/lit/ - Literature

>>4092795
bump

>>4092795

>thinking dune and asimov have value

top lel mate top lel

>Not reading Neil Stephenson right now
OP, are you even trying? I would suggest Snow crash, or Anathem.

>>4092865
*Neal Stephenson

>>4092795
Gene Wolfe is the William Gaddis of SF.

Gene Wolfe - Memorare
Harlan Ellison - I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream

>>4092865
>Anathem

Not op but i have this on my bookshelf. Tell me why i should read it.

>>4092865
>Snow Crash
>Hiro Protagonist

How could anyone ever take that shit seriously?

I just finished Neuromancer and thoroughly enjoyed it. I had mass amounts of endorphins flowing through me during the conclusion.

>yfw The Matrix is essentially a sequel to Neuromancer

I would recommend though that if you are ever confused about characters or actions after you finish a chapter, read a summary of the chapter online. Don't feel ashamed. Some of the descriptions are batshit crazy.

Stars My Destination
The Forever War

>>4092795
>everything by Asimov
I am reluctant to believe you have actually read everything by Asimov. Anyways you should read everything by Phillip K Dick and Arthur C Clarke next. Also Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is ostensibly science fiction so I suggest it.

Forever War.
I liked it more than Starship Troopers

>>4092917
Because it's a fantastic work of speculative fiction. It takes some time to get into, is the thing. Just keep at it and if you make it a quarter of the way through you'll be hooked, and well rewarded by the end.

>>4093073
This. The Forever War is awesome.

Also Ringworld by Larry Niven, much Phillip K Dick, Arthur C Clarke, and maybe try Leviathan Wakes by James S A Corey

Has anyone read the Uplift series? I was about to read Sundiver but a friend of mine said it was garbage.

>>4093093
I've read the first trilogy, which is actually a trilogy in name only. The first book is a pretty good standalone, but no more than that. The second book was fantastic, and the third book, while pretty quality in itself, was disappointing to me because it didn't continue the story in the second book.

You don't need to read Sundiver to read Startide Rising though.

>>4093093
>Sundiver
Don't listen to your friends, it has this nice atmosphere of whodunnit/lifeboat and scientific marvel.

>Startide rising
I'm biased because this could be my favourite scifi book ever. Easily the best book Brin has written. Be ready to feel unfulfilled as it end with many loose threads. Very unique characters and tense plotting. I love how he handled the concept of uplifting dolphins and chimps.

>To get closure read his second triology reach/shore/reef
Paralell storyline that ties in with startide at the end. It was ok, the robinson crusoe angle was not to my liking and too many characters. But the closure, sweet closure.

>Uplift war, book3 of first triology
An ok read, the humanit fuck yeah angle and juvenile love really hit home for me reading it as an adolecent. Reading it now still brings me enjoyment tho.

Book of the New Sun

Neuromancer

get mad.

>Culture Series - Iain Banks (RIP ;_; )
>The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
>Oryx and Crake and sequels - Margaret Atwood
>Helliconia Series - Brian Aldiss
>Vurt - Jeff Noon

I actually don't read that much SF anon I feel like I should have more recs

>>4092896
What does that mean?

>>4093007
How is the matrix in the matrix similar to the matrix in neuromancer though?

event horizon shmevent shmomizon, this is where hard sci-fi horror is at.

I will give you a mixed bag of personal favourites

>Blind sight - Peter watts
First contact, what is consciousness, what is intelligence?
>Quantum thief - Hannu Ravaniemi
Dizzyingly spectacular gentleman thief story

>Collected shorts - Cordwainer smith
The pioneer of US PsyOps wrote some damn good sci fi shorts. Read em all. Thes subtle weaving of a mythical future is still unique in its voice.

Vurt - Jeff Noon
Man looks for his sister who disapeared into a drug. You like PKD? This reality wrenching fable is for you.

>Schismatrix plus - Bruce sterling
I love the prose and style of Gibson but his good friend Sterling needs more recognition. Almost every book he writes is fantastic. This is his magnum opus. Far future chronicle of the two facets of mankind, the shapers and the mechanics.

Stanislaw Lern - Solaris

>>4093725
>>4093688 here, does it also provide closure for the people who had to stay on the planet? I'm under the impression it only deals with the people who escaped

>>4093732
Ian Banks is dead?

>>4093759
Yes, they have many adventures sparesly spread in chapters between the books.
The guys on the streaker only show up towards the final book tho

It was a while ago I read them so I could be wrong tho...

