 4th grades, and they are still some of the best, IMO.

Flatland, by Edwin A. Abbott (btw, did you know his middle name is also "Abbott"?) is an all-time classic.

I'll have to come back to this thread later, I have very little time on the threads, and SO MUCH catching up to do...

 

[photon]

coincidence

The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov are without a doubt my favorite sci-fi books. lately I've been steering more toward fantasy books (LOTR, etc) but i suppose sci-fi could be concidered fantasy also.

Sci-fiwise, I'm in the EXACT position as Hbar.
I also highly recommend Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series.

 

[Royce]

Anything, everything by Heinlein
Dune series.
The Foundation series and almost everything by Asimov
Doc Smiths Lensmen series
Martian Cronicals - Bradbary
Childhoods End - Clark
Ender series and his other series
Just for starters.

About Starship Troopers. Vertualy everything that Heinlein wrote was packed with his conservative and pragmatic philosophy ( which is probably why I love his work so) and you have to remember when it was written and the audience for which it was written. His later work was not nearly so militarily conservative. I will never forget "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" and its motto; "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." Probably the truest words ever written in SF.