>>4093767
yes, earlier this year ;_;

>>4093732
>>4093738
I try to dig up books I never see mentioned here and lo, two from my list are posted while I write my post lol. Kudos on good taste, anons.

bomp

Polymath by Brunner
Costigan's Needle by sohl
Goblin Reservation by Simak
Protector by Niven
Araminta Station by Vance
Fall of Moondust by Clarke
Dinosaur Beach by Laumer
The Killer Thing by Wilhelm
In the House of the Worm by Martin
The Man Who Used the Universe by Foster
Princes of the Air by Ford.
My Name is Legion by Zelazny

I could just keep right on going, but you'll get a good sample form those

>>4093732
this guy is legit, Banks and Le Guin would have been on my list as well. Other than that, I can mostly recommend (post-)Cyberpunk, William Gibson, Ian McDonald, Bruce Sterling, George Effinger (trashy, but enjoyable).

Pick up the omnibus of Science Fiction edited by Geoff Conklin. Has some big names, Asimov, Lovecraft, Heinlein, but also has guys you probably never heard of. From when sci-fi was exploding from the 30s through the 50s

Also, Heinlein. Anything by Heinlein

>>4094147
Let me edit that, anything but Starship troopers. That is literally the worst place to start with Heinlein

>>4094148
Why?

>>4093007

are you from 1986? neuromancer used to be edgy and good but today is the sort of sci fi my grandma is into

>>4094157
it's worth reading for the zeerust and the immersive style alone. Same could be said of most heinlein juvies.

Who was that author who was described as a more intelligent/craft philip k dick? His names began with a.a or something like that

>>4094148
Where to start then?

>>4094153
Couple reasons of the top of my head

For one, Starship Troopers was written as part of his young adult series but the content was seen as too mature, so he had to publish it as a regular novel, so it does not have the maturity of some of his other novels.

2nd, It is somewhat a political essay, more than a novel but Heinlein seemed to be fucking around sometimes and just saying things to generate discussion. Ex. Talks shit about Marx, Plato, and Locke all on the same page. Which is not to say that sci-fi should not generate thought, quite the opposite, but Heinlein does this better in other works.

3rd, might be a irrelevant to a browser of /lit/, but way, way, WAY too many people read Starship Troopers and just get, WOAH AWESOME BATTLE SUITS, MUH PATRIOTISM, KILLING BUGS, SOLDIERS/MARINES ARE BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE IN SOCIETY, and get a moto-boner and join the army.

So, Starship troopers is not the worst thing Heinlein wrote, in-fact, I would probably place it in the top 5 for him, but there is better places to start. Where, would depend on what you are reading for.

If you just want cool space adventures, check out Glory Road or one of his young adult books like Tunnel in the Sky

If you want to read some controversial stuff from the 60s, read Stranger in a Strange Land.

If you want a foundation for heinlein's thought, For Us, The Living.

Libretarian? The Moon is A Harsh Mistress

My personal favorite series is his extensive Future History. There are two ways to approach it, beginning with The Past through Tomorrow so you can get all of it, or just skipping ahead to Methuselah's children where Lazurus Long shows up and takes over for the rest of Heinlein's books till his death.

>>4092836
Your bad opinion doesn't have value.

>the master list

The Quantum Thief

The Story of Your Life and Other Stories

Silently and Very Fast

Mockingbird

Stand on Zanzibar

Think Like a Dinosaur

The Futurological Congress

Roadside Picnic

Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said

The Stars My Destination

>>4093727
This anon has it rightwise. Also, Fifth Head Of Cerebus.

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Alastair Reynolds yet.

I can't speak for all his works, but the Revelation Space series is pretty good.

The Possibility of an Island
War with the Newts
Roadside Picnic

>>4094249

yea and redemption ark beats the first one so just keep going

>>4094158

no shit sherlock heinlein is for my great grandparents

Any (translated) Soviet era sci fi that's not Lem or Sturgatsky?

>>4094180
What is the difference between his young adult and adult books?

Also thanks for the lengthy post

>>4092795
I like Peter Hamilton. I recommend either Fallen Dragon or the two Commonwealth Saga books. I haven't yet read the Reality Dysfunction but those are supposed to be pretty good as well

>>4092795

The Diamond Age, hands down. I myself loved Asimov, read all his stuff. Diamond Age put my faith back in modern sf.

Also: it's abbreviated "sf," not "sci-fi."

>>4094180
>My personal favorite series is his extensive Future History. There are two ways to approach it, beginning with The Past through Tomorrow so you can get all of it, or just skipping ahead to Methuselah's children where Lazurus Long shows up and takes over for the rest of Heinlein's books till his death.

this is confusing, what is the whole order of the entire future history saga?

thread needs more delany. everyone should read Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand. it takes place in a galactic civilization and has dragon hunting and gay boning, it's awesome

Excession by Iain M. Banks

go on, punch me

>>4094418

You should check out Hamilton's Void Trilogy set in the Commonwealth universe but over 1000 years in the future. It's quite beast.

Sci fi is the best genre of books

:-)

>>4093031
>Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
Best science-fiction fucking ever. My favorite mark twain novel as well.

I picked up Mars by Ben Bova today, any good?

The Wreck of The River Of Stars by Michael Flynn.

Hyperion, by Dan Simmons
It's basically Canterbury Tales in space. I'm enjoying it.

Just the Hyperion fag popping telling you that
The Hyperion Cantos are required reading for the sci-fi nigger.

I've heard Lord of Light is Good and so is A Canticle for Leibowitz.

We, Jennifer Society, 1984, Brave New World, Lucifers Hammer I've seen in ever single Goodwill store.

>>4095277
beat me to it

>control F
>no Stapledon

fucking disgusting plebs /lit/ is dead

>>4095277
>It's basically Canterbury Tales in space
No. No it's not. It was marketed like that because it mimics The Canterbury Tales structure (pretty badly). It's only "the Canterbury tales in the sense that there's a pilgrimage and in the sense that stories are told on the way". Have you even red the canterbury tales? it's magnificent while Simmons stories told during the pilgrimage are dull (even that one with a lot of shooting). Hyperion is a disgrace

The Golden Age - John C Wright
Count To A Trillion - John C Wright
Under The Skin - Michel Faber
The Futurological Congress - Stanislaw Lem
The Sirens of Titans - Kurt Vonnegut

As a huge, huge sci-fi fan (born & bred, my dad fed my sci-fi with my breakfast), I have just discovered Mr China Mieville, and oh. my. god.
He also scratches my Dickens- obsessive itch.
I sarted with Perdido Street Station, and I have no idea where to reccomend starting, because I haven't read all his stuff yet.
I nominate this guy for modern literature: very nice prose.

Hyperion is awsome bruh. Read it.

>>4092994
>Snow Crash
>serious
do you even burbclave?

>>4095646
>>4092994
>Hiro Protagonist
best character in post modern story structure. ever

>>4092865
why is no one saying cryptonomicon

>>4093011
>The Forever War
yes. this.

>>4093732
>Oryx and Crake and sequels
you are like the only person i have heard of that has read that. love it

>>4092836
>It's popular therefore is bad

>>4092836
Fedora level: over 9000

A Deepness in the Sky or A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge are both fantastic

Don't bother with Scalzi

Who are these people claiming to have read all of Asimov's stuff? I'm a huge fan and all but the guy wrote like 300 books. Even if your only talking about fiction, that's still more than half his work.

What does lit/ think of the later additions to the Foundation series by other authors after his death? Never could bring myself to read them.

riverworld

>>4093732
>>4096047

Oryx and Crake and After the Flood are 2 of my favorite novels of all time.

>>4094403
The young adult books (Podkayne of Mars, Tunnel in the Sky, etc) are comparatively short and mostly one-offs. Meaning under 200 pages and do not tie in with other books he has written.

His adult books are longer, with Time enough For Love being about 600 pages with smaller fonts and more complex writing. He gets really into ideas of time travel, alternate universes, sub-light travel, those kind of things. His idea of World as Myth starts to dominate his writing in his later years, basically everything after I Will Fear No Evil, so all his books become interconnected. So it is important to read them in the correct order. See below for the order.

>>4094445
>>4096800
The thing with the Future History Series is that it morphed into the World as Myth Series and when it did, it started to involve characters from practically ALL his works. So to get 100% appreciation and understanding of it, you virtually have to read Heinlein's entire catalog.

But if you just want the pure Future History, I would go in this order.

Future History
>The Past Through Tomorrow-collection of all the Future History short-stories in convenient chronological order.
>Orphans of the Sky
>Time Enough for Love

After that, it becomes the World as Myth Series, which goes

>Number of The Beast
>The Cat That Walks Through Walls
>To Sail Beyond The Sunset

damn, so many good suggestions in this thread, thanks guys (not OP)

I love sci fi but it's such a hard genre to navigate because it seems like there's a lot of pulpy shit out there.

>>4093007
The only thing that really shocked me in Neuromancer was just how obviously "Inception" stole a few scenes from that book. Namely the beach stuff with... Neuromancer.

The ending was a huge let-down though. I guess I grew up in an era of action movies, but I was expecting the final fight to be a bit more than a couple arrows and then a lot of talking.

>>4094126
a very good list. This is very much basic essentials though. I figure everybody has read at least half these.

What happened to "cyberpunk"? Did it die?

>>4093748
Read everything by Cordwainer Smith.

One of the best sci-fi books ever.

Star maker, motherfucker.
Also, The cyberiad.

Everything by Arthur C. Clarke.

>>4092994
>implying it wasn't tongue-in-cheek
>implying it wasn't post-modern
>implying Snow Crash is supposed to be serious.

>>4095641
>China Mieville
Muh brain dick

Jesus I love his work

>there will never be a well-written Star Wars epic.

>>4096047

I loved those fucking books. Literally howling with laughter when Zeb became a memetic god to the Crakers.

>>4097586
It's in a rut. All of sci-fi is in a rut.

Cyberpunk's been in a decline ever since post-modernism began its decline, which makes sense. Sci-Fi in the west is stagnating due to how the general public views science and technology: either with apathy or distrust.

OP, check out Gibson's "Pattern Recognition." He improved quite a bit over the years as a writer. IIRC, it's his latest work.

the sparrow

>>4098247
Cyberpunk is making a comeback in videogames and films

shit man, it needs to come back in books!

>>4097982
Thrawn trilogy was well written?

as far as such things go anyway

>>4098280
The ... uh
Han Solo trilogy that ends with him meeting Luke at Mos Eisley. He had a Rebel girlfriend who killed herself. I liked those books.

>>4098283
>Cyberpunk is making a comeback in videogames and films

That might actually be where it belongs as a genre. So much of it is the aesthetic, and visual mediums manage to capture its philosophical and rhetorical themes well enough.

I'm still waiting for a successor in literature, though -- the next wave of science fiction.

>>4098280
The Thrawn trilogy was NOT written well.

Thrawn was the ultimate mary sue and the most random occurrences linked into the end narrative out of nowhere.

Also, the whole "studying art to figure out enemy tactics to exacting degrees" was ludicrous.

>>4098247
>Cyberpunk's been in a decline ever since post-modernism began its decline, which makes sense
I hadn't thought of it like that, but it does make sense. The two tend to go hand in hand. But that's a shame - it seems like our world is becoming more cyberpunk, at least to me. Just a little less desolate.

>>4098283
Fuck yeah, this. I mean, just look at Watch_Dogs. I'm glad cyberpunk is much more accepted around here than I once believed. At the very least it's a better subgenre than Steampunk.

>>4098296
>That might actually be where it belongs as a genre. So much of it is the aesthetic, and visual mediums manage to capture its philosophical and rhetorical themes well enough.

While this is true, I do think there's still a place for it in modern sci-fi. I also believe that the more post-modern aspects of the genre lend themselves better to literature than visual mediums.

>>4092795

I love cyberpunk art. There is a lot of it floating around.

>>4098307

well in my defense I read them as a kid.

I did hear good things about the Darth Bane books

>>4098345
Cyberpunk art makes me hate the fact that this isn't the future yet.

>>4098369

there are a lot of styles to. this one is from a famous manga, or something. I would read it but I get bored reading comics

one of my favorites. Philip K Dick may be completely insane, but his work has inspired some great stuff, right?

>>4098387
Mah dick

yeah Cyberpunk was the primo pomo genre for a while

>>4098399
I mean, it really is the perfect postmodern genre

think about it:
pastiche, check
cynical critique of consumerism, check
apathetic view of politics, check
simultaneous glorification and revulsion at the technological, check
transhumanism, check

what else am I missing?

>>4098330
>Watch Dogs

I'm really looking forward to that and another game called Cyberpunk 2077 (I think). I don't play games too much, but I'll get those if they get good reviews

>>4098387
Is that "BLAME!"?

I fucking love BLAME!!! You gotta read it, anon. You've fucking gotta.

Glorious nippon is still the top gun when it comes to sci fi and cyberpunk. I think it's due to their positive views on technology.

>>4098399
Yes. But you can only take cynical speculation and social criticism so far. As >>4098403 pointed out, it's the purest form of post-modernism. But now that post-modernism has been replaced by new-sincerity and more individual-centered concerns, it's natural for cyberpunk to fizzle out.

What I'm wondering is: where is sci fi going to go from here? Even the American sci-fi scene is kinda dull, and the new world has always been the king of speculative fiction.

>>4098403
It's modern and current, and some of what goes on in the stories could, technically, happen IRL.

>>4098407
Yup, you got that second game right as well. Plus, there's Deus Ex, both main games.

>>4098413
>Glorious nippon is still the top gun when it comes to sci fi and cyberpunk. I think it's due to their positive views on technology.
Plus, they seemed to have adapted tech into their everyday lives much quicker than the rest did. Something like internet on their advanced-for-the-time-cellphones there was around a lot quicker. Their bigger cities are much more modern and technological than many of ours. They, as you said, have a much more positive look on tech.

>But now that post-modernism has been replaced by new-sincerity and more individual-centered concerns, it's natural for cyberpunk to fizzle out.

I think the new-sincerity thing is just a response to a generation or 2 of kids having dealt with the tail end of a decade like the 90's and entering the aughts, which are less personal and so quick and focused on trends.

>What I'm wondering is: where is sci fi going to go from here? Even the American sci-fi scene is kinda dull, and the new world has always been the king of speculative fiction.
It doesn't have the best outlook right now, but it won't disappear. I'd probably see it going in a pretty realistic, more tech and sci heavy. Something about our IRL chances of reaching Mars with men, and how people are starting to try to mine rockets may soon illicit a new surge of energy into interest in space, an Sci-fi will adapt to that.

>>4098443
>Something about our IRL chances of reaching Mars with men, and how people are starting to try to mine rockets may soon illicit a new surge of energy into interest in space, an Sci-fi will adapt to that.

That reminds me of a Juan Atkins song "No UFOs."

Maybe a big reason that Sci Fi is in such a funk is because people don't look at a night sky and think "what's up there?"

I hope you're right, anon. People need to look and think beyond the earth again.

>>4094266
IIRC Savchenko got an English translation for at least one of his books.

>>4098474
People don't look up anymore because of all the distraction down here - war, famine, tech, poverty, mindless consumerism - shit that cyberpunk dealt with a decade or 2 ago. Shit that's coming true.

But with our new ability for space (private companies going up there, meteor mining, mars trips, finding more planets like ours), I think we may spark another space revolution.

Of course, sci-fi isn't restricted to space. The two aren't mutually inclusive. But they are lifelong partners.

>I hope you're right, anon. People need to look and think beyond the earth again.
Me too, anon. Me too.

>>4098474
This made me think, how much sci fi has nothing to do with space travel? I mean it's not exactly a requirement, neuromancer has nothing to do with space for example

How many of the well known ones don't have to do with space?

>>4098513
>neuromancer has nothing to do with space for example
I think they go to the moon at one point, and a big part of the middle of the book has to do with their ship in space and the space-Jamaicans and shit.

Snow Crash would've been a better example.

>>4094460
It's also part of a duology that will never be finished.

>>4098519
Oh you're right, was it essential to the story or idea that they're there? Or could it be any other cool base idea like underground or whatever

>>4098540
I'd say it was essential.

I'm not denying that there's sci-fi without space, though.

Is this any good /lit/? It's the only science fiction to have won the author a Nobel, but we all know that the literature Nobel isn't really something to be taken seriously, and I've never seen it discussed on /lit/ before so I'm leery of shelling the cash for one of the out-of-print English editions.

Also, some recommendations of mine:

Eumeswil - Ernst Junger
A Voyage to Arcturus - David Lindsay

>>4098369
uh what

>>4099295

Guys

what's some sci fi that you read that you would never recommend anyone?

just books that you found really shitty

and the reasons

>>4099440
Sacred Locomotive Flies
The Black Spot
Report on Probablity A
Yargo

There are so many!

>>4096859
Neuromancer is neo-noir. You should have expected something more similar to Blade Runner, which is what you got.

>implying I didn't come 1000x when I read the epilogue

>>4099457
reasons

>>4093737
The matrix in Neuromancer is pretty vague, yeah. But so is the one in the Matrix, so idk. I can see a lot of elements of the Neuromancer matrix in the Matrix matrix though. I think the matrix gets a lot more fleshed out in Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive.

Also, in Mona Lisa, the story is about a girl that can jack into the matrix without the use of any technology. I mean, come on. It's Neo right there.

>>4094157
Wow, post something that you would good modern sci-fi and maybe I will be able to restrain my laughter.

>>4099464
>can jack into the matrix without the use of any technology. I mean, come on. It's Neo right there.

That's not neo, that's some kid from the side stories

>>4099465
*would consider

>>4099466
Oh yeah, I guess Neo can just use his powers when he is outside of the matrix. My mistake. I never got huge into the Matrix lore.

>>4099471
That happened in revolutions, doesn't count

>>4099474
or was it the end of reloaded, still doesn't count

>>4099474
>>4099477
If you want to get into the lore, you have to count them. That's the unfortunate thing about it.

I'm hoping that the Sprawl Trilogy ends up being better than the Matrix Trilogy. I'm positive it will.

Pandora's start & Judas Unchained by Peter Hamilton

It's a bit more on the space opera side, but very epic, very clever. The adversaries are original with clear explanation and motivation for their hostility, their very nature is used to explain some tactics or the lack there off, in what in many other books would have been plot holes. The world and the use of technology is consequent, meaning there are no major times you will frown and think they could have easily done something different.

Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
This is more of a very clever and funny book then sci-fi perse. But it's just really good.


Raft - Stephen Baxter
Really original hard sci-fi. Has somewhat boring moments, punctuated by awesome ideas.


Vacuum Diagrams - Stephen Baxter
Collection of short stories. This book is just filled to the brim with awe and wonder, especially about all kinds of different life. It's basically a treasure trove of ideas.

>>4099567
>perse

Stanislaw Lem

>>4099567
It's per se, cunt.

>>4099572
>>4099579
TNB (Typical Nigger Behaviour)

>>4099572
>perse
>noun
>dark purplish black color

>>4099583
It's also Estonian for ass/arse.

What was the first sci fi book?

>>4099942
That depends a lot on what you mean by 'sci fi'. A lot of people would say Frankenstein, though.

>>4099948
Frankenstein is what I've always heard was first, although a lot of Jules Verne books may also be considered early sci-fi. Which comes first, I don't know - I'm too lazy to look it up right now.

>>4100123
Jules Verne was born a decade after the publication of Frankenstein.

If you think Frankenstein is a science fiction novel, it's definitely the first, and there's definitely a really strong argument that it is a science fiction novel.

I saw that the book has 500 pages or more, but the description sounded interesting. Endless hard scifi wankery or engaging?

wut do u brosefs think about "only forward" by michael something smith? i saw someone mention it on the guardian website comments and have no idea if its actually good or not but it sounded neat

>>4099948
lel the first sci-fi book was A True Story. /lit/ is full of so many grandstanding faggots who don't know their shit.

Most of the recommended sci fi books are from the 80s and earlier

What are some newer ones that are good? Even from the 00s or 10s

>>4100134
>Jules Verne was born a decade after the publication of Frankenstein.

Shit, really? Guess I got my timelines all fucked up then.

If that's the case, Frankenstein is definitely the first sci-fi book. I think my Senior year English teacher said that.

>>4100715
I liked "How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe" by Charles Yu. Came out in 2010, won some award, and it's pretty interesting.

I never asked what /lit/ thought about it, though.

>>4100174

engaging and hard sci fi wankery if you like geology, not a literary book but still worthwhile

this.

>did not read rest of thread, might already be there.

>>4093738
this is my favorite fucking sci-fi novel

props to you, anon

So everyone's been praising The Book of the New Sun on /lit/ for a while, even in this thread, so I started reading the first one yesterday.

>tfw massive infodump begins the book

Isn't "show, don't tell" a phrase every novelist knows? Most of the infodump was also completely unnecessary, the reader can infer such things as were written from the text easily. But the first chapter was good, I guess. The writing was excellent and flowed well.

>>4101375
What info dump? Most of it is Severian telling his experiences

Although I also started reading it not long ago, soon finished the first book

Why does Severian meet a new qt girl every 10 pages or so?

>>4101485
The storyteller talking about social groups, monetary systems, translations and such

>>4093738
this is a fantastic novel good stuff

>>4093738

>>4093748

>>4100702
Well, I said originally that it depends on what you mean by science fiction, and this is what I was talking about.

I don't think True History is science fiction. Not in any meaningful sense, anyway. It gets described as that because it talks about some things that would later be considered the subject matter of SF, but that doesn't make it actually SF. It's a work of classic literature. It does not really resemble, in its methods and concerns, science fiction; it does not do what science fiction does. The same goes for most of the things before Frankenstein that get thrown out as "the first science fiction story" because someone wants a splashy headline for the paper they're writing, or whatever - I just don't think there's a compelling case to call them science fiction.

>>4101511

FAGGOT KILL YOURSELF

>>4101492
Like, the book's writer or Severian?

He talked about money for a bit after getting the coin and I don't recall major talk about groups, feels like most of it was just him retelling his tale

>>4101524
Not sure what your issue is

>>4101532
The issue is that you are a nigger
bitchy ass nigger faggot who uses their subjective opinion about science fiction to define the parameters of science fiction. Fucking neckbeard fedora faggot fucking die in a fire

>>4101528
Book's writer. I am reading a version that combines the first two books. Perhaps this is not included in the beginning of all versions of the book. It felt very obtrusive in any case.

>>4101537
Not really sure what you think I should do. I'm making an argument for my idea of what science fiction should be. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Feel free to criticize my idea, or make an argument for your own. But, yeah, I'm going to make my argument, because I think it's correct, and it's not like it's irrelevant in a discussion about what the first science fiction novel is. You gotta come up with some concept of what science fiction is. I don't know, man, what the fuck do you want?

>>4101528
Severian does talk somewhat about the guilds and that sort of thing, that might be what he's talking about. Not sure about translations, though, I thought there was a note on translations but that was at the end of the first volume IIRC.

>>4101546
So, just to be clear here: is this something that is contained within the narrative of the story, or something outside it? Is it Severian saying "I am telling you about this thing" or is it a prologue or something?

>>4101546
I'm reading the combined version too, maybe we have different versions because the only note from the author I see is in the end of Shadow of the Torturer for like one page

>>4101552
Ah, it's a separate thing. First came a section called "notes on translation," where the writer basically explains that horses probably are not real horses and armor probably isn't just steel plates or something. Then an appendix on the social relationships in the Commonwealth and units of distance and the monetary system. I felt strange that the book began with it, but didn't question it at the time. A strange ebook edition, perhaps.

>>4101552
So why does Severian meet a qt girl everywhere he goes to?

>>4101560
Ah, yeah, seems like a strange ebook thing. I read it in a 2-volume print edition and, like I said, it had the note about translations etc but at the end of the first volume. Weird.

>>4101564
Hmmm. It's a tricky question to answer. I guess one thing I would say is that Severian has a very accurate memory, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Severian is trustworthy or honest.

GREG EGAN - AXIOMATIC

I'm seriously upset with you guys...

>>4095282
A Canticle for Leibowitz isn't good. It's glorious. Thoroughly recommend it. A few times you have to trudge through a page or two but the rest is hooking.

>>4101640
http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/1961-hugo-awards/
confirmed for god tier

>>4100797
I can't exactly explain why, but I really didn't like that book.

>>4093011
The forever war was breddy gud

>>4101822
I also like the Honor Harrington series....kinda cheesy but addictive

and the Revelation Space series by Alastair Reynolds

>>4097982
There are many Star Wars novels I have enjoyed....Courtship of Princess Leia, darth plagueis, outbound flight, thrawn trilogy, Dark lord, I, jedi...I have read them all, and if you loved the movies, you will like about 75% of the books...some are real stinkers though

>>4098307
oh and using looks cut off hand at Cloud city to clone him....yeah who cares, they are fun and very enjoyable

>>4099567
I read Pandora star and Judas Unchained....they are not bad, but pretty lengthy. There are so many characters and so many pages that you have to keep notes if you want to remember what happened earlier in the book

Well depends what you are looking for OP.
If you want a more or less realistic view on space battles check out Jack Campbell's The lost fleets series.
The writing can be pleb tier at times, but it's still a decent read.
I have yet to find a writer who does space battles better.

>>4092795
Anvil of the Stars, Greg Bear

NEEEEEEERRRRRDDDDDDDSSSSSS

>>4092994
Not everything has to be serious you fucking dickwit. I'd rather read that than some shitty boring garbage that's normally posted on this faggot board. Christ.

Can someone recommend me a book about a sentient robot experiencing personality crisis?

>>4102894
The short story Exhalation by Ted Chiang might fit the bill.

>>4101501
wtf mang

>>4101501
i dont understand the reference

I'm really just bumping this thread because i'm too lazy to write down the books listed ITT.

>>4099567

>Stephen baxter's Xeelee Sequence

mah nigga

Is there a book about humanity trying to survive afte rthe sun just kinda, uh goes way?

Been looking for this for a while.

>>4106837
That'd be interesting, but I can't even think of one.

>>4107012
It's a neat idea, but i;ve never seen it.

>>4106837
>>4107012
>>4107024

This actually reminds me of a passage written by Michio Kaku where he discussed the prospect of an advanced civilization trying to survive the entropy death of the universe. The whole thing was so simple but so unique.

The damn thing is begging for a narrative to be made out of it.

>>4106837
Book of the new sun? Or does the sun never die there

>>4101908
i feel like a weeb, but the first time I learned Greg Bear was from Eureka Seven, because one of the characters had a name that was a mixture of his and another sci-fi writer

>>4094147
>Heinlein
so much this. i've recently uploaded the entire bibliography of heinlein on my kindle, and i'm kinda surprised of how good can be. go for it OP

>>4106837

William Hope Hodgson was fascinated with this although he was not well educated in science even by the standards of his time and so his explanations of it sound slightly retarded. But The Night Land and to a lesser extent The House on the Borderland both treat this theme, if you can stomach his godawful prose they're quite nice to read.

A few people have already mentioned it in this thread, but I'm going to mention it again because it's amazing. Alastair Reynold's "Revelation Space" is practically a must-read, he's one of the best Sci-Fi author's currently writing and this is probably his masterpiece. He manages to convey a sense of scale to the Universe it's in that is staggering. The sci-fi elements in it get pretty damn hard at times as well, which is understandable considering Reynolds is a trained Astrophysicist. The characters are all really compelling as well, from the douchebag scientist on a quest to make a name for himself by solving the mystery of the Shrouders, to the space pirates on a mission to save their captain from the biomechanical plague he has been infected with.

"Embassytown" by China Mieville is surprisingly good. It deals with a whole load of weird shit to do with the nature of language, but also manages to spin this believable universe into the story despite being set primarily in one city on one planet. It also has some of the most 'alien' aliens in a sci-fi novel I've ever read.

"The Red Men" by Matthew de Abaitua is pretty much post-Cyberpunk. It's set in modern day Britain where a mega-corporation called Monad have mysteriously started churning out ultra high-tech products such as robots, computers the size of sheets of paper, and The Red Men, digital copies of the super-elite. It starts off with one of The Red Men going rogue and attempting to kill its creator, but the story evolves from that into something so much more.

Slaughterhouse 5 - Kurt Vonnegut

Obvious

>>4110675
>Alastair Reynold
I've never read any Reynolds, but I was planning on trying him out with House of Suns. Let me know if that is a bad place to start.

>>4110997

I haven't read House of Suns yet, so can't really comment. I've only read a few of his novels (he's surprisingly prolific) of those from best to worst:

1. Revelation Space
2. Redemption Ark
3. Absolution Gap
4. Terminal World
5. Century Rain
6. Blue Remembered Earth

Bump

>>4111154

redemption ark blows revelation space out of the water tho

>>4095641
>>4097953

I tried reading one of his books the other day, I think it was..the city & the city? It was pretty weak to be honest, I only got about 1/3 of the way through.

>>4112436

Excellent book, worth reading to the end even if not quite to your taste.

My own recommendations to add to this thread, aside from those already covered by someone else, would be Charles Stross and Richard Morgan, both modern writers in very different styles.

>>4112494
richard morgan is kind of crap

charlie stross is a really good writer, which means that it's a real shame that all the books he writes are fucking awful shit

>>4112501
if stross' books are all shit... what makes you say he's a good writer?

he does seem to have a thing about butt-plugs (Accelerando, Rule 34, Saturn's Children)... and he really likes saying "Welcome to the..." whatever.

>>4095176
I'm partial to No.44 The Mysterious Stranger, myself.

>>4112557
Accelerando mostly. Accelerando was good. And Singularity Sky was decent. And even in his books that aren't good, he usually shows some amount of talent.

Anyone have any books in the same realm as Childhood's End? Apotheosis gets my dick hard.

>>4112399

I guess it's all opinion, but I personally felt the other two books in the Revelation Space trilogy were pretty weak in comparison to the first. It probably had something to do with the fact I really liked the Sylveste character, who is basically replaced in the other two novels with Clavain, who I didn't find anywhere near as interesting, he was pretty much 'generic old grizzled general' in my eyes. While all the stuff with the Inhibitors planning to blow up Resurgam was pretty cool I felt that they lost something of their menace when Reynolds explained in detail the way their society worked and the methods they used to destroy solar systems, as awesome as they were.

>>4112436

I loved The City & The City, but I can see how it won't be for everyone since it kind of starts out as a pretty standard murder mystery. It also took me about a third of the book to figure out the two cities were physically in the same location but segregated, like for instance your street is in City A, but the next street over is in City B, so you're not allowed to set foot in it or even look at it unless you've gone to the border for City B which is a mile away and crossed over into the other City. It's got a lot of metaphors (some pretty heavy handed) for class division and such peppered throughout the story, and it's a pretty unique story anyway, it's sort of like a really psychedelic version of The Bridge.

>>4093011
The Stars My Destionation is a must read.

>>4095259
Yup

Altered Carbon

>>4112922
I agree that Revelation Space was way better than any of its sequels. I wish they had taken the second half of Revelation Space and made that a book of its own, because it's hideously rushed, and it should have had a lot more space to breath. I agree that the characters introduced after the first book are much less interesting. For me personally, Khouri and Volyova are by far the most interesting characters, with Sylveste third, and I didn't like the way the storylines of the first two went and obviously Sylveste was just not around. And I think the plot, in general, was less absorbing.

I liked the pig, though.

>>4112931
Agreed. It's a fantastic book. As is The Demolished Man. Bester's other work.... not so much. Golem100, bleh.

Philip K. Dick's Valis

Light by M. John Harrison

Metro 2033, Roadside picnic

>>4113168
This one is incredible.

>>4113200
Mad good

Heinlein

The City & the City was mindbending for me once I understood what was happening. What I like about China's books is that for the most part he doesn't explain what's happening, but allows you to figure it out on your own. On the other hand, many of his characters are way too passive. Embassytown is a lot like that. The Scar / Perdido are more explanatory but still pretty heavy with the show.

Altered Carbon / Richard Morgan is good fun action detective cyber-punk. Nothing serious here, but it's pretty fun and not so stupid that you'll want to throw the book (like Dresden Files or something).

The Fractal Prince is probably the best sci-fi of recent years.

>>4094422
Huh, I actually just stopped reading it midway. Not like, I hate this book with a white hot hate, and must stop. But after a certain amount of reading, I just didn't care what happened next, and was done being impressed by his neato world.

>>4092865
To be honest, I'm not sure I like thinking of his work as sf. I loved Snow Crash, but it had some pretty rocky spots (like the entire second half).

They remind me too much of modern "thrillers", which I loathe. Snow Crash had some really clever, funny stuff, but honestly, reminds me more of The Da Vinci Code than Neuromancer.

>>4113626
>>4113200
Oh god, please halp! I've tried to read this about six times. How did you make it through the beginning?

>>4111154
Revelations Space's ending was so crap it prevented me reading any more of his books. It was like 3 hours of guys sitting in different rooms thinking badly of one another.

I'd recommend "Who Goes There?". It's very short, but a great read.

>>4101640
Must agree. Slog through any part that bogs you down. It's worth it.

Also, I haven't seen anyone mention Fredrick Pohl, and Gateway, if not the whole heechee saga.

>>4096104
What this guy said, except exactly the opposite.

Im gonna recommend:
Tau Zero by Poul Anderson (hard sci-fi, space)
Axiomatic by Greg Egan (if you like transhumanism, read this one ASAP)